Florida Senate - 2024 SB 940
By Senator Rodriguez
40-01621-24 2024940__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to restorative justice; amending s.
3 945.71, F.S.; revising the intent of specified
4 provisions; amending s. 945.73, F.S.; requiring the
5 Department of Corrections to develop and implement
6 training programs for eligible inmates which include
7 training about restorative justice practices; amending
8 s. 960.001, F.S.; revising a guideline for providing
9 information concerning services available to victims
10 of crime to include restorative justice; amending s.
11 960.03, F.S.; defining the term “restorative justice”;
12 providing an effective date.
13
14 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
15
16 Section 1. Section 945.71, Florida Statutes, is amended to
17 read:
18 945.71 Inmate training programs; intent and purposes.—It is
19 the intent of ss. 945.71-945.74 to authorize the establishment
20 of structured disciplinary training programs within the
21 Department of Corrections expressly intended to instill self
22 discipline, improve work habits, increase accountability and
23 reparative behavior, and improve self-confidence for inmates.
24 Section 2. Subsection (1) of section 945.73, Florida
25 Statutes, is amended to read:
26 945.73 Inmate training program operation.—
27 (1) The department shall, subject to specific legislative
28 appropriation, develop and implement training programs for
29 eligible inmates which include, but are not limited to, marching
30 drills, calisthenics, a rigid dress code, work assignments,
31 physical training, training in decisionmaking and personal
32 development, drug counseling, education, training about
33 restorative justice practices, and rehabilitation.
34 Section 3. Paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section
35 960.001, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
36 960.001 Guidelines for fair treatment of victims and
37 witnesses in the criminal justice and juvenile justice systems.—
38 (1) The Department of Legal Affairs, the state attorneys,
39 the Department of Corrections, the Department of Juvenile
40 Justice, the Florida Commission on Offender Review, the State
41 Courts Administrator and circuit court administrators, the
42 Department of Law Enforcement, and every sheriff’s department,
43 police department, or other law enforcement agency as defined in
44 s. 943.10(4) shall develop and implement guidelines for the use
45 of their respective agencies, which guidelines are consistent
46 with the purposes of this act and s. 16(b), Art. I of the State
47 Constitution and are designed to implement s. 16(b), Art. I of
48 the State Constitution and to achieve the following objectives:
49 (a) Information concerning services available to victims of
50 adult and juvenile crime.—As provided in s. 27.0065, state
51 attorneys and public defenders shall gather information
52 regarding the following services in the geographic boundaries of
53 their respective circuits and shall provide such information to
54 each law enforcement agency with jurisdiction within such
55 geographic boundaries. Law enforcement personnel shall ensure,
56 through distribution of a victim’s rights information card or
57 brochure at the crime scene, during the criminal investigation,
58 and in any other appropriate manner, that victims are given, as
59 a matter of course at the earliest possible time, information
60 about:
61 1. The availability of crime victim compensation, if
62 applicable;
63 2. Crisis intervention services, supportive or bereavement
64 counseling, social service support referrals, and community
65 based victim treatment programs, and restorative justice
66 programs;
67 3. The role of the victim in the criminal or juvenile
68 justice process, including what the victim may expect from the
69 system as well as what the system expects from the victim;
70 4. The stages in the criminal or juvenile justice process
71 which are of significance to the victim and the manner in which
72 information about such stages can be obtained;
73 5. The right of a victim, who is not incarcerated,
74 including the victim’s parent or guardian if the victim is a
75 minor, the lawful representative of the victim or of the
76 victim’s parent or guardian if the victim is a minor, and the
77 next of kin of a homicide victim, upon request, to be informed,
78 to be present, and to be heard at all stages of a criminal or
79 juvenile proceeding as provided by s. 16(b), Art. I of the State
80 Constitution;
81 6. In the case of incarcerated victims, the right, upon
82 request, to be informed and to submit written statements at all
83 stages of the criminal proceedings, parole proceedings, or
84 juvenile proceedings;
85 7. The right of a victim to a prompt and timely disposition
86 of the case in order to minimize the period during which the
87 victim must endure the responsibilities and stress involved; and
88 8. The right of a victim to employ private counsel. The
89 Florida Bar is encouraged to develop a registry of attorneys who
90 are willing to serve on a pro bono basis as advocates for crime
91 victims; and
92 9. The right of a victim to pursue restorative justice as
93 defined in s. 960.03, if available.
94 Section 4. Present subsections (13) and (14) of section
95 960.03, Florida Statutes, are redesignated as subsections (14)
96 and (15), respectively, and a new subsection (13) is added to
97 that section, to read:
98 960.03 Definitions; ss. 960.01-960.28.—As used in ss.
99 960.01-960.28, unless the context otherwise requires, the term:
100 (13) “Restorative justice” means a victim-centered response
101 to crime that enables those most impacted by an offense, the
102 victim, the offender, their families, and community members, to
103 meet and participate directly in addressing the resulting harm
104 through a voluntary process that prioritizes accountability,
105 repair, and the safety of participants. The term includes
106 restorative justice processes, which include, but are not
107 limited to, victim-offender dialogues, family group conferences,
108 restorative circles, community conferences, and other similar
109 victim-centered processes.
110 Section 5. This act shall take effect July 1, 2024.