What is the Crime Victims' Rights Act (CVRA)?

The Crime Victims’ Rights Act (CVRA), codified at 18 U.S.C. 3771, was passed in 2004 and gives federal crime victims specific legally enforceable rights. These include: the right to be reasonably protected from the defendant; the right to reasonable, accurate, and timely notice of public court proceedings; the right not to be excluded from court proceedings; the right to be reasonably heard at sentencing and other proceedings; and the right to be treated with fairness and respect. In Epstein’s case, Judge Marra found in 2019 that the government violated the CVRA by failing to notify victims before entering the 2008 NPAa significant precedent in victims’ rights law.