1 | A bill to be entitled |
2 | An act relating to assault and battery; creating s. |
3 | 784.071, F.S.; providing for the upgrading of the degree |
4 | of specified assault and battery offenses committed |
5 | against specified persons based on their position or |
6 | employment; providing for sentencing; providing for |
7 | additional imprisonment in certain circumstances; |
8 | prohibiting gain-time and discretionary early release for |
9 | offenders; providing an exception; providing an effective |
10 | date. |
11 |
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12 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
13 |
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14 | Section 1. Section 784.071, Florida Statutes, is created |
15 | to read: |
16 | 784.071 Assault or battery on social workers and other |
17 | specified persons.- |
18 | (1)(a) Whenever a person is charged with committing an |
19 | assault or aggravated assault or a battery or aggravated battery |
20 | upon a person who is licensed under chapter 490 or chapter 491 |
21 | or is a social worker as described in s. 491.016(2) and when the |
22 | person committing the offense knows or has reason to know the |
23 | identity or position or employment of the victim and at the time |
24 | of the incident the victim is in the course of performing his or |
25 | her duties in that position or employment or the incident is |
26 | related to that position or employment, the offense for which |
27 | the person is charged shall be reclassified as follows: |
28 | 1. In the case of assault, from a misdemeanor of the |
29 | second degree to a misdemeanor of the first degree. |
30 | 2. In the case of battery, from a misdemeanor of the first |
31 | degree to a felony of the third degree. |
32 | 3. In the case of aggravated assault, from a felony of the |
33 | third degree to a felony of the second degree. |
34 | 4. In the case of aggravated battery, from a felony of the |
35 | second degree to a felony of the first degree. |
36 | (b) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any person |
37 | convicted of aggravated assault or aggravated battery of a |
38 | person defined in paragraph (a) shall be fined not more than |
39 | $10,000, shall be ordered by the sentencing judge to make |
40 | restitution to the victim of such offense and perform up to 500 |
41 | hours of community service work, and, except as provided in |
42 | subsection (2), shall be sentenced to a minimum term of |
43 | imprisonment of 5 years. Restitution and community service work |
44 | shall be in addition to any fine or sentence which may be |
45 | imposed and shall not be in lieu thereof. |
46 | (2) Any person who is convicted of a battery under |
47 | subparagraph (1)(a)2. and, during the commission of the offense, |
48 | possessed: |
49 | (a) A "firearm" or "destructive device" as those terms are |
50 | defined in s. 790.001, shall be sentenced to a minimum term of |
51 | imprisonment of 3 years in addition to that provided in |
52 | subsection (1). |
53 | (b) A semiautomatic firearm and its high-capacity |
54 | detachable box magazine, as defined in s. 775.087(3), or a |
55 | machine gun as defined in s. 790.001, shall be sentenced to a |
56 | minimum term of imprisonment of 8 years in addition to that |
57 | provided in subsection (1). |
58 | (3) Notwithstanding s. 948.01, adjudication of guilt or |
59 | imposition of sentence shall not be suspended, deferred, or |
60 | withheld, and the defendant is not eligible for statutory gain- |
61 | time under s. 944.275 or any form of discretionary early |
62 | release, other than pardon or executive clemency, or conditional |
63 | medical release under s. 947.149, prior to serving the minimum |
64 | sentence. |
65 | Section 2. This act shall take effect October 1, 2010. |