By Lewis of Tarrant                                  H.C.R. No. 119
         76R8749 MTD-D                           
                             HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
 1-1           WHEREAS, Violent crime affects the lives of millions of
 1-2     Americans each year, often causing grave physical, financial, and
 1-3     emotional harm to victims and their families; and
 1-4           WHEREAS, The United States Constitution grants those accused
 1-5     of crimes many constitutional rights, such as a speedy trial, a
 1-6     trial by jury, counsel, the right to be free from unreasonable
 1-7     searches and seizures, the right to confront witnesses, and the
 1-8     right to due process under the law; and
 1-9           WHEREAS, The United States Constitution grants no rights to
1-10     crime victims; they have no right to be informed of or to be
1-11     present at criminal proceedings, no right to be heard at sentencing
1-12     or at a parole hearing, and no right to be warned of danger from
1-13     the release or escape of their attacker; and
1-14           WHEREAS, This lack of rights for crime victims has caused
1-15     many victims and their families to suffer twice, once at the hands
1-16     of the criminal, and again at the hands of a justice system that
1-17     fails to protect them; and
1-18           WHEREAS, In 1989, citizens of Texas overwhelmingly approved a
1-19     state constitutional amendment to  enumerate and protect the rights
1-20     of crime victims, and 31 other states have passed similar measures;
1-21     these actions, while welcome, are insufficient because  each
1-22     state's level of protection is different and crime victim
1-23     protection properly should be national in scope; and
1-24           WHEREAS, The federal Crime Victim Rights Amendment would
 2-1     bring balance to the judicial system by giving crime victims the
 2-2     right to be informed, present, and heard at critical stages
 2-3     throughout their ordeal and would establish a basic level of crime
 2-4     victims' rights for all Americans; now, therefore, be it
 2-5           RESOLVED, That the 76th Legislature of the State of Texas
 2-6     hereby respectfully urge the Congress of the United States to
 2-7     propose and submit to the states for ratification the Crime Victim
 2-8     Rights Amendment to the United States Constitution; and, be it
 2-9     further
2-10           RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official
2-11     copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to
2-12     the speaker of the house of representatives and the president of
2-13     the senate of the United States Congress, and to all members of the
2-14     Texas delegation to the congress with the request that this
2-15     resolution be officially entered in the Congressional Record as a
2-16     memorial to the Congress of the United States of America.