Senate Bill 0060c1

    Florida Senate - 1999                             CS for SB 60

    By the Committee on Criminal Justice and Senators Brown-Waite
    and Laurent




    307-485-99

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to pretrial intervention

  3         programs; amending s. 948.08, F.S.; authorizing

  4         the court to deny the admission of a defendant

  5         to a pretrial substance-abuse education and

  6         treatment intervention program if the defendant

  7         has rejected any prior offer of admission to

  8         such program; providing an effective date.

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10  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

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12         Section 1.  Paragraph (a) of subsection (6) of section

13  948.08, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

14         948.08  Pretrial intervention program.--

15         (6)(a)  Notwithstanding any provision of this section,

16  a person who is charged with a felony of the second or third

17  degree for purchase or possession of a controlled substance

18  under chapter 893, and who has not previously been convicted

19  of a felony nor been admitted to a pretrial program referred

20  to in this section, is eligible for admission into a pretrial

21  substance abuse education and treatment intervention program

22  approved by the chief judge of the circuit, for a period of

23  not less than 1 year in duration, upon motion of either party

24  or the court's own motion. However, the court may deny a

25  defendant's admission to a pretrial substance-abuse education

26  and treatment intervention program if the defendant was

27  previously offered admission to such a program and the

28  defendant rejected that offer. If the state attorney believes

29  that the facts and circumstances of the case suggest the

30  defendant's involvement in the dealing and selling of

31  controlled substances, the court shall hold a preadmission

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 1999                             CS for SB 60
    307-485-99




  1  hearing. If the state attorney establishes, by a preponderance

  2  of the evidence at such hearing, that the defendant was

  3  involved in the dealing or selling of controlled substances,

  4  the court shall deny the defendant's admission into a pretrial

  5  intervention program.

  6         Section 2.  This act shall take effect July 1, 1999.

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  8          STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
                       COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
  9                          Senate Bill 60

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11  Narrows the ability for a court to deny program placement to
    only pretrial substance abuse education and treatment
12  programs, or "drug courts," after an initial rejection by a
    defendant of such an offer.
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