Florida Senate - 2021                              CS for SB 194
       
       
        
       By the Committee on Criminal Justice; and Senators Berman, Cruz,
       and Polsky
       
       
       
       
       591-02151-21                                           2021194c1
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to crimes evidencing prejudice;
    3         amending s. 775.085, F.S.; expanding grounds for the
    4         reclassification of crimes to include prejudice based
    5         on the gender or gender identity of any person;
    6         specifying that the reclassification occurs if the
    7         crime was based in whole or in part on the race,
    8         color, ancestry, ethnicity, religion, sexual
    9         orientation, national origin, homeless status,
   10         advanced age, gender, or gender identity of any
   11         person; defining the term “gender identity”; amending
   12         s. 775.0863, F.S.; replacing the term “mental or
   13         physical disability” with the term “disability”;
   14         defining the term “disability”; specifying that the
   15         reclassification of a certain crime occurs if the
   16         crime was based in whole or in part on a disability of
   17         any person; amending s. 877.19, F.S.; expanding the
   18         data the Governor is required to collect and
   19         disseminate to include incidents of criminal acts that
   20         evidence prejudice based on gender, gender identity,
   21         or disability; providing an effective date.
   22          
   23  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   24  
   25         Section 1. Subsection (1) of section 775.085, Florida
   26  Statutes, is amended to read:
   27         775.085 Evidencing prejudice while committing offense;
   28  reclassification.—
   29         (1)(a) The penalty for any felony or misdemeanor shall be
   30  reclassified as provided in this subsection if the commission of
   31  such felony or misdemeanor evidences prejudice based in whole or
   32  in part on the race, color, ancestry, ethnicity, religion,
   33  sexual orientation, national origin, homeless status, or
   34  advanced age, gender, or gender identity of any person the
   35  victim:
   36         1. A misdemeanor of the second degree is reclassified to a
   37  misdemeanor of the first degree.
   38         2. A misdemeanor of the first degree is reclassified to a
   39  felony of the third degree.
   40         3. A felony of the third degree is reclassified to a felony
   41  of the second degree.
   42         4. A felony of the second degree is reclassified to a
   43  felony of the first degree.
   44         5. A felony of the first degree is reclassified to a life
   45  felony.
   46         (b) As used in paragraph (a), the term:
   47         1. “Advanced age” means that the person victim is older
   48  than 65 years of age.
   49         2. “Gender identity” means a person’s gender-related
   50  identity, appearance, or behavior, regardless of whether such
   51  gender-related identity, appearance, or behavior is different
   52  from that traditionally associated with the person’s physiology
   53  or assigned sex at birth.
   54         3.2. “Homeless status” means that the person victim:
   55         a. Lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime
   56  residence; or
   57         b. Has a primary nighttime residence that is:
   58         (I) A supervised publicly or privately operated shelter
   59  designed to provide temporary living accommodations; or
   60         (II) A public or private place not designed for, or
   61  ordinarily used as, a regular sleeping accommodation for human
   62  beings.
   63         Section 2. Section 775.0863, Florida Statutes, is amended
   64  to read:
   65         775.0863 Evidencing prejudice while committing offense
   66  against person with mental or physical disability;
   67  reclassification.—
   68         (1)(a) The penalty for any felony or misdemeanor shall be
   69  reclassified as provided in this subsection if the commission of
   70  such felony or misdemeanor evidences prejudice based in whole or
   71  in part on a mental or physical disability of any person the
   72  victim:
   73         1. A misdemeanor of the second degree is reclassified to a
   74  misdemeanor of the first degree.
   75         2. A misdemeanor of the first degree is reclassified to a
   76  felony of the third degree.
   77         3. A felony of the third degree is reclassified to a felony
   78  of the second degree.
   79         4. A felony of the second degree is reclassified to a
   80  felony of the first degree.
   81         5. A felony of the first degree is reclassified to a life
   82  felony.
   83         (b) As used in paragraph (a), the term “disability” “mental
   84  or physical disability” means a physical or mental impairment
   85  that substantially limits one or more of a person’s major life
   86  activities a condition of mental or physical incapacitation due
   87  to a developmental disability, organic brain damage, or mental
   88  illness, and one or more mental or physical limitations that
   89  restrict a person’s ability to perform the normal activities of
   90  daily living.
   91         (2) A person or organization that establishes by clear and
   92  convincing evidence that it has been coerced, intimidated, or
   93  threatened in violation of this section has a civil cause of
   94  action for treble damages, an injunction, or any other
   95  appropriate relief in law or in equity. Upon prevailing in such
   96  civil action, the plaintiff may recover reasonable attorney fees
   97  and costs.
   98         (3) It is an essential element of this section that the
   99  record reflect that the defendant perceived, knew, or had
  100  reasonable grounds to know or perceive that the person victim
  101  was within the class delineated in this section.
  102         Section 3. Subsection (2) of section 877.19, Florida
  103  Statutes, is amended to read:
  104         877.19 Hate Crimes Reporting Act.—
  105         (2) ACQUISITION AND PUBLICATION OF DATA.—The Governor,
  106  through the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, shall collect
  107  and disseminate data on incidents of criminal acts that evidence
  108  prejudice based on race, religion, ethnicity, color, ancestry,
  109  sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, disability, or
  110  national origin. All law enforcement agencies shall report
  111  monthly to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement concerning
  112  such offenses in such form and in such manner as prescribed by
  113  rules adopted by the department. Such information shall be
  114  compiled by the department and disseminated upon request to any
  115  local law enforcement agency, unit of local government, or state
  116  agency.
  117         Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 2021.