Bill for criminal justice transparency passes Louisiana House of Representatives
BATON ROUGE, La. (KLFY) -- The Louisiana House of Representatives passed a bill Friday to give victims of crime greater access to information in criminal cases.
State leaders are calling the bill, HB 321, "The Truth and Transparency Act." Its goal is to make the criminal justice system more transparent.
The bill passed the House by a vote of 63-36. Now that the bill has passed the House of Representatives, it is now on its way to the Senate.
Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry says the bill would help expose failures in the criminal justice system.
"We all know that crime is out of control, and with Louisiana having three of the top 10 most dangerous cities in this country, people around this state have had enough," Landry said.
He says the bill would give victims of violent crimes and citizens easy access to decisions made in court and actions happening in criminal cases.
"The public deserves to know how hardened juvenile offenders are being allowed to recommit crimes of violence, what judges are setting low bail for violent criminals, and how often district attorneys are refusing or pleading down these cases," Landry said.
Family members of victims of violent crime have helped push this bill forward, hoping to get justice for their loved ones.
"People like Sherilyn Price, Cortez Collins, Nadia Sanchez, Elizabeth Hansard, and Dr. Patrick Dennis along with many others spoke out and gave this legislation a voice," Landry said. "This bill brings us one step closer to having a solution to solve the violent crime destroying our state and put some accountability and transparency back in our criminal justice system."
"Those of you who are sick and tired of the violent crime in our state, I encourage you in joining us in asking our state senators to support this legislation, as it makes its way onto the governor's desk," Landry said.