The November ballot includes a constitutional amendment question that aims to expand crime victim’s rights in court proceedings. It’s also known as Marsy’s Law.
Jennifer Bishop-Jenkens helped craft the proposed amendment over the last six years. Her sister, brother in-law and their baby were murdered. She says because it was triple-homicide she and her family were told they didn’t need to deliver victim impact statements in the murder trial:
“And so there’s no victim voice now in the court record and it’s a problem because even all these years later he’s still got a new appeal. He’s got a new case up now, and there’s transcripts being pulled up of that old case. And there’s no record of the actual crime its self, only some of the evidence in the case.”
Bishop-Jenkens says the ballot question ensures the victim’s voice in a case. The McLean County State’s Attorney is also supporting the ballot question. He says all the elements of the proposed Constitutional Amendment can help the prosecutors make a case stronger.
The Illinois Constitutional Amendment proposal is crafted largely after the federal law. Illinois is the only state that prohibits victims from pursuing legal remedy through appeal.