Florida Senate - 2022 SB 308 By Senator Berman 31-00300-22 2022308__ 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to crimes evidencing prejudice; 3 amending s. 775.085, F.S.; expanding grounds for the 4 reclassification of crimes to include acts of 5 prejudice based on the gender or gender identity of 6 any person; specifying that the reclassification 7 occurs if the crime was based in whole or in part on 8 the race, color, ancestry, ethnicity, religion, sexual 9 orientation, national origin, homeless status, 10 advanced age, gender, or gender identity of any 11 person; defining the term gender identity; amending 12 s. 775.0863, F.S.; replacing the term mental or 13 physical disability with the term disability; 14 defining the term disability; specifying that the 15 reclassification of a certain crime occurs if the 16 crime was based in whole or in part on a disability of 17 any person; amending s. 877.19, F.S.; expanding the 18 data the Governor is required to collect and 19 disseminate to include incidents of criminal acts that 20 evidence prejudice based on gender, gender identity, 21 or disability; providing an effective date. 22 23 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 24 25 Section 1.Subsection (1) of section 775.085, Florida 26 Statutes, is amended to read: 27 775.085Evidencing prejudice while committing offense; 28 reclassification. 29 (1)(a)The penalty for any felony or misdemeanor shall be 30 reclassified as provided in this subsection if the commission of 31 such felony or misdemeanor evidences prejudice based in whole or 32 in part on the race, color, ancestry, ethnicity, religion, 33 sexual orientation, national origin, homeless status, or 34 advanced age, gender, or gender identity of any person the 35 victim: 36 1.A misdemeanor of the second degree is reclassified to a 37 misdemeanor of the first degree. 38 2.A misdemeanor of the first degree is reclassified to a 39 felony of the third degree. 40 3.A felony of the third degree is reclassified to a felony 41 of the second degree. 42 4.A felony of the second degree is reclassified to a 43 felony of the first degree. 44 5.A felony of the first degree is reclassified to a life 45 felony. 46 (b)As used in paragraph (a), the term: 47 1.Advanced age means that the person victim is older 48 than 65 years of age. 49 2.Gender identity means a persons gender-related 50 identity, appearance, or behavior, regardless of whether such 51 gender-related identity, appearance, or behavior is different 52 from that traditionally associated with the persons physiology 53 or assigned sex at birth. 54 3.2.Homeless status means that the person victim: 55 a.Lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime 56 residence; or 57 b.Has a primary nighttime residence that is: 58 (I)A supervised publicly or privately operated shelter 59 designed to provide temporary living accommodations; or 60 (II)A public or private place not designed for, or 61 ordinarily used as, a regular sleeping accommodation for human 62 beings. 63 Section 2.Section 775.0863, Florida Statutes, is amended 64 to read: 65 775.0863Evidencing prejudice while committing offense 66 against person with mental or physical disability; 67 reclassification. 68 (1)(a)The penalty for any felony or misdemeanor shall be 69 reclassified as provided in this subsection if the commission of 70 such felony or misdemeanor evidences prejudice based in whole or 71 in part on a mental or physical disability of any person the 72 victim: 73 1.A misdemeanor of the second degree is reclassified to a 74 misdemeanor of the first degree. 75 2.A misdemeanor of the first degree is reclassified to a 76 felony of the third degree. 77 3.A felony of the third degree is reclassified to a felony 78 of the second degree. 79 4.A felony of the second degree is reclassified to a 80 felony of the first degree. 81 5.A felony of the first degree is reclassified to a life 82 felony. 83 (b)As used in paragraph (a), the term disability mental 84 or physical disability means a physical or mental impairment 85 that substantially limits one or more of a persons major life 86 activities a condition of mental or physical incapacitation due 87 to a developmental disability, organic brain damage, or mental 88 illness, and one or more mental or physical limitations that 89 restrict a persons ability to perform the normal activities of 90 daily living. 91 (2)A person or organization that establishes by clear and 92 convincing evidence that it has been coerced, intimidated, or 93 threatened in violation of this section has a civil cause of 94 action for treble damages, an injunction, or any other 95 appropriate relief in law or in equity. Upon prevailing in such 96 civil action, the plaintiff may recover reasonable attorney fees 97 and costs. 98 (3)It is an essential element of this section that the 99 record reflect that the defendant perceived, knew, or had 100 reasonable grounds to know or perceive that the person victim 101 was within the class delineated in this section. 102 Section 3.Subsection (2) of section 877.19, Florida 103 Statutes, is amended to read: 104 877.19Hate Crimes Reporting Act. 105 (2)ACQUISITION AND PUBLICATION OF DATA.The Governor, 106 through the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, shall collect 107 and disseminate data on incidents of criminal acts that evidence 108 prejudice based on race, religion, ethnicity, color, ancestry, 109 sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, disability, or 110 national origin. All law enforcement agencies shall report 111 monthly to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement concerning 112 such offenses in such form and in such manner as prescribed by 113 rules adopted by the department. Such information shall be 114 compiled by the department and disseminated upon request to any 115 local law enforcement agency, unit of local government, or state 116 agency. 117 Section 4.This act shall take effect July 1, 2022.