The Nevada Constitution provides that a victim of a crime has the right to be reasonably heard, upon request, at any public proceeding in any court involving release or sentencing. (Nev. Const. Art. 1, § 8A) Sections 2 and 3 of this bill establish certain requirements and procedures to facilitate the exercise of a victim's constitutional right to be reasonably heard at a pretrial release hearing. Specifically, section 2 requires an arresting officer to provide each victim with written notification that contains certain information relating to the pretrial release hearing, including when the hearing is expected to be held, the location at which the hearing will be held and how the victim may request to be heard. Section 2 further provides that the failure of an arresting officer to provide the required notification: (1) does not constitute a defense to the prosecution of the person arrested; and (2) must not be used to establish negligence or causation in certain civil actions. Section 3 authorizes a victim to exercise his or her constitutional right to be reasonably heard at a pretrial release hearing in certain specified manners. Section 4 of this bill makes a conforming change to indicate the proper placement of sections 2 and 3 in the Nevada Revised Statutes.
The Nevada Constitution further provides that a victim of a crime has the right to have his or her safety and the safety of his or her family considered when a court is fixing the amount of bail and release conditions for a defendant. (Nev. Const. Art. 1, § 8A) Existing law authorizes a court to impose certain conditions on a person who is released pending trial and authorizes a prosecuting attorney to request that the court impose bail or a condition of release, or both. Such conditions may include a condition of release prohibiting contact with a specific person. (NRS 178.484, 178.4851) Existing law also provides that, before making a determination of bail, a court must consider any request by a victim to impose a condition of release prohibiting contact. (NRS 178.4845) Section 5 of this bill additionally authorizes a prosecuting attorney to request such a condition of release, regardless of whether the victim has requested the condition of release. Section 6 of this bill provides that a prosecuting attorney may request any condition of release necessary to reasonably protect a victim from the person pending trial, including a condition of release prohibiting contact pursuant to section 5.

Statutes affected:
BDR: 178.483, 178.4845, 178.4851