Marsy’s Law Initiative Petition

A constitutional amendment, proposed by initiative petition, would clarify the rights of victims of crime in the Montana Constitution.  Dubbed “Marsy’s Law” the amendment would be redundant in Yellowstone County, which already works to balance victim’s rights with the administration of justice.
Yellowstone County Attorney Scott Twito has made communication with victims of crime a priority.  Twito’s office employs seven victim-witness coordinators who focus on helping victims through the criminal justice system.  He would like to better utilize the internet to help victims understand their rights.

California has its police officers provide Marsy’s Law cards to victims that detail their rights.  The law would hit prosecutors in the Billings and Laurel city attorney's offices harder than Yellowstone County, where many of the notification requirements are already in place.  Cards would relieve some of the burden from city attorney's’ offices, whose cases move much faster than in state court.