Florida Senate - 2016                                     SB 368
       
       
        
       By Senator Joyner
       
       
       
       
       
       19-00513-16                                            2016368__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to evidence collected in sexual
    3         assault investigations; providing legislative
    4         findings; creating s. 943.326, F.S.; requiring law
    5         enforcement agencies to adopt standards concerning
    6         forensic evidence collected in investigations of
    7         alleged sexual assaults; providing a time limit for
    8         the processing of backlogged forensic medical
    9         evidence; creating s. 938.086, F.S.; providing a
   10         surcharge upon persons convicted of certain sexual
   11         offenses; specifying that the proceeds of the
   12         surcharge be used to process forensic medical evidence
   13         submitted in investigations of alleged sexual
   14         assaults; providing an effective date.
   15          
   16  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   17  
   18         Section 1. The Legislature finds that in the past rape kits
   19  have not been processed for DNA evidence in some cases and in
   20  other cases such processing has not taken place in a timely
   21  manner. The Legislature finds that law enforcement agencies have
   22  not always had formal policies concerning the submission of such
   23  kits for processing and that the statewide criminal analysis
   24  laboratory system has not always had sufficient funding to
   25  promptly process the kits it receives. The Legislature intends
   26  that all law enforcement agencies in the state adopt formal
   27  policies to ensure that rape kits are promptly submitted and
   28  that the funding of the statewide criminal analysis laboratory
   29  system be addressed to help ensure that such kits are processed
   30  in a timely manner.
   31         Section 2. Section 943.326, Florida Statutes, is created to
   32  read:
   33         943.326 DNA evidence collected in sexual assault
   34  investigations.—By January 1, 2017, each law enforcement agency
   35  in the state shall adopt a policy concerning the handling and
   36  submission for processing of forensic medical evidence collected
   37  in connection with an alleged sexual assault. Such a policy must
   38  include a requirement that the agency make every effort to
   39  ensure that such evidence be processed and the results be
   40  provided to the agency no later than 12 months after the date of
   41  the alleged sexual assault.
   42         Section 3. Forensic medical evidence collected in
   43  connection with an alleged sexual assault before January 1,
   44  2017, is not subject to the processing time limit in s. 943.326,
   45  Florida Statutes, as created by this act; however, each law
   46  enforcement agency in the state shall make every effort to
   47  ensure that such evidence be processed as promptly as possible
   48  and in no event shall the results be provided to the agency
   49  later than January 1, 2020.
   50         Section 4. Section 938.086, Florida Statutes, is created to
   51  read:
   52         938.086 Additional court cost for processing of forensic
   53  medical evidence in alleged sexual assault cases.—In addition to
   54  any sanction imposed when a person pleads guilty or nolo
   55  contendere to, or is found guilty of, regardless of
   56  adjudication, a violation of s. 393.135(2); s. 394.4593(2); s.
   57  787.01; s. 787.02; s. 787.025(2)(c); s. 787.06(3)(b), (d), (f),
   58  or (g); s. 794.011, excluding s. 794.011(10); s. 794.05; s.
   59  800.04; s. 810.145(8); s. 825.1025; s. 827.071; s. 847.0133; s.
   60  847.0135, excluding s. 847.0135(6); s. 847.0137; s. 847.0138; s.
   61  847.0145; s. 916.1075(2); or s. 985.701(1); or any similar
   62  offense committed in this state which has been redesignated from
   63  a former statute number to one of those listed in this section,
   64  the court shall impose a surcharge of $1,000. Payment of the
   65  surcharge shall be a condition of probation, community control,
   66  or any other court-ordered supervision. The surcharge shall be
   67  deposited into the Operating Trust Fund of the Department of Law
   68  Enforcement to be used by the statewide criminal analysis
   69  laboratory system or a local law enforcement agency to process
   70  forensic medical evidence submitted in investigations of alleged
   71  sexual assaults.
   72         Section 5. This act shall take effect July 1, 2016.