Florida Senate - 2021 CS for SB 1426
By the Committee on Criminal Justice; and Senator Jones
591-02609-21 20211426c1
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to pregnant women in custody;
3 providing a short title; creating s. 907.033, F.S.;
4 requiring that every female who is arrested and not
5 released on bond within 72 hours after arrest be
6 administered a pregnancy test within a specified
7 timeframe, upon her request; requiring that each
8 municipal or county detention facility notify each
9 arrested female upon booking of her right to request a
10 pregnancy test; providing for the types of pregnancy
11 tests that may be given; defining the term “female”;
12 creating s. 925.13, F.S.; defining the term “pregnant
13 woman”; requiring that, if a pregnant woman is
14 convicted of a crime and sentenced to incarceration of
15 any length, the sentencing judge provide the pregnant
16 woman the opportunity to defer the imposed sentence
17 until a certain time after delivery; authorizing a
18 sentencing judge to order certain terms and conditions
19 that the pregnant woman must comply with during the
20 deferral; requiring that, within 10 days after the
21 deferral period ends and the woman is incarcerated,
22 she be offered and, if requested, receive specified
23 services; authorizing sanctions for a new criminal
24 conviction or violation of the terms and conditions
25 ordered by the judge; requiring municipal and county
26 detention facilities to collect and report specified
27 information to the Department of Corrections, which
28 must incorporate such information from its facilities;
29 requiring the department to compile and publish
30 quarterly the information on its public website;
31 providing report requirements; providing an effective
32 date.
33
34 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
35
36 Section 1. This act may be cited at the “Protecting the
37 Dignity of Women and Infants Act.”
38 Section 2. Section 907.033, Florida Statutes, is created to
39 read:
40 907.033 Pregnancy testing of female arrestees.—Every female
41 who is arrested and not released on bond within 72 hours after
42 arrest, upon her request, must be administered a pregnancy test
43 by the municipal or county detention facility as defined in s.
44 951.23 where she is being held within 24 hours after the
45 request. Upon her booking into the facility, the facility must
46 notify each such arrestee of her right to request a pregnancy
47 test 72 hours after her arrest if she is still in custody. The
48 pregnancy test may be conducted through urine or blood tests, by
49 ultrasound scan, or by any other standard pregnancy testing
50 protocols adopted by the facility. As used in this section, the
51 term “female” includes a juvenile or adult woman.
52 Section 3. Section 925.13, Florida Statutes, is created to
53 read:
54 925.13 Sentence deferral for pregnant women.—
55 (1) As used in this section, the term “pregnant woman”
56 means a juvenile or adult woman whose pregnancy has been
57 verified by a pregnancy test or through a medical examination
58 conducted by a health care practitioner.
59 (2) Notwithstanding any other law, the sentence of a
60 pregnant woman who is convicted of a crime and sentenced to
61 incarceration of any length must comply with all of the
62 following requirements:
63 (a) The sentencing judge must provide a pregnant woman the
64 opportunity to defer the imposed sentence until 12 weeks after
65 delivery of the baby so that, during the deferral period, the
66 pregnant woman may receive necessary health care for herself and
67 the unborn child. If the pregnancy ends at any time before the
68 delivery of the baby, the deferral period will end 12 weeks from
69 the date the pregnancy ends. If the pregnant woman chooses not
70 to defer her sentence, she must be incarcerated as directed by
71 the judge.
72 (b) The sentencing judge may order a pregnant woman whose
73 sentence is deferred to comply with any of the terms and
74 conditions specified in s. 948.03 until such time as she is
75 incarcerated.
76 (c) Within 10 days after the deferral period ends and the
77 woman is incarcerated to serve the sentence, she must be offered
78 an appropriate assessment by a licensed health care practitioner
79 or a telehealth provider as defined in s. 456.47, and, upon the
80 request of the incarcerated woman, the licensed health care
81 practitioner or telehealth provider shall provide a postpartum
82 assessment, including the need for any necessary medical tests,
83 procedures, lactation support, mental health support, or
84 treatments associated with her postpartum condition. The
85 Department of Corrections and municipal and county detention
86 facilities must develop and offer such assessments and
87 treatments in consultation with community support organizations,
88 licensed health care practitioners, social services programs,
89 and local and state government agencies, including nonprofit
90 organizations.
91 (3) If, during the deferral period, the pregnant woman is
92 convicted of a new crime or violates any of the conditions
93 imposed by the sentencing judge, the judge may impose any
94 sanction that may be imposed under s. 948.06, including an order
95 requiring the incarceration of the pregnant woman to serve the
96 sentence for which the deferral was granted.
97 (4)(a) The Department of Corrections shall collect from its
98 own institutions, and each municipal and county detention
99 facility, as those terms are defined in s. 951.23, shall collect
100 and report to the department, all of the following information,
101 which the department shall compile and publish quarterly on its
102 public website:
103 1. The total number of pregnant women who receive a
104 sentence deferral under paragraph (2)(a);
105 2. The total number of women who receive and who decline an
106 assessment under paragraph (2)(c);
107 3. The total number of births, including the number of live
108 births and stillbirths, to women whose sentences are deferred,
109 and the gestational age and birth weight of each infant at the
110 time of birth or stillbirth;
111 4. The total number of such women who experience
112 complications during pregnancy and type of complications
113 experienced;
114 5. The total number of such women who experience
115 miscarriages; and
116 6. The total number of such women who refuse to provide
117 information regarding the outcome of their pregnancies as
118 indicated in subparagraphs 3., 4., and 5.
119 (b) The information published pursuant to paragraph (a)
120 must exclude patient identifying information and must comply
121 with state and federal confidentiality laws.
122 Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 2021.