Florida Senate - 2011                        COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
       Bill No. SB 352
       
       
       
       
       
       
                                Barcode 605310                          
       
                              LEGISLATIVE ACTION                        
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       The Committee on Budget (Joyner) recommended the following:
       
    1         Senate Amendment (with title amendment)
    2  
    3         Delete everything after the enacting clause
    4  and insert:
    5         Section 1. Section 985.12, Florida Statutes, is amended to
    6  read:
    7         985.12 Civil citation.—
    8         (1) There is established a juvenile civil citation process
    9  for the purpose of providing an efficient and innovative
   10  alternative to custody by the Department of Juvenile Justice for
   11  of children who commit nonserious delinquent acts and to ensure
   12  swift and appropriate consequences. The department shall
   13  encourage and assist in the implementation and improvement of
   14  civil citation programs or other similar diversion programs
   15  around the state. The civil citation or similar program shall
   16  may be established at the local level with the concurrence of
   17  the chief judge of the circuit, state attorney, public defender,
   18  and the head of each local law enforcement agency involved. The
   19  program may be operated by an entity such as a law enforcement
   20  agency, the department, a juvenile assessment center, the county
   21  or municipality, or some other entity selected by the county or
   22  municipality. Whichever entity is selected to operate the civil
   23  citation or similar diversion program shall be done so in
   24  consultation and agreement with the state attorney and local law
   25  enforcement agencies. Under such a juvenile civil citation
   26  program or similar diversion program, any law enforcement
   27  officer, upon making contact with a juvenile who admits having
   28  committed a misdemeanor, may issue a civil citation and assess
   29  assessing not more than 50 community service hours, and may
   30  require participation in intervention services as indicated by
   31  an assessment of the appropriate to identified needs of the
   32  juvenile, including family counseling, urinalysis monitoring,
   33  and substance abuse and mental health treatment services. A copy
   34  of each citation issued under this section shall be provided to
   35  the department, and the department shall enter appropriate
   36  information into the juvenile offender information system. Only
   37  first-time misdemeanor offenders are eligible for the civil
   38  citation program or similar diversion program. At the conclusion
   39  of a juvenile’s civil citation program or similar diversion
   40  program, the agency operating the program shall report the
   41  outcome to the department. The issuance of a civil citation is
   42  not considered a referral to the department.
   43         (2) The department shall develop guidelines for the civil
   44  citation program which include intervention services that are
   45  based upon proven civil citation programs or similar diversion
   46  programs within the state.
   47         (3)(2) Upon issuing such citation, the law enforcement
   48  officer shall send a copy to the county sheriff, state attorney,
   49  the appropriate intake office of the department, or the
   50  community service performance monitor designated by the
   51  department, and the parent or guardian of the child, and the
   52  victim.
   53         (4)(3) The child shall report to the community service
   54  performance monitor within 7 working days after the date of
   55  issuance of the citation. The work assignment shall be
   56  accomplished at a rate of not less than 5 hours per week. The
   57  monitor shall advise the intake office immediately upon
   58  reporting by the child to the monitor, that the child has in
   59  fact reported and the expected date upon which completion of the
   60  work assignment will be accomplished.
   61         (5)(4) If the child juvenile fails to report timely for a
   62  work assignment, complete a work assignment, or comply with
   63  assigned intervention services within the prescribed time, or if
   64  the juvenile commits a third or subsequent misdemeanor, the law
   65  enforcement officer shall issue a report alleging the child has
   66  committed a delinquent act, at which point a juvenile probation
   67  officer shall process the original delinquent act as a referral
   68  to the department and refer the report to the state attorney for
   69  review perform a preliminary determination as provided under s.
   70  985.145.
   71         (6)(5) At the time of issuance of the citation by the law
   72  enforcement officer, such officer shall advise the child that
   73  the child has the option to refuse the citation and to be
   74  referred to the intake office of the department. That option may
   75  be exercised at any time before prior to completion of the work
   76  assignment.
   77         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2011.
   78  
   79  ================= T I T L E  A M E N D M E N T ================
   80  And the title is amended as follows:
   81  
   82         Delete everything before the enacting clause
   83  and insert:
   84                        A bill to be entitled                      
   85         An act relating to juvenile civil citations; amending
   86         s. 985.12, F.S.; requiring the Department of Juvenile
   87         Justice to encourage and assist in the implementation
   88         and improvement of civil citation and similar
   89         diversion programs; requiring that a juvenile civil
   90         citation and similar diversion program be established
   91         at the local level with the concurrence of the chief
   92         judge of the circuit and other designated persons;
   93         authorizing a law enforcement agency, the Department
   94         of Juvenile Justice, a juvenile assessment center, the
   95         county or municipality, or an entity selected by the
   96         county or municipality to operate the civil citation
   97         or similar diversion program; requiring the entity
   98         operating the program to do so in consultation with
   99         and agreement by the state attorney and the local law
  100         enforcement agencies; authorizing a law enforcement
  101         officer, upon making contact with a juvenile who
  102         admits to having committed a misdemeanor, to require
  103         participation in intervention services based upon an
  104         assessment of the needs of the juvenile; restricting
  105         eligibility of participants for the civil citation
  106         program to first-time misdemeanor offenders unless the
  107         participation is approved by the state attorney or
  108         assistant state attorney; requiring the agency
  109         operating the program to report on the outcome to the
  110         Department of Juvenile Justice at the conclusion of a
  111         youth’s civil citation or similar diversion program;
  112         providing that the issuance of a civil citation is not
  113         considered a referral to the department; requiring the
  114         department to develop guidelines for the civil
  115         citation program which include intervention services
  116         that are based upon proven civil citation and similar
  117         diversion programs within the state; deleting a
  118         provision requiring that a law enforcement officer
  119         send a copy of a civil citation to the victim of the
  120         offense; requiring a juvenile probation officer to
  121         process the original delinquent act as a referral to
  122         the department in specified circumstances and to refer
  123         certain reports to the state attorney for review;
  124         providing an effective date.