Remedy Looking for a Problem

Should a crime victim have the right to be at criminal proceedings involving the defendant accused of that crime? Should the victim be protected from intimidation or retaliation by the defendant? Should the victim be notified of a defendant’s release or escape from prison? Of course--and many states, including California, specifically guarantee such victims’ rights already. But an amendment to the U.S. Constitution?

President Clinton’s embracing this week of just such a constitutional amendment puts to rest any doubt that the presidential election campaign has shifted into a higher gear.

In recent years, Clinton has opposed calls to amend the Constitution to require a balanced budget, criminalize flag desecration and permit school prayer. He has correctly argued that the document is sacred and should not be changed except in the most extreme cases. But, he says now, the victims’ rights issue is “different.� Might that difference largely be the quickening presidential campaign?

Clinton’s political instincts tell him, rightly, that no one is against victims’ rights. Clearly those whose lives have been horribly changed by violent crime deserve support in trying to cope and in seeking justice. But there’s no need to amend the Constitution in order to do that.

Clinton has not yet endorsed a specific measure, but on Tuesday he said he would support proposals for an amendment to inform crime victims or their survivors about court dates in the cases, notify them of the release of defendants, provide for restitution and permit them to testify at sentencing or parole conferences.

California voters’ passage of Proposition 8, which amended the state Constitution, and subsequent passage of state laws authorize victims’ rights such as restitution and testifying at sentencing and parole hearings. Most other states make at least some provision for crime victims, and at least 20 states have laws that require notifying victims or survivors of sentencing hearings and allowing them to testify at those proceedings. This issue is one that states have demonstrated they are quite capable of handling on their own.