Guide
Victim notification under the Crime Victims' Rights Act
Updated 2026-09-18 · 4 min read
The Crime Victims' Rights Act gives crime victims the right to reasonable, accurate, and timely notice of any public court proceeding, or any parole proceeding, involving the crime, or of any release or escape of the accused (18 U.S.C. § 3771(a)(2)). In practice that means every time a public hearing is set, moved or cancelled, someone owes each victim a notice, by a date, through a channel that is safe for them.
What the statute says, briefly
Section 3771(a) lists the rights of crime victims in federal cases. Paragraph (a)(2) is the notice right quoted above. Paragraph (a)(4) gives a right to be reasonably heard at any public proceeding in the district court involving release, plea, sentencing, or parole, so notice of those hearings carries extra weight. Paragraph (a)(8) adds the right to be treated with fairness and with respect for the victim's dignity and privacy. Section 3771(c)(1) directs Department of Justice employees and other government agencies engaged in the detection, investigation or prosecution of crime to make their best efforts to see that victims are notified of, and accorded, these rights. Many states have their own victims' rights provisions with different triggers and timelines; this guide addresses the federal statute only.
Where notice breaks down
A hearing moves on Thursday afternoon. The courtroom deputy updates the calendar. The AUSA knows. The victim-witness coordinator finds out on Monday, and one victim drives to the courthouse on the wrong day. The failure is rarely a decision not to notify. It is that nothing turned the calendar change into a task with an owner and a due date. The fix is to make every change to a public proceeding open a notice duty for each victim on the matter, automatically, while leaving the notice itself to a person.
Safe contact comes first
A notice sent through the wrong channel can put a victim at risk. Record, for each victim, the preferred channels, whether voicemail is acceptable, any safe-contact instructions (for example, do not call the home number, or use the advocate's number), and a do-not-contact flag with its reason. Check those preferences every time, not just at intake. Keep victim contact details inside the lead office and any victim-advocacy partner that needs them; investigating agencies and courts do not. When a victim cannot be reached, log each attempt with its channel and outcome, so ‘unable to reach’ is a record of effort rather than a guess.
Timeliness needs a stated rule
‘Timely’ is not defined as a number of days. An office should write down its own working rule, for example notice before the hearing for a new setting, within two business days for other changes, and immediately for a release or escape, and apply it consistently. Show the arithmetic on each duty so a coordinator can see why a notice is due when it is. Business-day counting should skip weekends and federal holidays in the office's time zone. The office rule is an internal service level, not a statement of what the law requires.
What should not generate a notice
Not every calendar entry is a public court proceeding. Filing deadlines are not. Grand jury proceedings are secret under Fed. R. Crim. P. 6(e). Sealed, in camera and ex parte settings are not public. A notice system should leave those out, and should withdraw an unsent notice if a setting turns out to be sealed. When in doubt, a person should decide.
How Prosequi handles it
The Victim notice tab on a matter lists each victim's contact preferences and the notice duties opened by court-event changes, with a due-by date and how it was computed. Staff draft from a template, send an email only after a confirmation dialog, record delivery by other channels, log attempts and confirm receipt. Only an attorney can close a duty without notice, with a reason. The office view at /victim-notice shows overdue, due today, upcoming and unable-to-reach duties across matters. Nothing is sent automatically, no AI is used, and the ledger never marks notice legally sufficient. Victim-advocacy partners on a matter can see the duties and log attempts; other partner agencies cannot.
Not legal advice
This guide summarizes parts of 18 U.S.C. § 3771 and describes a notification practice. It is not legal advice. The statute, the Attorney General Guidelines for Victim and Witness Assistance, state law where it applies, and your office's policy govern.