Senate Bill sb1096

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
    Florida Senate - 2005                                  SB 1096

    By Senator Smith





    14-1000-05                                          See HB 319

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to the Freedom to Worship

  3         Safely Act; providing a popular name; creating

  4         s. 775.0861, F.S.; providing for the upgrading

  5         of the degree of an offense that involves the

  6         use or threat of physical force or violence

  7         against any individual if the offense is

  8         committed at a location where a religious

  9         institution is conducting or carrying on

10         religious services or activities; providing for

11         gain-time eligibility and severity ranking of

12         offenses; amending s. 921.0022, F.S.; providing

13         for application of the severity ranking chart

14         of the Criminal Punishment Code; providing

15         applicability; providing an effective date.

16  

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

18  

19         Section 1.  This act may be cited as the "Freedom to

20  Worship Safely Act."

21         Section 2.  Section 775.0861, Florida Statutes, is

22  created to read:

23         775.0861  Offenses against persons on the grounds of

24  religious institutions; reclassification.--

25         (1)  The felony or misdemeanor degree of any violation

26  of:

27         (a)  Section 784.011, relating to assault;

28         (b)  Section 784.021, relating to aggravated assault;

29         (c)  Section 784.03, relating to battery;

30         (d)  Section 784.041, relating to felony battery;

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






    Florida Senate - 2005                                  SB 1096
    14-1000-05                                          See HB 319




 1         (e)  A statute defining any offense listed in s.

 2  775.084(1)(b)1.; or

 3         (f)  Any other statute defining an offense that

 4  involves the use or threat of physical force or violence

 5  against any individual

 6  

 7  shall be reclassified to the next higher degree as provided in

 8  this section if the offense is committed at a location where a

 9  religious institution as defined in s. 496.404 is conducting

10  or carrying on religious services or activities at the time of

11  the offense.

12         (2)(a)  In the case of a misdemeanor of the second

13  degree, the offense is reclassified to a misdemeanor of the

14  first degree.

15         (b)  In the case of a misdemeanor of the first degree,

16  the offense is reclassified to a felony of the third degree.

17  For purposes of sentencing under chapter 921 and determining

18  incentive gain-time eligibility under chapter 944, such

19  offense is ranked in level 2 of the offense severity ranking

20  chart.

21         (3)(a)  In the case of a felony of the third degree,

22  the offense is reclassified to a felony of the second degree.

23         (b)  In the case of a felony of the second degree, the

24  offense is reclassified to a felony of the first degree.

25  

26  For purposes of sentencing under chapter 921 and determining

27  incentive gain-time eligibility under chapter 944, a felony

28  offense that is reclassified under this subsection is ranked

29  one level above the ranking under s. 921.0022 or s. 921.0023

30  of the offense committed.

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






    Florida Senate - 2005                                  SB 1096
    14-1000-05                                          See HB 319




 1         Section 3.  Subsection (2) of section 921.0022, Florida

 2  Statutes, is amended to read:

 3         921.0022  Criminal Punishment Code; offense severity

 4  ranking chart.--

 5         (2)  The offense severity ranking chart has 10 offense

 6  levels, ranked from least severe, which are level 1 offenses,

 7  to most severe, which are level 10 offenses, and each felony

 8  offense is assigned to a level according to the severity of

 9  the offense. For purposes of determining which felony offenses

10  are specifically listed in the offense severity ranking chart

11  and which severity level has been assigned to each of these

12  offenses, the numerical statutory references in the left

13  column of the chart and the felony degree designations in the

14  middle column of the chart are controlling; the language in

15  the right column of the chart is provided solely for

16  descriptive purposes. Reclassification of the degree of the

17  felony through the application of s. 775.0845, s. 775.0861, s.

18  775.087, s. 775.0875, s. 794.023, or any other law that

19  provides an enhanced penalty for a felony offense, to any

20  offense listed in the offense severity ranking chart in this

21  section shall not cause the offense to become unlisted and is

22  not subject to the provisions of s. 921.0023.

23         Section 4.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2005,

24  and shall apply to offenses committed on or after that date.

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