If you are the victim of a crime in the State of California you have the following rights:

  1. To be reasonably protected from the defendant and persons acting on behalf of the defendant.
  2. To be treated with fairness and respect for your privacy and dignity, and to be free from intimidation, harassment, and abuse, throughout the criminal or juvenile justice process.
  3. To have your safety and the safety of your family considered in fixing the amount of bail and release conditions for the defendant.  In the case of a serious felony, you have the right to reasonable notice of and the opportunity to be heard before the setting of bail.
  4. To prevent the disclosure of confidential information or records to the defendant, the defendant’s attorney, or any other person acting on behalf of the defendant, which could be used to locate or harass you or your family, or which disclose confidential communications made in the course of medical or counseling treatment, or which are otherwise privileged or confidential by law.
  5. To refuse an interview, deposition, or discovery request by the defendant, the defendant’s attorney, or any other person acting on behalf of the defendant, and to set reasonable conditions on the conduct of any such interview to which you consent.
  6. To reasonable notice of and to reasonably confer with the prosecuting agency, upon request, regarding the arrest of the defendant if known by the prosecutor, the charges filed, the determination whether to extradite the defendant, and, upon request, to be notified of and informed before any pretrial disposition of the case.
  7. To reasonable notice of all public proceedings, including delinquency proceedings, upon request, at which the defendant and the prosecutor are entitled to be present and of all parole or other post-conviction release proceedings, and to be present at all such proceedings.
  8. To be heard, upon request, at any proceeding, including any delinquency proceeding, involving a post-arrest release decision, plea, sentencing, post-conviction release decision, or any proceeding in which a right of the victim is at issue.
  9. To a speedy trial and a prompt and final conclusion of the case and any related post-judgment proceedings.
  10. To provide information to a probation department official conducting a pre-sentence investigation concerning the impact of the offense on the victim and the victim’s family and any sentencing recommendations before the sentencing of the defendant.
  11. To receive, upon request, the pre-sentence report when available to the defendant, except for those portions made confidential by law.
  12. To be informed, upon request, of the conviction, sentence, place and time of incarceration, or other disposition of the defendant, the scheduled release date of the defendant, and the release of or the escape by the defendant from custody.
  13. To seek and receive restitution for the losses that you have suffered as the result of criminal activity from those persons convicted of the crime(s).  All monetary payments made by the defendant pursuant to the court’s order shall first be applied to restitution for the victim. 
  14. To the prompt return of property when no longer needed as evidence.
  15. To be informed of all parole procedures, to participate in the parole process, to provide information to the parole authority to be considered before the parole of the offender, and to be notified, upon request, of the parole or other release of the offender.
  16. To have your safety, the safety of your family, and the general public considered before any parole or other post-judgment release decision is made.
  17. To be informed of the rights enumerated above.

            If you are a victim of crime in San Mateo County and you wish to inquire about your rights as stated above, or to request notification of case developments, please call the San Mateo County District Attorneys Office at one of the following numbers:

 

If the case docket number begins with “NM” or “NF”, please call (650) 877-5454.

If the case docket number begins with “SM” or  “SF”, please call (650) 363-4677.

If the case docket number begins with “SC”, or you don’t know the docket number, please call (650) 363-4636.

If the offender is a juvenile, please call (650) 312-5305.