81-1848. Victims and witnesses of crimes; rights; enumerated.

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A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.

(1)For purposes of this section:

(a)Intimate partner has the same meaning as in section 28-323 ;

(b)Plea agreement means an agreement under which, as a result of a discussion between the defendant or defense counsel and the prosecuting attorney:

(i)A charge is to be dismissed or reduced; or

(ii)The defendant, if he or she pleads guilty to a charge, may receive less than the maximum penalty permitted by law; and

(c)Victim means:

(i)A person who has had a personal confrontation with an offender as a result of a homicide under sections 28-302 to 28-306 , a first degree assault under section 28-308 , a second degree assault under section 28-309 , a third degree assault under section 28-310 when the victim is an intimate partner, a first degree false imprisonment under section 28-314 , a first degree sexual assault under section 28-319 , a sexual assault of a child in the first degree under section 28-319.01 , a second or third degree sexual assault under section 28-320 , a sexual assault of a child in the second or third degree under section 28-320.01 , a domestic assault in the first, second, or third degree under section 28-323 , or a robbery under section 28-324 ;

(ii)A person who has suffered serious bodily injury as defined in section 28-109 as a result of a motor vehicle accident when the driver was charged with a violation of section 60-6,196 or 60-6,197 or with a violation of a city or village ordinance enacted in conformance with either section;

(iii)In the case of a homicide, the nearest surviving relative of the deceased, but the term victim does not include the alleged perpetrator of the homicide. Victim also includes any surviving immediate family member of the homicide victim, such as a spouse, domestic partner, parent, sibling, child, or grandparent;

(iv)In the case of a violation of the Child Sexual Abuse Material Prevention Act:

(A)A person who was a child as defined in section 28-1802 and a participant or portrayed observer in the child sexual abuse material that is the subject of the violation and who has been identified and can be reasonably notified; and

(B)The parents, guardians, or duly appointed legal representative of the child victim, but the term victim does not include the alleged perpetrator of the crime;

(v)In the case of a sexual assault of a child, the child victim and the parents, guardians, or duly appointed legal representative of the child victim, but the term victim does not include the alleged perpetrator of the crime;

(vi)A person who was the victim of a theft under section 28-511 , 28-512 , 28-513 , or 28-517 when

(A)the value of the thing involved is five thousand dollars or more and

(B)the victim and perpetrator were intimate partners; and

(vii)A sexual assault victim as defined in section 29-4309 .

(2)In a case involving multiple victims, a victim of an offense described in subdivision (1)(c) of this section who is identified in or associated with a specific criminal count in a complaint, information, or indictment shall be considered a victim for purposes of this section notwithstanding the fact that such count is dismissed pursuant to a plea agreement.

(3)A victim shall have the following rights:

(a)To review publicly available criminal justice information about individuals, including arrest warrants, arrests, detentions, indictments, and other formal charges. This also includes the outcomes of these cases, such as sentencing, supervision, or release, but does not include intelligence or investigative information;

(b)To receive from the county attorney advance reasonable notice of any scheduled court proceedings and notice of any changes in that schedule;

(c)In a case involving abuse as defined in section 42-903 , to submit a written statement to be considered by the court during any bond modification proceeding, when time permits;

(d)To be consulted regarding a plea agreement as provided in subsection

(4)of this section;

(e)To be present throughout the entire trial of the defendant, except that the court may exclude the victim from the trial or any portion thereof if the court finds that the victim's presence would compromise the defendant's right to a fair trial;

(f)(i) To read, or to appoint a representative to read, his or her written impact statement aloud at the sentencing proceeding. The court may impose reasonable limitations, such as limits on the duration of such reading, to ensure the orderly and fair administration of justice. However, such limits shall not impede a victim's ability to deliver an oral statement if the victim so desires.

