Florida Senate - 2023                       CS for CS for SB 174
       
       
        
       By the Appropriations Committee on Criminal and Civil Justice;
       the Committee on Criminal Justice; and Senators Polsky and
       Torres
       
       
       
       604-03968-23                                           2023174c2
    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, a
    7         judicial assistant, a clerk of the circuit court,
    8         clerk of the circuit court personnel, or a family
    9         member of such person; prohibiting specified
   10         harassment of certain personnel with the intent to
   11         intimidate or coerce such person to perform or refrain
   12         from performing a lawful duty; providing criminal
   13         penalties; providing an effective date.
   14          
   15  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   16  
   17         Section 1. Section 836.12, Florida Statutes, is amended to
   18  read:
   19         836.12 Threats or harassment.—
   20         (1) As used in this section, the term:
   21         (a) “Family member” means:
   22         1. An individual related to another individual by blood or
   23  marriage; or
   24         2. An individual who stands in loco parentis to another
   25  individual.
   26         (b) “Judicial assistant” means a court employee assigned to
   27  the office of a specific judge or justice responsible for
   28  providing administrative, secretarial, and clerical support to
   29  the assigned judge or justice.
   30         (c)(b) “Law enforcement officer” means:
   31         1. A law enforcement officer as defined in s. 943.10; or
   32         2. A federal law enforcement officer as defined in s.
   33  901.1505.
   34         (2)(a) Except as provided in paragraph (b), any person who
   35  knowingly and willfully threatens a law enforcement officer, a
   36  state attorney, an assistant state attorney, a firefighter, a
   37  judge, a justice, a judicial assistant, a clerk of the circuit
   38  court, clerk of the circuit court personnel, or an elected
   39  official, or a family member of any such person persons, with
   40  death or serious bodily harm commits a misdemeanor of the first
   41  degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.
   42         (b)(3) A person who commits a second or subsequent
   43  violation of paragraph (a) subsection (2) commits a felony of
   44  the third degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s.
   45  775.083, or s. 775.084.
   46         (3) Any person who knowingly and willfully harasses a law
   47  enforcement officer, a state attorney, an assistant state
   48  attorney, a firefighter, a judge, a justice, a judicial
   49  assistant, a clerk of the circuit court, clerk of the circuit
   50  court personnel, or an elected official, with the intent to
   51  intimidate or coerce such a person to perform or refrain from
   52  performing a lawful duty, commits a misdemeanor of the first
   53  degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.
   54         Section 2. This act shall take effect October 1, 2023.