State lawmakers consider ‘Marsy’s Law’

HONOLULU — In February 2014, Kimberlyn Scott reported her 27-year-old daughter, Carly “Charli” Scott, missing.

Charli Scott was five months pregnant when she drove to a remote area on Maui to help her ex-boyfriend with car trouble. When she didn’t show up at work the next morning, her mother got worried and called the police.

After weeks of searching, Scott’s family found some of the missing woman’s blood-stained clothing and jaw bone, which ended any hope she might still be alive. Scott’s ex-boyfriend, Steven Capobianco, is charged with killing Scott and burning her vehicle to cover up the crime. His trial is set for this spring.

Kimberlyn Scott said she not only had to deal with the pain of losing her daughter, but also the challenge to stay informed of major developments in the case. She often isn’t notified of court hearings in advance, and she worries she might not be informed if Capobianco is released in the future, Scott said.

“What happened to Charli is beyond my control,” she said. “These are things that we can control, and we’re letting the system abuse people.”

Lawmakers are considering a measure that would establish constitutional rights for crime victims. Dozens of tearful victims and family members crowded into a hearing room Tuesday to speak in support of the bill, also known as Marsy’s Law, which would require the state to inform victims and their immediate family of court proceedings and key developments in cases.

The law was named after Marsalee “Marsy” Nicholas, a University of California, Santa Barbara student who was stalked and killed by her ex-boyfriend in 1983. A week after Nicholas’ murder, her brother and mother ran into the suspect in a grocery store because authorities failed to notify them that the suspect had been released on bail.

Voters in California were the first to pass the law in 2008. Several states such as Georgia, Kentucky, North Dakota and South Dakota are considering similar bills this year.

But the Hawaii bill wasn’t without opposition. The Hawaii Public Defender, Department of Public Safety and American Civil Liberties Union of Hawaii were among those who spoke out against the proposed law, saying it could infringe on the rights of defendants. Opponents also worried that the proposed bill could prevent the court from cross-examining witness and delay court proceedings.

“A constitutional amendment is unnecessary,” said Daniel Gluck, legal director of the Hawaii ACLU. Victims could be protected under state laws instead, he said.

But supporters of the bill say state laws aren’t enough to guarantee victims’ rights are protected.

Nicholas Iwamoto was stabbed 18 times on a popular hiking trail on Oahu. His attacker, Benjamin Davis, was able to avoid prison because he was legally insane and was eventually released from the Hawaii State Hospital. After getting out, Davis started taking classes at a community college.

“For the last 7 years, I have been left out of the loop,” Iwamoto said. While he was struggling to find out what was happening with the case, his attacker was going to college and will probably graduate before him, he said.

“All we ask for is the same rights afforded to violent offenders who have done such deplorable things to us and our families,” Iwamoto said.