Marsy's Law for All
| Marsy's Law for All | |
 | |
| Basic facts | |
| Location: | Aliso Viejo, California |
| Founder(s): | Dr. Henry Nicholas |
| Year founded: | 2009 |
| Website: | Official website |
Marsy's Law for All LLC is an organization that was founded to establish Marsy's Law, a set of certain constitutional protections for crime victims, as amendments to all 50 state constitutions and the U.S. Constitution.[1]
Background
Marsy's Law for All was established in 2009 by Dr. Henry Nicholas in memory of his sister, Marsy, who was murdered by her ex-boyfriend in 1983. The group was founded to establish certain constitutional protections for crime victims in all 50 state constitutions and the U.S. Constitution.[1][2]
The constitutional protections sought by the group include:[3]
- The right to be notified about and present at proceedings.
- The right to be heard at proceedings involving release, plea, sentencing, disposition, or parole of the accused.
- The right to be protected from the accused.
- The right to be notified about release or escape of the accused.
- The right to refuse an interview or deposition at the request of the accused.
- The right to receive restitution from the individual who committed the criminal offense.
Marsy's Law
The crime victim legislation supported by Marsy's Law for All is referred to as Marsy's Law. The legislation is named after Henry Nicholas' sister Marsy Nicholas, who was murdered by her ex-boyfriend in 1983. Henry and his mother were later confronted by Marsy's ex-boyfriend after his release from prison; they were unaware of his release from prison on bail. As of February 2020, Marsy's Law measures had been approved in 13 states, including Pennsylvania. In 2019, Pennsylvania voted to approve a Marsy's Law measure with 74% of the vote, but the election results have not been certified because the constitutionality of the amendment is currently being litigated. Two measures in those 12 states were overturned. Henry Nicholas and Marsy's Law for All (including state branches of Marsy's Law for All) financially supported the measures.[4][5]
Political activity
Ballot measure activity
Marsy's Law for All was founded to enact Marsy's Law in all 50 states and as an amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The group has supported ballot measures through local, affiliated ballot measure committees to pass Marsy's Law at the state level.[1]
As of February 2020, Marsy's Law had been passed in the following states: California, Illinois, North Dakota, Ohio, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Nevada, Oklahoma, and South Dakota. Marsy's Law was passed but later overturned in Montana and Kentucky. Pennsylvania voters approved a Marsy's Law amendment with 74% of the vote, but the state Supreme Court overturned the amendment. Wisconsin voters voted on a Marsy's Law measure in April 2020.[1]
The first Marsy's Law measure: California Proposition 9
Californians voted on Proposition 9 in 2008, which was the first measure to be known as a Marsy's Law. Proposition 9 required that victims and their families be notified during all aspects of the justice process, including bail, sentencing, and parole; and that authorities take a victim's safety into concern when assigning bail or conducting a parole review. Although the initiative was largely backed by Henry Nicholas, it also had support from Crime Victims United of California and the California Correctional Peace Officers Association. Proposition 9 faced opposition from organizations such as the California Teachers Association, SEIU California State Council, California Democratic Party, and California Federation of Teachers. In addition, the editorial boards of more than 30 newspapers called on voters to reject the proposition. In spite of the opposition, the measure passed with nearly 54 percent of the vote and became a model for several subsequent Marsy's Law initiatives across the country.
Marsy's Law in the states
As of February 2020, Marsy's Law measures had been approved in 13 states, including Pennsylvania. In 2019, Pennsylvania voted to approve a Marsy's Law measure with 74% of the vote, but the election results have not been certified because the constitutionality of the amendment is currently being litigated. Two measures in those 12 states were overturned. One Marsy's Law measure was on the ballot in Wisconsin in 2020.
Henry Nicholas and Marsy's Law for All (including state branches of Marsy's Law for All) financially supported the measures.
The following map shows the status of Marsy's Law across the states:
Overview of ballot measure support and opposition
The following table details Marsy's Law for All's ballot measure stances available on Ballotpedia:
Leadership
Dr. Henry Nicholas is the founder of Marsy's Law for All.
Tax status
Marsy's Law for All is a limited liability company (LLC). LLCs with a single owner are taxed by the IRS as a sole proprietorship, in which the owner reports income and expenses on the owner's personal income taxes (form 1040). LLCs with more than one owner are taxed by the IRS as a general partnership, in which owners file a form 1065 reporting income and expenses and pay taxes on their individual share of the profits. Owners can also choose to have an LLC taxed as a C corporation or an S corporation. C corporations pay income taxes and owners also pay income taxes whereas S corporations do not pay taxes, though owners pay taxes on the company's revenue as personal income.[12][13]
Finances
| Annual revenue and expenses for Marsy's Law for All Foundation (2018)[14] | ||
|---|---|---|
| Tax Year | Total Revenue | Total Expenses |
| 2018 | $96,102,520 | $73,469,855 |
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Marsy's Law for All. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 Marsy's Law for All, "About Marsy's Law," accessed April 22, 2017
- ↑ Marsy's Law for All, "About Dr. Henry Nicholas," accessed April 22, 2017
- ↑ Marsy's Law for All, "Marsy's Law Short Form Model Language," accessed April 22, 2017
- ↑ The Dickinson Press, "California man donates $1M to N.D. Marsy’s Law supporters; 44,000 signatures submitted to get measure on ballot," May 10, 2016
- ↑ The Washington Times, "North Dakota opponents to speak out against Marsy's Law," June 23, 2016
- ↑ Marsy's Law for Wisconsin, "Home," accessed February 19, 2020
- ↑ Marsy's Law for Pennsylvania', "Home," accessed February 19, 2020
- ↑ Marsy's Law for All, "Kentucky," accessed January 31, 2017
- ↑ Marsy's Law for All, "Nevada," accessed June 6, 2017
- ↑ Marsy's Law, "Marsy's Law for Oklahoma Kicks Off Statewide Campaign," February 1, 2017
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedSupport - ↑ Nav.com, "S Corp vs C Corp: What’s the Difference?" accessed June 18, 2020
- ↑ LegalZoom, "How to File LLC Taxes," accessed June 18, 2020
- ↑ Guidestar, "Marsy's Law for All Foundation," accessed May 14, 2021
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