Florida Senate - 2014                                     SB 986
       
       
        
       By Senator Joyner
       
       
       
       
       
       19-01171-14                                            2014986__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to custodial interrogations; creating
    3         s. 901.246, F.S.; defining terms; requiring a law
    4         enforcement agency to electronically record the
    5         statement of a suspect under certain circumstances;
    6         providing requirements for an electronic recording;
    7         authorizing a law enforcement agency to covertly
    8         record statements; requiring electronic statements to
    9         be preserved for a certain time period; authorizing
   10         the court to consider the failure to record a
   11         statement in determining the admissibility of such
   12         statement; authorizing the jury to consider the
   13         failure to record a statement in determining whether a
   14         statement was made and the weight to give such
   15         statement; requiring the court to provide the jury
   16         with a specified instruction under certain
   17         circumstances; providing that a civil cause of action
   18         does not arise from the failure of a law enforcement
   19         agency to comply with this section; providing an
   20         effective date.
   21          
   22  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   23  
   24         Section 1. Section 901.246, Florida Statutes, is created to
   25  read:
   26         901.246 Electronic recording of custodial interrogations.—
   27         (1) As used in this section, the term:
   28         (a) “Covered custodial interrogation” means the entirety of
   29  any custodial questioning by law enforcement personnel or
   30  persons acting in concert with law enforcement personnel when
   31  such questioning is conducted in a law enforcement facility,
   32  police vehicle, courthouse, correctional facility, community
   33  correctional center, detention facility, or other secure
   34  environment.
   35         (b) “Covered offense” means any of the following felony
   36  offenses:
   37         1. Murder as provided in s. 782.04.
   38         2. Manslaughter as provided in s. 782.07(1).
   39         3. Aggravated manslaughter of an elderly person or disabled
   40  adult as provided in s. 782.07(2).
   41         4. Aggravated manslaughter of a child as provided in s.
   42  782.07(3).
   43         5. Aggravated assault with a deadly weapon without intent
   44  to kill as provided in s. 784.021(1)(a).
   45         6. Aggravated battery as provided in s. 784.045.
   46         7. Aggravated stalking as provided in s. 784.048(3), (4),
   47  (5), and (7).
   48         8. Kidnapping as provided in s. 787.01.
   49         9. Unlawful making, possessing, throwing, projecting,
   50  placing, or discharging of a destructive device or bomb as
   51  provided in s. 790.161.
   52         10. Sexual battery as provided in s. 794.011.
   53         11. Arson as provided in s. 806.01.
   54         12. Armed burglary as provided in s. 810.02(2).
   55         13. Robbery as provided in s. 812.13.
   56         14. Carjacking as provided in s. 812.133.
   57         15. Home-invasion robbery as provided in s. 812.135.
   58         16. Aggravated abuse of an elderly person or disabled adult
   59  as provided in s. 825.102.
   60         17. Aggravated child abuse as provided in s. 827.03.
   61         (c) “Electronic recording” means an audio or video
   62  recording of a covered custodial interrogation, as appropriate
   63  to the setting in which the questioning takes place, unless the
   64  questioning takes place under circumstances in which an
   65  electronic recording is impracticable or the law enforcement
   66  agency has other good cause.
   67         (2) A law enforcement agency shall make an electronic
   68  recording of a statement made by a suspect during a covered
   69  custodial interrogation in an investigation of a covered
   70  offense. The electronic recording must include requisite Miranda
   71  warnings and a suspect’s subsequent waivers of the rights set
   72  forth in those warnings. The electronic recording must also
   73  include a recording of any foreign language or sign language
   74  interpreter.
   75         (3) A law enforcement agency may comply with this section
   76  through the use of covert electronic recordings of covered
   77  custodial interrogations.
   78         (4) All electronic recordings must be preserved until the
   79  investigation for the covered offense is closed and all
   80  convictions relating to the investigation, including all
   81  collateral appeals, are final and exhausted.
   82         (5) The trial court may consider the failure to make an
   83  electronic recording of the interrogation of a suspect in a
   84  covered custodial interrogation in determining the admissibility
   85  of any statement made by the suspect.
   86         (6) The jury may consider the failure to make an electronic
   87  recording of the interrogation of a suspect in a covered
   88  custodial interrogation in determining whether the statement was
   89  made and, if so, the weight, if any, to give to the statement.
   90  Upon request of the defendant, the court shall instruct the jury
   91  accordingly.
   92         (7) A civil cause of action does not arise from a failure
   93  of a law enforcement agency to comply with this section.
   94         Section 2. This act shall take effect October 1, 2014.