Victims will have to wait possibly into 2022 to hear if Marsy's Law will indeed go into effect in Pennsylvania. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court heard arguments Tuesday on if the ballot question was improperly drafted.
The Crime Victims’ Rights Amendment, also known as Marsy’s Law, was passed in 2019 by voters. Supporters claim it gives victims of crime equal rights that are afforded to the accused.
What is Marsy's Law? Read more here.
Opponents argue, however, that the ballot question asked of voters in 2019 combined 15 constitutional amendments into one question. They claim that is in violation of the constitutional requirement that no single ballot question put forth to the voters can contain multiple subjects or alter more than one section of the Constitution.
The legal challenge represented by the ACLU was filed by the League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania.
Supporters of Marsy's Law claim the Crime Victims’ Rights Amendment complies with the single-subject rule. They also claim the lawsuit disenfranchises voters who passed Mary's Law in 2019.
In a 3-2 decision in January, the Commonwealth Court agreed with the plaintiffs, with Judge Ellen Ceisler writing, “(A)n exhaustive search of Pennsylvania case law reveals no other amendment to a section of the Constitution that was as sweeping in scope as the Proposed Amendment.”
The Commonwealth Court's decision was appealed to the US Supreme Court in the case League of Women Voters of PA, et al. v Degraffenreid.