DATE: Thursday, August 28, 1997             TAG: 9708280549

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B1   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: STAFF AND WIRE REPORT 

                                            LENGTH:   83 lines

BEYER: VICTIMS MUST HAVE A SAY IN PLEA BARGAINS

Prosecutors and judges could no longer choose to ignore the advice and concerns of victims when it comes to acting on proposed plea bargains with criminals.

Lt. Gov. Donald S. Beyer Jr. unveiled the latest plank of his anti-crime platform on Wednesday during stops in Norfolk and Richmond.

Beyer, the Democratic candidate for governor, noted that state law already gives victims certain rights. In November, voters approved the crime victims' bill of rights amendment to the state Constitution.

But, he said, they cannot directly participate in plea bargaining - and 80 percent to 90 percent of all felony cases are plea-bargained, Beyer said.

Some prosecutors voluntarily consider victims' views when negotiating a plea, but Beyer said that's not good enough.

``By putting it in the law, you institutionalize it,'' he said. ``You treat everyone the same.''

It would still be the prosecutor's job to recommend a plea agreement and a judge's role to approve or reject it, he said.

Beyer's proposal came under quick criticism from the camp of his Republican opponent, former attorney general James S. Gilmore III, as nothing more than a borrowed idea.

Beyer's proposal, Gilmore spokesman Mark Miner said, is just an echo of what Gilmore championed: the victims' bill of rights.

Not so fast, said Beyer spokeswoman Page Boinest. Her candidate's plan requires prosecutors and judges to take a victim's concerns into account. The constitutional amendment simply allows it.

Other anti-crime proposals Beyer announced Wednesday were:

Allowing a police officer to demand that a crime suspect take a blood test if the officer has reason to believe the suspect infected him with a blood-borne disease.

Creating a high-tech information system linking all of Virginia's public safety agencies.

Subtle diferences between the candidates beg another question: With both candidates throwing around so many similar-sounding proposals, how is a voter to know whose ideas will work best at making communities safer?

The resemblance in their positions on public safety can be found in other areas: Both candidates support relief from the personal property tax on vehicles, and both have talked about spending millions to improve education.

A poll released Wednesday confirms the difficulty of distinguishing Gilmore from Beyer. It shows the candidates virtually even - with Gilmore ahead 40 percent to Beyer's 36 percent, and the rest undecided. The poll, commissioned by Virginia Commonwealth University, The Virginian-Pilot and the Roanoke Times, has a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.

A more telling indicator of voter uncertainty is that only 43 percent said they're sure of their choice.

``Voters have generally positive views of the candidates but don't know very much about them yet,'' said Scott Keeter, a political scientist at Virginia Commonwealth University.

After all, both candidates have promised to hire more police officers, beef up victims' rights and alert residents about their potentially dangerous neighbors.

Beyer's package, which has dribbled out over the summer, also calls for requiring violent and sex ofenders to submit DNA samples to state police.

Gilmore's latest addition, unveiled Tuesday, to his 21-point plan, calls for prisoners to pay for the cost of incarceration while they're locked up.

Republicans, especially attorneys general, historically have been anointed the tougher anti-crime candidates in races with Democrats. In 1993, George Allen set himself up as the clear law-and-order candidate when he proposed to do away with parole, offering a program that Gilmore supported and Beyer initially opposed.

And Gilmore, with his work to abolish parole and reform the juvenile justice system, was all set to inherit that mantle.

But Beyer's endorsement Saturday by the 8,500-member state Fraternal Order of Police has complicated matters, said Larry Sabato, a political scientist at the University of Virginia.

``It gives Beyer an automatic retort every time Gilmore accuses him of being weak on crime,'' Sabato said. ``It will be mentioned frequently to neutralize the crime issue, which normally hurts Democrats.'' MEMO: This story was compiled from reports by staff writer Ledyard King

and The Associated Press. ILLUSTRATION: Lt. Gov. Donald S. Beyer Jr.: He's running about even

with opponent James S.

Gilmore III, a poll says. KEYWORDS: CANDIDATE GUBERNATORIAL RACE

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