Florida Senate - 2023                              CS for SB 174
       
       
        
       By the Committee on Criminal Justice; and Senator Polsky
       
       
       
       
       
       591-03489-23                                           2023174c1
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to protection of specified personnel;
    3         amending s. 836.12, F.S.; defining the term “judicial
    4         assistant”; providing that threats committed with
    5         specified intent are specified violations of the act;
    6         prohibiting specified threats against a justice or
    7         judicial assistant or a family member of such person;
    8         prohibiting specified harassment of certain personnel
    9         with the intent to intimidate or coerce such person to
   10         perform or refrain from performing a lawful duty;
   11         providing criminal penalties; providing an effective
   12         date.
   13          
   14  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   15  
   16         Section 1. Section 836.12, Florida Statutes, is amended to
   17  read:
   18         836.12 Threats or harassment.—
   19         (1) As used in this section, the term:
   20         (a) “Family member” means:
   21         1. An individual related to another individual by blood or
   22  marriage; or
   23         2. An individual who stands in loco parentis to another
   24  individual.
   25         (b) “Judicial assistant” means a court employee assigned to
   26  the office of a specific judge or justice responsible for
   27  providing administrative, secretarial, and clerical support to
   28  the assigned judge or justice.
   29         (c)(b) “Law enforcement officer” means:
   30         1. A law enforcement officer as defined in s. 943.10; or
   31         2. A federal law enforcement officer as defined in s.
   32  901.1505.
   33         (2)(a) Except as provided in paragraph (b), any person who
   34  knowingly and willfully threatens a law enforcement officer, a
   35  state attorney, an assistant state attorney, a firefighter, a
   36  judge, a justice, a judicial assistant, or an elected official,
   37  or a family member of any such person persons, with death or
   38  serious bodily harm commits a misdemeanor of the first degree,
   39  punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.
   40         (b)(3) A person who commits a second or subsequent
   41  violation of paragraph (a) subsection (2) commits a felony of
   42  the third degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s.
   43  775.083, or s. 775.084.
   44         (3) Any person who knowingly and willfully harasses a law
   45  enforcement officer, a state attorney, an assistant state
   46  attorney, a firefighter, a judge, a justice, a judicial
   47  assistant, or an elected official, with the intent to intimidate
   48  or coerce such a person to perform or refrain from performing a
   49  lawful duty, commits a misdemeanor of the first degree,
   50  punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.
   51         Section 2. This act shall take effect October 1, 2023.