Senate Bill sb0600

    Florida Senate - 2004                                   SB 600

    By Senator Smith





    14-334-04

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to state attorneys; amending s.

  3         27.25, F.S.; authorizing state attorneys to

  4         employ process servers; providing powers and

  5         duties of such process servers; exempting those

  6         process servers from the requirements

  7         applicable to process servers employed by a

  8         sheriff; amending s. 27.251, F.S.; providing

  9         for special criminal task force investigators

10         employed by state attorneys; providing an

11         effective date.

12  

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

14  

15         Section 1.  Section 27.25, Florida Statutes, as amended

16  by section 9 of chapter 2003-402, Laws of Florida, is amended

17  to read:

18         27.25  State attorney authorized to employ personnel;

19  funding formula.--

20         (1)  The state attorney of each judicial circuit is

21  authorized to employ and establish, in such number as is

22  authorized by the General Appropriations Act, assistant state

23  attorneys and other staff pursuant to s. 29.005. The state

24  attorneys of all judicial circuits shall jointly develop a

25  coordinated classification and pay plan which shall be

26  submitted on or before January 1 of each year to the Justice

27  Administrative Commission, the office of the President of the

28  Senate, and the office of the Speaker of the House of

29  Representatives. Such plan shall be developed in accordance

30  with policies and procedures of the Executive Office of the

31  Governor established pursuant to s. 216.181.

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






    Florida Senate - 2004                                   SB 600
    14-334-04




 1         (2)  The state attorney of each judicial circuit is

 2  authorized to employ an executive director.  The salary of the

 3  executive director shall be set by the state attorney in

 4  accordance with the policies and procedures of the Executive

 5  Office of the Governor established pursuant to s. 216.181 and

 6  shall not exceed 90 percent of the state attorney's salary.

 7  The duties of the executive director shall be as prescribed by

 8  the state attorney.

 9         (3)  In any judicial circuit where a court reporter is

10  not available, any stenographer employed by a state attorney

11  is authorized and may be required to perform the services of a

12  court reporter and shall be entitled to receive the per diem

13  and fees provided by law for such services.

14         (4)  The state attorney of each judicial circuit may

15  employ process servers. Such a process server may serve,

16  anywhere in the state, a witness subpoena issued by any court

17  or judge within the state or issued in connection with a

18  criminal investigation that arises anywhere within the state,

19  if prior notice is given to the sheriff in whose county

20  service will be attempted; however, failure to provide this

21  notice to the sheriff does not affect the validity of the

22  service. Process servers employed by a state attorney are

23  exempt from the requirements of s. 48.021(2).

24         (5)(4)  All payments for the salary of the state

25  attorney and the necessary expenses of office, including

26  salaries of deputies, assistants, and staff, shall be

27  considered as being for a valid public purpose.

28         (6)(5)  The appropriations for the offices of state

29  attorneys shall be determined by a funding formula based on

30  population and such other factors as may be deemed appropriate

31  

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    Florida Senate - 2004                                   SB 600
    14-334-04




 1  in a manner to be determined by this section and the General

 2  Appropriations Act.

 3         Section 2.  Section 27.251, Florida Statutes, is

 4  amended to read:

 5         27.251  Special criminal task force organized crime

 6  investigators.--The state attorney of each judicial circuit is

 7  authorized to employ any municipal or county police officer or

 8  sheriff's deputy on a full-time basis as an investigator for

 9  the state attorney's office with full powers of arrest

10  throughout the judicial circuit, provided such investigator

11  serves on a special task force to investigate any criminal

12  activity matters involving organized crime, and, provided

13  further, that the salary of such municipal or county police

14  officer or sheriff's deputy shall be paid by the city, county,

15  or sheriff by which the investigator is principally employed,

16  and with the consent of the county, sheriff, or municipality.

17  The arrest powers granted herein shall be exercised only in

18  the furtherance of the conduct of the business of the special

19  task force to which such municipal or county police officer or

20  sheriff's deputy is assigned by the said state attorney.

21         Section 3.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2004.

22  

23            *****************************************

24                          SENATE SUMMARY

25    Authorizes state attorneys to employ process servers.
      Provides for power of such process servers. Provides for
26    special criminal task force investigators employed by
      state attorneys.
27  

28  

29  

30  

31  

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