FRANKFORT, Ky. - The Senate State and Local Government Committee passed three major pieces of legislation Wednesday, dealing with the rights of crime victims, the governor’s pardon power, and restoring voting rights to felons.
Senate Bill 15 is another attempt to pass Marsy’s Law, a bill creating a crime victims bill of rights. Voters approved the constitutional amendment in 2018, but the Kentucky Supreme Court overturned it because the ballot question was too vague.
Melissa Buchanan testified in support of the bill. Her brother Charlie was killed by a group of people 20 years ago. She said crime victims need more rights.
“I wasn’t notified that some of the defendants were released from custody, and they began calling my home and threatening me and my family because they had gotten my phone number from a police scanner,” Buchanan said. “Shortly after the threats began, they would regularly drive by my home, and I was told by authorities that nothing could be done.”
The bill would ensure crime victims get notifications about court proceedings and reasonable protection from suspects, among other rights. State Sen. Whitney Westerfield, R-Crofton, said the justice system is imbalanced right now.
“An imbalance where the victim is not given the same sort of legal protection and status as the accused, or the same sort of weight or the same sort of consideration, means that victim’s rights are often overlooked,” Westerfield said. “Right now, those statutory rights are outranked by the constitutional rights of the accused. When that happens, it makes victims feel like they’re standing on the outside.”
Groups representing the rights of defendants spoke out against the bill, including the Kentucky Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, a group that fought Marsy’s Law in court after it was initially passed. President David Ward said the bill only protects a slim minority of crime victims.
“Let’s be clear about that: A slim minority of crime victims who have the financial resources to hire private counsel to enforce their rights,” Ward said. “For the vast majority of crime victims, Marsy’s Law is meaningless. In fact, it’s worse than meaningless; It’s the appearance of action and concern and concern when in fact, it is none of those things.”
Other opponents said it may cause chaos in the courtrooms as court personnel try to abide by portions of the law.
State Sen. Chris McDaniel, R-Taylor Mill, pre-filed a bill that eventually became Senate Bill 58 after former Gov. Matt Bevin’s controversial pardons before he left office. The bill prohibits a governor from pardoning anyone 30 days before the election and in the period between the election and the inauguration, regardless of who wins.
McDaniel invited 16-year-old Chloe Randall to testify about the bill. She was sexually assaulted when she was 12, and while her abuser was not one of the men pardoned by Bevin, she said she can’t bear the thought of him being out in public.
“It’d be probably one of the worst things that can happen, honestly, because then you know that nobody really cared,” Randall said. “And you feel like you went through all that trouble just for nothing to happen.”
Gov. Andy Beshear said he’s actively monitoring the bill as it progresses through the legislature, but he understands concerns about the pardon power being abused.
“And when you, under the constitution, are provided with such an important power, it has to be used responsibly,” Beshear said.
Senate Bill 62 State Sen. Jimmy Higdon, R-Lebanon, sponsors a bill that would restore voting rights to certain felons. The bill would put a constitutional amendment on the ballot this fall, asking voters if they approve of restoring voting rights to felons who aren’t convicted of sex offenses, violent offenses, crimes against children or government corruption.
A committee substitute added the corruption charges and dropped a provision that would have made felons wait five years after the completion of their sentence. If approved, the General Assembly would have to pass another bill to actually restore those rights. Some groups opposed the measure, saying it doesn’t go far enough.
Tanya Fogle with Kentuckians for the Commonwealth is a former felon, and she said she’s worried about that five-year wait being put back into the bill.
“We’re working hard to change our lives. We’re working hard to pay our taxes,” Fogle said. “It’s tax season now. Uncle Sam says I’m a citizen. He’s either going to give me a refund or I’m going to pay him. So if I’m a citizen, I should be allowed to vote without all of these extra hurdles to jump through.”
Kentucky is one of only three states that completely bans former felons from voting even after they complete their sentences.
Senate Majority Leader Damon Thayer, R-Georgetown, said he wants to see the five-year wait put back into the bill, and he might file an amendment before a vote in the Senate.
Gov. Beshear signed an executive order in December, restoring the voting rights of an estimated 140,000 nonviolent felons.