Senate Bill sb0608

    Florida Senate - 2003                                   SB 608

    By Senator Miller





    18-50-03

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to limitation of actions;

  3         amending s. 775.15, F.S.; providing that

  4         certain time limitations for prosecuting a

  5         crime do not apply if the alleged perpetrator

  6         of an offense of sexual battery is identified,

  7         after the expiration of such applicable time

  8         period, by analysis of DNA collected during the

  9         investigation of a crime or otherwise made

10         available to a law enforcement agency;

11         providing an effective date.

12  

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

14  

15         Section 1.  Subsection (3) of section 775.15, Florida

16  Statutes, is amended to read:

17         775.15  Time limitations.--

18         (3)  If the period prescribed in subsection (2) has

19  expired, a prosecution may nevertheless be commenced for:

20         (a)  Any offense, a material element of which is either

21  fraud or a breach of fiduciary obligation, within 1 year after

22  discovery of the offense by an aggrieved party or by a person

23  who has a legal duty to represent an aggrieved party and who

24  is himself or herself not a party to the offense, but in no

25  case shall this provision extend the period of limitation

26  otherwise applicable by more than 3 years.

27         (b)  Any offense based upon misconduct in office by a

28  public officer or employee at any time when the defendant is

29  in public office or employment, within 2 years from the time

30  he or she leaves public office or employment, or during any

31  

                                  1

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






    Florida Senate - 2003                                   SB 608
    18-50-03




 1  time permitted by any other part of this section, whichever

 2  time is greater.

 3         (c) Any offense of sexual battery under s. 794.011 for

 4  which the identity of the alleged perpetrator is determined

 5  after the period of limitations has expired and the

 6  perpetrator's identity is confirmed through DNA

 7  (deoxyribonucleic acid) analysis from a specimen collected

 8  during the investigation of a crime or otherwise made

 9  available to a law enforcement agency, if the information was

10  not known to or was not in the possession of the agency for

11  analysis before the applicable period of limitations expired.

12  This DNA information may be used as evidence in a criminal

13  proceeding or for the purpose of identification.

14         Section 2.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2003.

15  

16            *****************************************

17                          SENATE SUMMARY

18    Provides that the statute of limitations does not apply
      to an offense of sexual battery if the alleged
19    perpetrator is identified by DNA evidence that was not
      known to or in the possession of a law enforcement agency
20    before the applicable period of limitations expired.
      Provides for the DNA information to be used as evidence
21    or for identification purposes.

22  

23  

24  

25  

26  

27  

28  

29  

30  

31  

                                  2

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