HB 363 2022
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hb0363-00
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to pregnant women in custody; 2
providing a short title; creating s. 907.033, F.S.; 3
requiring that every female who is arrested and not 4
released on bond within 72 hours after arrest be 5
administered a pregnancy test within a specified 6
timeframe, upon her request; requiring that each 7
municipal or county detention facility notify each 8
arrested female upon booking at the facility of her 9
right to request a pregnancy test; providing for the 10
types of pregnancy tests that may be given; defining 11
the term "female"; creating s. 925.13, F.S.; defining 12
the term "pregnant woman"; requiring that, if a 13
pregnant woman is convicted of a crime and sentenced 14
to incarceration of any length, the sentencing judge 15
provide the pregnant woman the opportunity to defer 16
the imposed sentence until a specified time after 17
delivery; authorizing a sentencing judge to order a 18
pregnant woman to comply with certain terms and 19
conditions during the deferral; requiring that, within 20
10 days after the deferral period ends and the woman 21
is incarcerated, she be offered and receive, upon her 22
request, specified services; authorizing sanctions for 23
a new criminal conviction or violation of the terms 24
and conditions ordered by the judge; requiring 25
HB 363 2022
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hb0363-00
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
municipal and county detention facilities to col lect 26
and report to the Department of Corrections, and the 27
department to collect from its own institutions, 28
specified information; requiring the department to 29
quarterly compile and publish the information on its 30
public website; providing requirements for pu blishing 31
such information; providing an effective date. 32
33
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 34
35
Section 1. This act may be cited as "Ava's Law." 36
Section 2. Section 907.033, Florida Statutes, is created 37
to read: 38
907.033 Pregnancy testing of female arrestees. —Every 39
female who is arrested and not released on bond within 72 hours 40
after arrest must, upon her request, be administered a pregnancy 41
test by the municipal or county detention facility as defined in 42
s. 951.23 where she is being held within 24 hours after the 43
request. Upon her booking into the facility, the facility must 44
notify each such arrestee of her right to request a pregnancy 45
test 72 hours after arrest if she is still in custody. The 46
pregnancy test may be conducted through urine or blood tests, by 47
ultrasound scan, or by any other standard pregnancy testing 48
protocols adopted by the facility. As used in this section, the 49
term "female" includes a juvenile or adult woman. 50
HB 363 2022
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
Section 3. Section 925.13, Florida Statutes, is created to 51
read: 52
925.13 Sentence deferral for pregnant women. — 53
(1) As used in this section, the term "pregnant woman" 54
means a juvenile or adult woman whose pregnancy has been 55
verified by a pregnancy test or through a medical examination 56
conducted by a health care practitioner. 57
(2) Notwithstanding any other law, the sentence of a 58
pregnant woman who is convicted of a crime and sentenced to 59
incarceration of any length must comply with all of the 60
following requirements: 61
(a) The sentencing judge must provide a pregnant woman the 62
opportunity to defer the imposed sentence until 12 weeks after 63
delivery of the baby so that during the deferral period the 64
pregnant woman may receive necessary health care for herself and 65
the unborn child. If the pregnancy ends at any time before the 66
delivery of the baby, the deferral period will end 12 weeks from 67
the date the pregnancy ends. If the pregnant woman chooses not 68
to defer her sentence, she must be incarcerated as directed by 69
the judge. 70
(b) The sentencing judge may order a pregnant woman whose 71
sentence is deferred to comply with any of the terms and 72
conditions specified in s. 948.03 until such time as she is 73
incarcerated. 74
(c) Within 10 days after the deferral period ends and the 75
HB 363 2022
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
woman is incarcerated to serve the sentence, she must be offered 76
an appropriate assessment by a licensed health care practitioner 77
or a telehealth provider as defined in s. 456.47, and, upon the 78
request of the incarcerated woman, the licensed health care 79
practitioner or telehealth provider s hall provide a postpartum 80
assessment, including the need for any necessary medical tests, 81
procedures, lactation support, mental health support, or 82
treatments associated with her postpartum condition. The 83
Department of Corrections and municipal and county d etention 84
facilities shall develop and offer such assessments and 85
treatments in consultation with community support organizations, 86
licensed health care practitioners, social services programs, 87
and local and state government agencies, including nonprofit 88
organizations. 89
(3) If, during the deferral period, the pregnant woman is 90
convicted of a new crime or violates any of the conditions 91
imposed by the sentencing judge, the judge may impose any 92
sanction that may be imposed under s. 948.06, including an order 93
requiring the incarceration of the pregnant woman to serve the 94
sentence for which the deferral was granted. 95
(4)(a) The Department of Corrections shall collect from 96
its own institutions, and each municipal and county detention 97
facility, as those terms are defined in s. 951.23, shall collect 98
and report to the department, all of the following information, 99
which the department shall compile and publish quarterly on its 100
HB 363 2022
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
public website: 101
1. The total number of pregnant women who receive a 102
sentence deferral under paragraph (2)(a); 103
2. The total number of women who receive or who decline an 104
assessment under paragraph (2)(c); 105
3. The total number of births, including the number of 106
live births and stillbirths, to women whose sentences are 107
deferred, and the gestational age and birth weight of each 108
infant at the time of birth or stillbirth; 109
4. The total number of women who experience complications 110
during pregnancy and the type of complications experienced; 111
5. The total number of women who experience miscarriages; 112
and 113
6. The total number of women who refuse to provide 114
information regarding the outcome of their pregnan cies as 115
indicated in subparagraphs 3., 4., and 5. 116
(b) The information published pursuant to paragraph (a) 117
must exclude personally identifying information and must comply 118
with state and federal confidentiality laws. 119
Section 4. This act shall take effe ct July 1, 2022. 120