HB 983

1
A bill to be entitled
2An act relating to juvenile justice; amending s. 985.245,
3F.S.; requiring additional risk assessment points to be
4assessed for a child on a specified status who is charged
5with a new offense; amending s. 985.255, F.S.; providing
6that a child may continue to be detained by a court if he
7or she violates the conditions of his or her home
8detention; providing that a child may be detained for
9failure to appear at any hearing, not just adjudicatory
10hearings; increasing the periods that children may be
11detained for failure to appear at hearings; providing for
12additional detention for a child detained on a judicial
13order for failure to appear who has previously willfully
14failed to appear at two or more court hearings; deleting
15language concerning a child's failure to keep the clerk of
16court and defense counsel informed of a current and valid
17mailing address as not constituting a valid excuse for a
18failure to appear; amending s. 985.26, F.S.; providing
19that a child on home detention who violates the conditions
20of detention may be placed in secure detention regardless
21of his or her risk assessment score; increasing the
22periods that a child may be held under certain detention
23orders; revising language concerning the period that a
24child may be held in secure, nonsecure, or home detention
25care; amending s. 985.27, F.S.; providing that a child
26awaiting placement in any commitment level may be held in
27secure detention pending placement if the child is
28arrested for any offense while in other specified forms of
29detention care; providing an effective date.
30
31Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
32
33     Section 1.  Subsection (4) of section 985.245, Florida
34Statutes, is amended to read:
35     985.245  Risk assessment instrument.-
36     (4)  For a child who is under the supervision of the
37department through probation, home detention, nonsecure
38detention, conditional release, postcommitment probation, or
39commitment and who is charged with committing a new offense, the
40risk assessment instrument may be completed and scored based on
41the underlying charge for which the child was placed under the
42supervision of the department and the new offense. In addition,
43a score of 3 points in aggravation shall be included.
44     Section 2.  Paragraphs (i) and (j) of subsection (1) of
45section 985.255, Florida Statutes, are redesignated as
46paragraphs (j) and (k), respectively, and amended, and a new
47paragraph (i) is added to that subsection, to read:
48     985.255  Detention criteria; detention hearing.-
49     (1)  Subject to s. 985.25(1), a child taken into custody
50and placed into nonsecure or home detention care or detained in
51secure detention care prior to a detention hearing may continue
52to be detained by the court if:
53     (i)  The child is alleged to have violated the conditions
54of the child's home detention.
55     (j)(i)  The child is detained on a judicial order for
56failure to appear and has previously willfully failed to appear,
57after proper notice, for any an adjudicatory hearing on the same
58case regardless of the results of the risk assessment
59instrument. A child may be held in secure detention for up to 5
60business days 72 hours in advance of the next scheduled court
61hearing pursuant to this paragraph. The child's failure to keep
62the clerk of court and defense counsel informed of a current and
63valid mailing address where the child will receive notice to
64appear at court proceedings does not provide an adequate ground
65for excusal of the child's nonappearance at the hearings.
66     (k)(j)  The child is detained on a judicial order for
67failure to appear and has previously willfully failed to appear,
68after proper notice, at two or more court hearings of any nature
69on the same case, and under such circumstances shall be held in
70secure detention for up to 21 days, regardless of the results of
71the risk assessment instrument. A child may be held in secure
72detention for up to 72 hours in advance of the next scheduled
73court hearing pursuant to this paragraph. The child's failure to
74keep the clerk of court and defense counsel informed of a
75current and valid mailing address where the child will receive
76notice to appear at court proceedings does not provide an
77adequate ground for excusal of the child's nonappearance at the
78hearings.
79     Section 3.  Subsections (1), (2), and (3) of section
80985.26, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
81     985.26  Length of detention.-
82     (1)(a)  A child may not be placed into or held in secure,
83nonsecure, or home detention care for longer than 24 hours
84unless the court orders such detention care, and the order
85includes specific instructions that direct the release of the
86child from such detention care, in accordance with s. 985.255.
87The order shall be a final order, reviewable by appeal under s.
88985.534 and the Florida Rules of Appellate Procedure. Appeals of
89such orders shall take precedence over other appeals and other
90pending matters.
91     (b)  A child released on home detention, who violates the
92conditions thereof, may be placed in secure detention regardless
93of the score on the risk assessment instrument.
94     (2)  A child may not be held in secure, nonsecure, or home
95detention care under a special detention order for more than 30
9621 days unless an adjudicatory hearing for the case has been
97commenced in good faith by the court. However, upon good cause
98being shown that the nature of the charge requires additional
99time for the prosecution or defense of the case, the court may
100extend the length of detention for an additional 15 9 days. If
101the child is charged with an offense that would be, if committed
102by an adult, a capital felony, a life felony, a felony of the
103first degree, or a felony of the second degree involving
104violence against any individual, the child may be held in secure
105detention for up to 45 days.
106     (3)  Except as provided in subsection (2), a child may not
107be held in secure, nonsecure, or home detention care for more
108than 15 days pending disposition, after following the entry of
109an order of adjudication.
110     Section 4.  Subsection (3) is added to section 985.27,
111Florida Statutes, to read:
112     985.27  Postcommitment detention while awaiting placement.-
113     (3)  A child who is awaiting placement in any commitment
114level may be held in secure detention pending placement if the
115child is arrested for any offense, including a misdemeanor while
116the child is placed in home detention care, nonsecure detention
117care, or home or nonsecure detention care with electronic
118monitoring, while awaiting placement in that program.
119     Section 5.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2011.


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