The Florida Senate

916.105  Legislative intent.--

(1)  It is the intent of the Legislature that the ¹Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services establish, locate, and maintain separate and secure facilities and programs for the treatment of forensic clients who have been found to be mentally retarded or mentally ill defendants, or who have been acquitted of crimes by reason of insanity, and who, while still under the jurisdiction of the committing court, are committed to the department for mental retardation or mental health services under the provisions of this chapter. The separate, secure facilities shall be sufficient to accommodate the number of clients committed under the conditions noted above, except those clients found by the department to be appropriate for treatment in a civil mental health treatment facility. Such facilities shall be designed and administered so that ingress and egress, together with other requirements of this chapter, may be strictly controlled by staff responsible for security in order to protect the client, hospital personnel, other clients, and citizens in adjacent communities.

(2)  It is further the intent of the Legislature that treatment programs for clients who are found to be mentally retarded or mentally ill defendants and are involuntarily committed to certain mental retardation or mental health facilities, and who are still under the jurisdiction of the committing court, be provided in such a manner, subject to security requirements and other mandates of this chapter, as to ensure the rights of said clients as provided in this chapter.

(3)  It is the intent of the Legislature that evaluation and treatment of mentally ill and mentally retarded defendants be provided in community inpatient or outpatient settings, in community residential facilities, or in civil, nonforensic facilities, whenever this is a feasible alternative to treatment in a state forensic facility.

History.--s. 30, ch. 85-167.

¹Note.--The Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services was redesignated as the Department of Children and Family Services by s. 5, ch. 96-403, and the Department of Health was created by s. 8, ch. 96-403.