(ii)For purposes of subdivision (3)(f)(i) of this section, in the case of a homicide, the term victim also includes any survivor who, as determined on a case-by-case basis, suffered severe emotional harm as a result of the victim's death;

(g)To be notified by the county attorney by any means reasonably calculated to give prompt actual notice of the following:

(i)The crimes for which the defendant is charged, the defendant's bond, and the time and place of any scheduled court proceedings;

(ii)In a case involving abuse as defined in section 42-903 , any request for a modification of the defendant's bond, when time permits such notice;

(iii)The final disposition of the case;

(iv)The crimes for which the defendant was convicted;

(v)The victim's right to submit an impact statement to be used in the probation officer's preparation of a presentence investigation report concerning the defendant as provided in section 29-2261 ;

(vi)The address and telephone number of the probation office which is to prepare the presentence investigation report;

(vii)That a presentence investigation report and any statement by the victim included in such report will be made available to the defendant unless exempted from disclosure by order of the court; and

(viii)The victim's right to read, or to appoint a representative to read, his or her written impact statement aloud at the sentencing proceeding as provided in subdivision (3)(f) of this section;

(h)To be notified by the county attorney by any means reasonably calculated to give prompt actual notice of the time and place of any subsequent judicial proceedings if the defendant was acquitted on grounds of insanity;

(i)To be notified as provided in section 81-1850 , to testify before the Board of Parole or submit a written statement for consideration by the board, and to be notified of the decision of and any action taken by the board;

(j)To submit a written statement for consideration at any conditional release proceedings, Board of Parole proceedings, pardon proceedings, or commutation proceedings. Conditional release proceeding means a proceeding convened pursuant to a Department of Correctional Services' decision to grant a furlough from incarceration for twenty-four hours or longer or a release into community-based programs, including educational release and work release; and

(k)To have any personal identifying information, other than the victim's name, not be disclosed on pleadings and documents filed in criminal actions that may be available to the public. The Supreme Court shall adopt and promulgate rules to implement this subdivision.

(4)Consistent with section 23-1201 , prior to entering into a plea agreement, a prosecuting attorney shall consult with or make a good faith effort to consult with a victim regarding the content of and reasons for such plea agreement.

(5)Victims and witnesses of crimes shall have the following rights:

(a)To be informed on all writs of subpoena or notices to appear that they are entitled to apply for and may receive a witness fee;

(b)To be notified that a court proceeding to which they have been subpoenaed will not go on as scheduled in order to save the person an unnecessary trip to court;

(c)To receive protection from harm and threats of harm arising out of their cooperation with law enforcement and prosecution efforts and to be provided with information as to the level of protection available;

(d)To be informed of financial assistance and other social services available as a result of being a witness or a victim of a crime, including information on how to apply for the assistance and services;

(e)To be informed of the procedure to be followed in order to apply for and receive any witness fee to which they are entitled;

(f)To be provided, whenever possible, a secure waiting area during court proceedings that does not require them to be in close proximity to defendants and families and friends of defendants;

(g)To have any stolen or other personal property expeditiously returned by law enforcement agencies when no longer needed as evidence. If feasible, all such property, except weapons, currency, contraband, property subject to evidentiary analysis, and property the ownership of which is disputed, shall be returned to the person within ten days after being taken;

(h)To be provided with appropriate employer intercession services to insure that employers of victims and witnesses will cooperate with the criminal justice process in order to minimize an employee's loss of pay and other benefits resulting from court appearances;

(i)To be entitled to a speedy disposition of the case in which they are involved as a victim or witness in order to minimize the length of time they must endure the stress of their responsibilities in connection with the matter; and

(j)To have the family members of all homicide victims afforded all of the rights under this subsection and services analogous to those provided under section 81-1847 .

Victims are permitted to both offer a written statement for a presentence report under subdivision (1)(d)(iv) of this section and offer a written impact statement at the time of sentencing under subdivision (1)(d)(vii) of this section. State v. Hurd, 307 Neb. 393, 949 N.W.2d 339 (2020).

Although the victim's parents, and not the victim's sister, were statutorily defined "victims" under section 29-119, the court did not abuse its discretion in allowing the sister to read her impact statement at sentencing where the parents were elderly, lived out of state, and did not want to participate in the resentencing. State v. Thieszen, 300 Neb. 112, 912 N.W.2d 696 (2018).