‘‘CHAPTER 237—CRIME VICTIMS’ RIGHTS
‘‘Sec. 
‘‘3771. Crime victims’ rights.
‘‘§ 3771. Crime victims’ rights 
‘‘(a) RIGHTS OF CRIME VICTIMS.—A crime victim 
has the following rights: 
‘‘(1) The right to be reasonably protected from 
the accused. 
‘‘(2) The right to reasonable, accurate, and 
timely notice of any public proceeding involving the 
crime or of any release or escape of the accused. 
‘‘(3) The right not to be excluded from any 
such public proceeding. 
‘‘(4) The right to be reasonably heard at any 
public proceeding involving release, plea, or sen-
tencing. 
‘‘(5) The right to confer with the attorney for 
the Government in the case. 
‘‘(6) The right to full and timely restitution as 
provided in law. 
‘‘(7) The right to proceedings free from unrea-
sonable delay. 
‘‘(8) The right to be treated with fairness and 
with respect for the victim’s dignity and privacy. 
‘‘(b) RIGHTS AFFORDED.—In any court proceeding 
involving an offense against a crime victim, the court shall
ensure that the crime victim is afforded the rights de-
scribed in subsection (a). The reasons for any decision de-
nying relief under this chapter shall be clearly stated on 
the record. 
‘‘(c) BEST EFFORTS TO ACCORD RIGHTS.—
‘‘(1) GOVERNMENT.—Officers and employees of 
the Department of Justice and other departments 
and agencies of the United States engaged in the de-
tection, investigation, or prosecution of crime shall 
make their best efforts to see that crime victims are 
notified of, and accorded, the rights described in 
subsection (a). 
‘‘(2) CONFLICT.—In the event of any material 
conflict of interest between the prosecutor and the 
crime victim, the prosecutor shall advise the crime 
victim of the conflict and take reasonable steps to 
direct the crime victim to the appropriate legal refer-
ral, legal assistance, or legal aid agency. 
‘‘(3) NOTICE.—Notice of release otherwise re-
quired pursuant to this chapter shall not be given if 
such notice may endanger the safety of any person. 
‘‘(d) ENFORCEMENT AND LIMITATIONS.—
‘‘(1) RIGHTS.—The crime victim, the crime vic-
tim’s lawful representative, and the attorney for the 
Government may assert the rights established in this
chapter. A person accused of the crime may not ob-
tain any form of relief under this chapter. 
‘‘(2) MULTIPLE
CRIME
VICTIMS.—In a case 
where the court finds that the number of crime vic-
tims makes it impracticable to accord all of the 
crime victims the rights contained in this chapter, 
the court shall fashion a procedure to give effect to 
this chapter. 
‘‘(3) WRIT OF MANDAMUS.—If a Federal court 
denies any right of a crime victim under this chapter 
or under the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, 
the Government or the crime victim may apply for 
a writ of mandamus to the appropriate court of ap-
peals. The court of appeals shall take up and decide 
such application forthwith and shall order such relief 
as may be necessary to protect the crime victim’s 
ability to exercise the rights. 
‘‘(4) ERROR.—In any appeal in a criminal case, 
the Government may assert as error the district 
court’s denial of any crime victim’s right in the pro-
ceeding to which the appeal relates. 
‘‘(5) NEW TRIAL.—In no case shall a failure to 
afford a right under this chapter provide grounds for 
a new trial.
‘‘(6) NO CAUSE OF ACTION.—Nothing in this 
chapter shall be construed to authorize a cause of 
action for damages. 
‘‘(e) DEFINITIONS.—For the purposes of this chap-
ter, the term ‘crime victim’ means a person directly and 
proximately harmed as a result of the commission of a 
Federal offense. In the case of a crime victim who is under 
18 years of age, incompetent, incapacitated, or deceased, 
the legal guardians of the crime victim or the representa-
tives of the crime victim’s estate, family members, or any 
other persons appointed as suitable by the court, may as-
sume the crime victim’s rights under this chapter, but in 
no event shall the defendant be named as such guardian 
or representative. 
‘‘(f) PROCEDURES TO PROMOTE COMPLIANCE.—
‘‘(1) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 1 year 
after the date of enactment of this chapter, the At-
torney General of the United States shall promul-
gate regulations to enforce the rights of crime vic-
tims and to ensure compliance by responsible offi-
cials with the obligations described in law respecting 
crime victims. 
‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—The regulations promulgated 
under paragraph (1) shall—
‘‘(A) establish an administrative authority 
within the Department of Justice to receive and 
investigate complaints relating to the provision 
or violation of the rights of a crime victim; 
‘‘(B) require a course of training for em-
ployees and offices of the Department of Jus-
tice that fail to comply with provisions of Fed-
eral law pertaining to the treatment of crime 
victims, and otherwise assist such employees 
and offices in responding more effectively to the 
needs of crime victims; 
‘‘(C) contain disciplinary sanctions, includ-
ing suspension or termination from employ-
ment, for employees of the Department of Jus-
tice who willfully or wantonly fail to comply 
with provisions of Federal law pertaining to the 
treatment of crime victims; and 
‘‘(D) provide that the Attorney General, or 
the designee of the Attorney General, shall be 
the final arbiter of the complaint, and that 
there shall be no judicial review of the final de-
cision of the Attorney General by a complain-
ant.’’.
(b) TABLE OF CHAPTERS.—The table of chapters for 
part II of title 18, United States Code, is amended by 
inserting at the end the following:
‘‘237. Crime victims’ rights ............................................................. 3771’’.
