A change to the criminal justice system is needed to put victims on equal footing with defendants.  In 1998, there were 31 million criminal victimizations in America, according to the U.S. Department of Justice's National Crime Victimization Survey.

The proposed Victims' Rights Amendment would give victims the right to attend all public proceedings, to be heard before sentencing, and to be notified of the offender's release or escape from incarceration.  It easily passed its first hurdle, the Senate Judiciary Committee.  If passed by the full Senate and House, the amendment would then have to be approved by a majority of states.