2023 California Code › Welfare and Institutions Code - WIC › DIVISION 2 - CHILDREN › PART 1 - DELINQUENTS AND WARDS OF THE JUVENILE COURT › CHAPTER 2 - Juvenile Court Law › ARTICLE 16 - Wards Commencement of Proceedings › Section 656.2.

656.2. (a) (1) Notwithstanding any other law, a victim shall have the right to present a victim impact statement in all juvenile court hearings concerning petitions filed pursuant to Section 602 alleging the commission of any criminal offense. In any case in which a minor is alleged to have committed a criminal offense, the probation officer shall inform the victim of the rights of victims to submit a victim impact statement. If the victim exercises the right to submit a victim impact statement to the probation officer, the probation officer is encouraged to include the statement in his or her social study submitted to the court pursuant to Section 706 and, if applicable, in his or her report submitted to the court pursuant to Section 707. The probation officer also shall advise those persons as to the time and place of the disposition hearing to be conducted pursuant to Sections 702 and 706; any fitness hearing to be conducted pursuant to Section 707, and any other judicial proceeding concerning the case.
(2) The officer shall also provide the victim with information concerning the victim’s right to an action for civil damages against the minor and his or her parents and the victim’s opportunity to be compensated from the restitution fund. The information shall be in the form of written material prepared by the Judicial Council and shall be provided to each victim for whom the probation officer has a current mailing address.
(b) Notwithstanding any other law, the persons from whom the probation officer is required to solicit a statement pursuant to subdivision (a) shall have the right to attend the disposition hearing conducted pursuant to Section 702 and to express their views concerning the offense and disposition of the case pursuant to Section 706, to attend any fitness hearing conducted pursuant to Section 707, and to be present during juvenile proceedings as provided in Section 676.5.
(c) (1) Notwithstanding any other law, in any case in which a minor is alleged to have committed an act subject to a fitness hearing under Section 707, the victim shall have the right to be informed of all court dates and continuances pertaining to the case, and shall further have the right to obtain copies of the charging petition, the minutes of the proceedings, and orders of adjudications and disposition of the court that are contained in the court file. The arresting agency shall notify the victim in a timely manner of the address and telephone number of the juvenile branch of the district attorney’s office that will be responsible for the case and for informing the victim of the victim’s right to attend hearings and obtain documents as provided in this section. The district attorney shall, upon request, inform the victim of the date of the fitness hearing, the date of the disposition hearing, and the dates for any continuances of those hearings, and shall inform the court if the victim seeks to exercise his or her right to obtain copies of the documents described in this subdivision.
(2) Where the proceeding against the minor is based on a felony that is not listed in Section 676, a victim who obtains information about the minor under this subdivision shall not disclose or disseminate this information beyond his or her immediate family or support persons authorized by Section 676, unless authorized to do so by a judge of the juvenile court, and the judge may suspend or terminate the right of the victim to access to information under this subdivision if the information is improperly disclosed or disseminated by the victim or any members of his or her immediate family. The intentional dissemination of documents in violation of this subdivision is a misdemeanor and shall be punished by a fine of not more than five hundred dollars ($500). Documents released by the court to a victim pursuant to this section shall be stamped as confidential and with a statement that the unlawful dissemination of the documents is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not more than five hundred dollars ($500).
(d) Upon application of the district attorney for good cause and a showing of potential danger to the public, the court may redact any information contained in any documents released by the court to a victim pursuant to this section.
(e) For purposes of this section, “victim” means the victim, the parent or guardian of the victim if the victim is a minor, or, if the victim has died, the victim’s next of kin.
(Amended by Stats. 2013, Ch. 28, Sec. 91. (SB 71) Effective June 27, 2013.)