(c) REPEAL.—Section 502 of the Victims’ Rights and 
Restitution Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 10606) is repealed. 
SEC. 3. INCREASED RESOURCES FOR ENFORCEMENT OF 
CRIME VICTIMS’ RIGHTS. 
(a) CRIME VICTIMS LEGAL ASSISTANCE GRANTS.—
The Victims of Crime Act of 1984 (42 U.S.C. 10601 et 
seq.) is amended by inserting after section 1404C the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘SEC. 1404D. CRIME VICTIMS LEGAL ASSISTANCE GRANTS. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Director may make grants 
as provided in section 1404(c)(1)(A) to State, tribal, and 
local prosecutors’ offices, law enforcement agencies, 
courts, jails, and correctional institutions, and to qualified 
public and private entities, to develop, establish, and main-
tain programs for the enforcement of crime victims’ rights 
as provided in law. 
‘‘(b) FALSE CLAIMS ACT.—Notwithstanding any 
other provision of law, amounts collected pursuant to sec-
tions 3729 through 3731 of title 31, United States Code 
(commonly known as the ‘False Claims Act’), may be used 
for grants under this section, subject to appropriation.’’.
(b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—In addi-
tion to funds made available under section 1402(d) of the 
Victims of Crime Act of 1984, there are authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this Act—
(1) $2,000,000 for fiscal year 2005 and 
$5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2006, 2007, 
2008, and 2009 to United States Attorneys Offices 
for Victim/Witnesses Assistance Programs; 
(2) $2,000,000 for fiscal year 2005 and 
$5,000,000 in each of the fiscal years 2006, 2007, 
2008, and 2009, to the Office for Victims of Crime 
of the Department of Justice for enhancement of the 
Victim Notification System; 
(3) $300,000 in fiscal year 2005 and $500,000 
for each of the fiscal years 2006, 2007, 2008, and 
2009, to the Office for Victims of Crime of the De-
partment of Justice for staff to administer the ap-
propriation for the support of the National Crime 
Victim Law Institute or other organizations as des-
ignated under paragraph (4); 
(4) $7,000,000 for fiscal year 2005 and 
$11,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2006, 2007, 
2008, and 2009, to the Office for Victims of Crime 
of the Department of Justice, for the support of—
(A) the National Crime Victim Law Insti-
tute and the establishment and operation of the 
Institute’s programs to provide counsel for vic-
tims in criminal cases for the enforcement of 
crime victims’ rights in Federal jurisdictions, 
and in States and tribal governments that have 
laws substantially equivalent to the provisions 
of chapter 237 of title 18, United States Code; 
or 
(B) other organizations substantially simi-
lar to that organization as determined by the 
Director of the Office for Victims of Crime. 
(c) INCREASED RESOURCES TO DEVELOP STATE-OF-
THE-ART SYSTEMS FOR NOTIFYING CRIME VICTIMS OF 
IMPORTANT DATES AND DEVELOPMENTS.—The Victims 
of Crime Act of 1984 (42 U.S.C. 10601 et seq.) is amend-
ed by inserting after section 1404D the following: 
‘‘SEC. 1404E. CRIME VICTIMS NOTIFICATION GRANTS. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Director may make grants 
as provided in section 1404(c)(1)(A) to State, tribal, and 
local prosecutors’ offices, law enforcement agencies, 
courts, jails, and correctional institutions, and to qualified 
public or private entities, to develop and implement state-
of-the-art systems for notifying victims of crime of impor-
tant dates and developments relating to the criminal pro-
ceedings at issue in a timely and efficient manner, pro-
vided that the jurisdiction has laws substantially equiva-
lent to the provisions of chapter 237 of title 18, United 
States Code. 
‘‘(b) INTEGRATION OF SYSTEMS.—Systems developed 
and implemented under this section may be integrated 
with existing case management systems operated by the 
recipient of the grant. 
‘‘(c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—In ad-
dition to funds made available under section 1402(d), 
there are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this 
section—
‘‘(1) $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2005; and 
‘‘(2) $5,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 
2006, 2007, 2008, and 2009. 
‘‘(d) FALSE CLAIMS ACT.—Notwithstanding any 
other provision of law, amounts collected pursuant to sec-
tions 3729 through 3731 of title 31, United States Code 
(commonly known as the ‘False Claims Act’), may be used 
for grants under this section, subject to appropriation.’’. 
SEC. 4. REPORTS. 
(a) ADMINISTRATIVE
OFFICE
OF
THE
UNITED 
STATES COURTS.—Not later than 1 year after the date 
of enactment of this Act and annually thereafter, the Ad-
ministrative Office of the United States Courts, for each
Federal court, shall report to Congress the number of 
times that a right established in chapter 237 of title 18, 
United States Code, is asserted in a criminal case and the 
relief requested is denied and, with respect to each such 
denial, the reason for such denial, as well as the number 
of times a mandamus action is brought pursuant to chap-
ter 237 of title 18, and the result reached. 
(b) GENERAL ACCOUNTING OFFICE.—
(1) STUDY.—The Comptroller General shall 
conduct a study that evaluates the effect and effi-
cacy of the implementation of the amendments made 
by this Act on the treatment of crime victims in the 
Federal system. 
(2) REPORT.—Not later than 3 years after the 
date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller Gen-
eral shall prepare and submit to the appropriate 
committees a report containing the results of the 
study conducted under subsection (a).
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