New law prevents victims’ identities from becoming public under California Public Records Act (CPRA)

Privacy boosted for sex crime victims
New law prevents victims’ identities from becoming public
By Robyn Moormeister, robynm@theunion.com

Local victim advocates say a new law allowing survivors of sex crimes to prevent their names and addresses from being made available to the public is crucial for victims' privacy and safety.

The new law, authored by state Sen. Sam Aanestad (R-Grass Valley) and signed by Governor Arnold Schwarzeneggar, allows victims of all sex crimes to request their identities be unavailable to people who formerly could use the California Public Records Act (CPRA) to acquire the information.

"The most important reason for keeping that information confidential is that the sexual component of the crime is so embarrassing," said Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Coalition Senior Advocate Linda Neely. "Additionally, you don't want the backlash that may come from the family of the perpetrator."

In some cases, Neely said, friends or family of an accused perpetrator who know the victim's identity will threaten and intimidate the victim in an attempt to prevent her from working with investigators.

Under current provisions of the CPRA, the names of victims of certain criminal offenses - mostly sex crimes - are exempt from disclosure to the public at the request of the victim, or the victim's parents or guardian if the victim is a minor. The victim's home address is also exempt from disclosure under current law.

Current Penal Code law also requires employees of law enforcement agencies to inform the victim of a sex offense that they may request that their name not become a matter of public record under the CPRA.

However, the CPRA and the Penal Code do not match to include all relevant sex offenses.

The Aanestad legislation, signed into law last week, expands the list of sex offenses where victims may request their names to be withheld to include all sex crimes.

"No one should be using the CPRA to collect names and addresses of victims of any sex crime, especially since many of these victims are minors," Aanestad said. "My legislation will protect victims of horrible crimes from public embarrassment and give them the privacy they need to heal."

It is already The Union's policy not to publish the names of victims of sex crimes, even when that information is available, unless the victim prefers to identify herself or himself.

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