Politics
Florida Landmarks being lighted purple in honor of ‘Marsy’s Law’ during Crime Victim’s Rights Week
8 buildings will be cast in purple in Florida to honor Marcy’s Law protecting victims of crime.
Several landmarks and buildings throughout Florida will be seen in purple lighting in the coming week as part of National Crime Victims’ Rights Week while honoring a particular movement.
At least eight high-profile landmarks will be shown in the hue of purple for the week through April 25 not only for Victim’s Right Week but also for the state law known as Marsy’s Law.
“This year, National Crime Victims’ Rights Week is particularly meaningful for us as SB 350 and HB 1113 was passed by the Florida Legislature last month, restoring the right to privacy initially afforded to Florida crime victims after a statewide vote in 2018,” said Jennifer Fennell, Marsy’s Law for Florida spokesperson. “This right had been stripped away from crime victims nearly three years ago following a Florida Supreme Court ruling.”
The concept of Marsy’s Law originated in California in 2008 when voters in that state approved a referendum that expands legal rights of crime victims including elements of protection from a defendant in a case, notifications of case developments, restitution and other rights. The original law is named after Marsy Nicholas who was stalked and killed by her former boyfriend while she was in her senior year at University of California Santa Barbara in 1983.
Florida voters approved a similar modification to the state Constitution in 2018 and the legislative measures approved in March expand Marsy’s Law to include public records exemptions for crime victims.
In the next week, in honor of the Florida version of the law, several key public landmarks will be cast in purple lighting on the exterior of the buildings in honor of the law for either portions of the week or all week long.
Those landmarks include:
— Capital Cascades Trail Crossing and Pedestrian Bridge in Tallahassee (all week long).
— Daytona International Speedway sign in Daytona Beach (all week long).
— Oceanfront Bandshell in Daytona Beach (all week long).
— Historic Citrus County Courthouse-Old Courthouse Heritage Museum in Inverness (all week long).
— Dade City Historic Courthouse in Dade City (Tuesday trough Saturday).
— West Pasco Government Center in New Port Richey (Tuesday through Saturday).
— The Freedom Tower in Miami (Tuesday, April 21).
— Truist Building in Tampa (Wednesday, April 22).