HB 123 2023
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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 sexual battery on mentally 2
incapacitated persons; amending s. 794.011, F.S.; 3
providing definitions; revising terminology; 4
prohibiting sexual battery upon a person who is 5
voluntarily or involuntarily mentally incapacitated; 6
providing criminal penalties; amending ss. 92.565 and 7
787.06, F.S.; conforming provisions to changes made by 8
the act; providing an effective date. 9
10
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 11
12
Section 1. Paragraph (l) is added to subsection (1) of 13
section 794.011, Florida Statutes, paragraphs (c) and (d) of 14
that subsection are redesignated as paragraphs (d) and (c), 15
respectively, and pr esent paragraph (d) of that subsection and 16
paragraph (e) of subsection (4) are amended, to read: 17
794.011 Sexual battery. — 18
(1) As used in this chapter: 19
(c)(d) "Involuntarily mentally incapacitated" means 20
temporarily incapable of appraising or controll ing a person's 21
own conduct due to the influence of a narcotic, anesthetic, or 22
intoxicating substance administered without his or her consent 23
or due to any other act committed upon that person without his 24
or her consent. 25
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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
(l) "Voluntarily mentally incapaci tated" means temporarily 26
incapable of appraising or controlling a person's own conduct 27
due to the influence of a narcotic, anesthetic, or intoxicating 28
substance administered with his or her consent or due to any 29
other act committed upon that person with hi s or her consent. 30
(4) 31
(e) The following circumstances apply to paragraphs (a) -32
(d): 33
1. The victim is physically helpless to resist. 34
2. The offender coerces the victim to submit by 35
threatening to use force or violence likely to cause serious 36
personal injury on the victim, and the victim reasonably 37
believes that the offender has the present ability to execute 38
the threat. 39
3. The offender coerces the victim to submit by 40
threatening to retaliate against the victim, or any other 41
person, and the victim rea sonably believes that the offender has 42
the ability to execute the threat in the future. 43
4. The offender, without the prior knowledge or consent of 44
the victim, administers or has knowledge of someone else 45
administering to the victim any narcotic, anesthet ic, or other 46
intoxicating substance that voluntarily or involuntarily 47
mentally incapacitates or physically incapacitates the victim. 48
5. The victim is mentally defective, and the offender has 49
reason to believe this or has actual knowledge of this fact. 50
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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
6. The victim is physically incapacitated. 51
7. The offender is a law enforcement officer, correctional 52
officer, or correctional probation officer as defined in s. 53
943.10(1), (2), (3), (6), (7), (8), or (9), who is certified 54
under s. 943.1395 or is an ele cted official exempt from such 55
certification by virtue of s. 943.253, or any other person in a 56
position of control or authority in a probation, community 57
control, controlled release, detention, custodial, or similar 58
setting, and such officer, official, or person is acting in such 59
a manner as to lead the victim to reasonably believe that the 60
offender is in a position of control or authority as an agent or 61
employee of government. 62
Section 2. Paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of section 63
92.565, Florida Statut es, is amended to read: 64
92.565 Admissibility of confession in sexual abuse cases. — 65
(2) In any criminal action in which the defendant is 66
charged with a crime against a victim under s. 787.06(3), 67
involving commercial sexual activity; s. 794.011; s. 794.0 5; s. 68
800.04; s. 826.04; s. 827.03, involving sexual abuse; s. 827.04, 69
involving sexual abuse; s. 827.071; or s. 847.0135(5), or any 70
other crime involving sexual abuse of another, or with any 71
attempt, solicitation, or conspiracy to commit any of these 72
crimes, the defendant's memorialized confession or admission is 73
admissible during trial without the state having to prove a 74
corpus delicti of the crime if the court finds in a hearing 75
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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
conducted outside the presence of the jury that the state is 76
unable to show the existence of each element of the crime, and 77
having so found, further finds that the defendant's confession 78
or admission is trustworthy. Factors which may be relevant in 79
determining whether the state is unable to show the existence of 80
each element of the crime include, but are not limited to, the 81
fact that, at the time the crime was committed, the victim was: 82
(a) Physically helpless, involuntarily mentally 83
incapacitated, voluntarily mentally incapacitated, or mentally 84
defective, as those terms are defi ned in s. 794.011; 85
Section 3. Paragraph (g) of subsection (3) of section 86
787.06, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 87
787.06 Human trafficking. — 88
(3) Any person who knowingly, or in reckless disregard of 89
the facts, engages in human trafficking, or attempts to engage 90
in human trafficking, or benefits financially by receiving 91
anything of value from participation in a venture that has 92
subjected a person to human trafficking: 93
(g) For commercial sexual activity in which any child 94
younger than 18 years of age or an adult believed by the person 95
to be a child younger than 18 years of age, or in which any 96
person who is mentally defective , involuntarily or mentally 97
incapacitated, or voluntarily mentally incapacitated, as those 98
terms are defined in s. 794.011 (1), is involved commits a life 99
felony, punishable as provided in s. 775.082(3)(a)6., s. 100
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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
775.083, or s. 775.084. 101
102
For each instance of human trafficking of any individual under 103
this subsection, a separate crime is committed and a separate 104
punishment is authorized. 105
Section 4. This act shall take effect October 1, 2023. 106