Senate Bill 1548

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    Florida Senate - 2000                                  SB 1548

    By Senator Brown-Waite





    10-978-00

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to the prosecution of

  3         juveniles; amending s. 985.227, F.S.; requiring

  4         that the state attorney prosecute a juvenile

  5         between certain ages as an adult if the

  6         juvenile is charged with a specified violent

  7         felony and possessed a firearm or destructive

  8         device during the commission of the felony or

  9         discharged a firearm or destructive device

10         during the commission of the felony which

11         resulted in death or great bodily harm;

12         providing for a juvenile convicted under the

13         act to be sentenced as an adult; providing an

14         effective date.

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

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18         Section 1.  Subsection (2) of section 985.227, Florida

19  Statutes, is amended to read:

20         985.227  Prosecution of juveniles as adults by the

21  direct filing of an information in the criminal division of

22  the circuit court; discretionary criteria; mandatory

23  criteria.--

24         (2)  MANDATORY DIRECT FILE.--

25         (a)  With respect to any child who was 16 or 17 years

26  of age at the time the alleged offense was committed, the

27  state attorney shall file an information if the child has been

28  previously adjudicated delinquent for an act classified as a

29  felony, which adjudication was for the commission of, attempt

30  to commit, or conspiracy to commit murder, sexual battery,

31  armed or strong-armed robbery, carjacking, home-invasion

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    Florida Senate - 2000                                  SB 1548
    10-978-00




  1  robbery, aggravated battery, or aggravated assault, and the

  2  child is currently charged with a second or subsequent violent

  3  crime against a person.

  4         (b)  Notwithstanding subsection (1), regardless of the

  5  child's age at the time the alleged offense was committed, the

  6  state attorney must file an information with respect to any

  7  child who previously has been adjudicated for offenses which,

  8  if committed by an adult, would be felonies and such

  9  adjudications occurred at three or more separate delinquency

10  adjudicatory hearings, and three of which resulted in

11  residential commitments as defined in s. 985.03(47).

12         (c)  The state attorney must file an information if a

13  child, regardless of the child's age at the time the alleged

14  offense was committed, is alleged to have committed an act

15  that would be a violation of law if the child were an adult,

16  that involves stealing a motor vehicle, including, but not

17  limited to, a violation of s. 812.133, relating to carjacking,

18  or s. 812.014(2)(c)6., relating to grand theft of a motor

19  vehicle, and while the child was in possession of the stolen

20  motor vehicle the child caused serious bodily injury to or the

21  death of a person who was not involved in the underlying

22  offense. For purposes of this section, the driver and all

23  willing passengers in the stolen motor vehicle at the time

24  such serious bodily injury or death is inflicted shall also be

25  subject to mandatory transfer to adult court. "Stolen motor

26  vehicle," for the purposes of this section, means a motor

27  vehicle that has been the subject of any criminal wrongful

28  taking. For purposes of this section, "willing passengers"

29  means all willing passengers who have participated in the

30  underlying offense.

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    Florida Senate - 2000                                  SB 1548
    10-978-00




  1         (d)1.  With respect to any child who was 16 or 17 years

  2  of age at the time the alleged offense was committed, the

  3  state attorney shall file an information if the child has been

  4  charged with an offense listed in s. 775.087(2)(a)1.a.-q.,

  5  and, during the commission of the offense, the child:

  6         a.  Actually possessed a firearm or destructive device,

  7  as those terms are defined in s. 790.001.

  8         b.  Discharged a firearm or destructive device, as

  9  described in s. 775.087(2)(a)2.

10         c.  Discharged a firearm or destructive device, as

11  described in s. 775.087(2)(a)3., and, as a result of the

12  discharge, death or great bodily harm was inflicted upon any

13  person.

14         2.  Upon transfer, the child shall be subject to

15  prosecution under s. 775.087(2)(a).

16         Section 2.  This act shall take effect October 1, 2000.

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19                          SENATE SUMMARY

20    Requires that a juvenile who is 16 or 17 years of age be
      prosecuted and sentenced as an adult if the juvenile is
21    charged with a violent felony and, at the time of
      committing the felony, possessed a firearm or destructive
22    device, discharged a firearm or destructive device, or
      discharged a firearm or destructive device which resulted
23    in death or great bodily harm.

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