By Bob Katzen
The Judiciary Committee held a hearing on a bill that would restrict the ability of criminal offenders to profit financially by undertaking any ventures that capitalize on the infamy of their crime.
The bill sets forth a procedure to determine if the criminal offender is attempting to make money from the notoriety surrounding their actions by allowing the Attorney General, by and through the Division of Victim Compensation, to investigate and monitor such profits, and to distribute these profits to victims who were victimized by the underlying crime.
“This bill seeks to protect victims of crime by making sure that incarcerated felons do not reap unexpected financial benefits from their wrongful actions,” said sponsor Rep. Brad Jones (R-North Reading). “It not only takes steps to ensure that criminals do not profit from their crimes while in jail but also establishes a process for using this money to compensate their victims as a form of restitution.”
This is an interesting proposal, especially in the age of true crime documentaries and books. It’s important that we protect victims from the idea that criminals can exploit their suffering for financial gain. However, enforcement will be tricky without clear definitions of what constitutes ‘profiting’ from a crime.