Epstein Secrets

g the investigative phase of a criminal case. In March and April, the parties filed briefs on their respective positions. On June 6, 2011, Senator Jon Kyl — the co-sponsor of the CVRA — sent a letter to Attorney General Eric Holder directly stating that he had drafted the CVRA to extend rights to crim

l filing of charges in In re Dean, 527 F.3d 391 (5th Cir. 2008) — a case the victims cite in this case. Senator Kyl then specifically disagreed with the Justice Department's assumption "that it has no obligations to treat victims fairly or to confer with them until after charges are formally filed." Id. 3 EFTA00205229

specified that AUSAs were to ensure that victims had a right to be reasonably heard at plea proceedings.382 On November 2, 2011, U.S. Senator Jon Kyl, a co-sponsor of the CVRA, sent a letter to Attorney General Eric Holder, arguing that the 2011 Guidelines revisions “conflict[ed] quite clearly wi

271 U.S. Dept. of Justice Office of the Inspector General Audit Division Audit Report 08-04, The Department of Justice’s Victim Notification System at 29 (Jan. 2008), available at https://oig.justice.gov/reports/EOUSA/a0804/ final.pdf. The 2008 audit identified concer

DEAR ATTORNEY GENERAL HOLDER: I am writing about the Justice Department’s im- plementation of the Crime Victims’ Rights Act

was an obligation of “Colfficers and employees of the Department of Justice and other departments and agen- cies of the Unite

ent 85-1 Entered on FLSD Docket 06/17/2011 Page 3 of 4 S3608 U.S. SENATE, Washington, DC, June 6, 2011. Hon. ERIC H. HOLDER, Jr., Attorney General; U.S. Department of Justice, Washington, DC. DEAR ATTORNEY GENERAL HOLDER: I am writing about the Justice Department’s im- plementation of the Crime Victims’ Rights Act--an act

ne 6, 2011. Hon. ERIC H. HOLDER, Jr., Attorney General; U.S. Department of Justice, Washington, DC. DEAR ATTORNEY GENERAL HOLDER: I am writing about the Justice Department’s im- plementation of the Crime Victims’ Rights Act--an act that I co-sponsored in 2004. These questions relate to an Office of Legal Counsel (“OLC’’?)

ess could not have been clearer in its direction that using ‘“‘best efforts’’ to en- force the CVRA was an obligation of “Colfficers and employees of the Department of Justice and other departments and agen- cies of the United States engaged in the de- tection, investigation, or prosecution of crime . .? 18 U.S.C. §8771(c)

Is it true that the Department has never used this provision in even a single case in the more than six years since the CVRA was enacted? Sincerely, JON KYL, U.S. Senator. HONORING OUR ARMED FORCES SERGEANT VORASACK T. XKAYSANA Mr. BENNET. Mr. President, it is with a heavy heart that I rise today to ho

cccccccccesceessseesseesseesseeeseeessees 73 III. THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT’S UNPERSUASIVE POSITION .........0....00000- 75 A.

CVRA rights attach when an officer or employee of the Department of Justice or any other department or agency of the United S

does not extend crime victims any rights until prosecutors choose to file formal criminal charges. This led the CVRA’s Senate cosponsor, then-Senator Jon Kyl, to fire off an angry letter to the Justice Department attacking its position. In our Article, we side with the Act’s cosponsor. We believe that, pro

ns 71 C. Courts Recognize That Crime Victims Have CVRA Rights Before Charging .........ccccccccccccccccccccccesceessseesseesseesseeeseeessees 73 III. THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT’S UNPERSUASIVE POSITION .........0....00000- 75 A. OLC’s Misreading of the CVRA’s Definition of “Victim” ........ 76 B. OLC’s Distortion of the CVRA’s

of 31 104 J. Crim. L. & Criminology 59, *75 II. The Justice Department's Unpersuasive Position Despite the CVRA's broad r

cifically directs that "officers and employees of the Department of Justice and other departments and agencies of the United

does not extend crime victims any rights until prosecutors choose to file formal criminal charges. This led the CVRA's Senate cosponsor, then-Senator Jon Kyl, to fire off an angry letter to the Justice Department attacking its position. In our Article, we side with the Act's cosponsor. We believe that, pro

hat potential charges will never be filed. The issue of pre-charging rights has most prominently surfaced in connection with federal cases. In 2010, the Department of Justice's Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) weighed in on the issue and released a legal opinion arguing that victims of federal crimes have no CVRA rights during

notice of their rights before charges are filed. The Justice Department's own guidelines provide that a victim must receive

Gen.). 30 See www.nveap.org (last visted Dec. 30, 2007). 3! For a comprehensive history of victims' efforts to pass a constitutional amendment, sce Jon Kyl, Steven J. Twist & Stephen Higgins, On the Wings of Their Angels, the Scott Campbell, Stephanie Roper, Wendy Preseon, Louarna Gillis, and Nila Lynn

Sen. Kyl) ("We authorized an appropriation of to assure ... that moneys would be made available to enhance the victim notification system, managed by the Department of Justice's Office for Victims of Crime, and the resources additionally to develop state-of-the-art systems for notifying crime victims of important states of de

ourt proceedings. Moreover, the CVRA directs that the Department of Justice and its investigative agencies "shall make their

108 A.L.R. Fed. 828 (2005). A few new issues will need to be litigated. For example, the Hughey case noted above conflicts with the views of Senator Jon Kyl, co- sponsor of the CVRA, who explained that the definition of "victim" in the CVRA is an intentionally broad definition because "all victims of DAV

yl) ("We authorized an appropriation of funds to assure ... that moneys would be made available to enhance the victim notification system, managed by the Department of Justice's Office for Victims of Crime, and the resources additionally to develop state-of-the-art systems for notifying crime victims of important statements o

he 'right not to be excluded from any such public court proceeding....' 18 U.S.C. § 3771(a)(2) & (3). Section 3771 also commands that 'employees of the Department ofJustice ... engaged in the detection, investigation, or prosecution of crime shall make their best efforts to see that crime 14 EFTA00010520 --- PAGE BREAK

stigations and proceedings. Doe, 950 F. Supp. 2d at 1267; see also 157 Cong. Rec. 57060-01, 157 Cong. Rec. S7060-01, S7060 (CVRA co-sponsor Senator Jon Kyl's 2011 letter to the Attorney General, explaining that "Congress intended the CVRA to broadly protect crime victims throughout the criminal justice

he 'right not to be excluded from any such public court proceeding....' 18 U.S.C. § 3771(a)(2) & (3). Section 3771 also commands that 'employees of the Department ofJustice ... engaged in the detection, investigation, or prosecution of crime shall make their best efforts to see that crime 14 EFTA00027679 --- PAGE BREAK

stigations and proceedings. Doe, 950 F. Supp. 2d at 1267; see also 157 Cong. Rec. 57060-01, 157 Cong. Rec. S7060-01, S7060 (CVRA co-sponsor Senator Jon Kyl's 2011 letter to the Attorney General, explaining that "Congress intended the CVRA to broadly protect crime victims throughout the criminal justice