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The 2021 Legislative Session is quickly approaching, and we want to continue highlighting the work we've been doing over the past several months to remind legislators that the current law on the books is not adequate for survivors of crimes.

I entered the career of Law Enforcement on a whim. I was looking for a career that would provide me with daily challenges and the opportunity to be involved within the community I live. Throughout this journey, I have been afforded that opportunity, and I have also observed some inefficiencies within the criminal justice system. One of those inefficiencies would be that of victim rights. 

There's never a good time to be the victim of a crime. But being the victim and survivor during a pandemic is even more horrifying than normal.

Shortly after the pandemic hit Iowa, when county officials began releasing inmates early as a precaution to COVID outbreaks, we reached out to every county sheriff and county attorneys offices, reminding them that Iowa doesn't currently have constitutional rights for victims when it comes to notification. We stressed the importance that they notify victims of the early release of inmates. We know that many victims and survivors only feel safe when they either know their offender is locked up or they know where they are. 

The right to be treated with dignity, respect and fairness during all phases of the criminal justice process

Participation in the process of government is at the root­­­­­ of our democracy, yet victims of crime in Iowa currently have no meaningful participatory rights in the government process which is designed to seek justice for the trauma that they have endured. They are forced to act as a witness to their own trauma while their dignity is slowly chipped away. They are reminded again and again to remain on the sidelines while the government seeks justice for the public, but not given the opportunity to have their rights considered in that justice being sought. Victims of crime deserve to have their rights considered in the criminal justice system and that is exactly what a right to fairness, dignity and respect would afford them.

Liz is a paramedic and nurse so when she and her husband, Troy, saw a driver on the side of the road, slumped over in their car, they knew they needed to help. Troy and Liz assumed this person was having a medical emergency and when they pulled over to help, the person, who was on parole for drug offenses and was on drugs at the time, ran Troy over and sped off. Troy was killed in this tragic and violent incident and Liz was thrown into a system she never wanted to be in, the criminal justice system.