Sentencing Guidelines: Step 2, Chapter 2

Review Victim Communications Sentencing Best Practices

Review Victim Communications Sentencing Best Practices

Statutory Provisions

1. The Victim Rights Law (G.L. c. 258B) grants victims three main categories of rights: 1) the right to be informed; 2) the right to be present; and 3) the right to be heard in an oral and written presentation.
2. The statute extends these rights to any person who suffers direct or threatened physical, emotional, or financial harm as a result of the commission or attempted commission of a crime or delinquency offense. There is no requirement of a complaint or indictment to invoke statutory protections. The rights extend to family if the victim is a minor, incompetent, or deceased. G.L. c. 258B.
3. The right to be heard at sentencing or the disposition of the case against the defendant, at hearing related to confidential records of the victim, at hearing to modify restitution, and at any other time deemed appropriate by the court.

Last updated:	April 26, 2019