HB 171 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb0171-00
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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 first -time offender plea deal pilot 2
program; creating a first -time offender plea deal 3
pilot program; providing eligibility requirements for 4
the program; allowing eligible offenders to be 5
resentenced in accordance with previously rejected 6
plea deals; specifying duties of the Department of 7
Corrections; providing for expiration of the program; 8
providing an effective date. 9
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Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 11
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Section 1. First-time offender plea deal pilot program. — 13
(1) There is created a pilot program for inmates in the 14
custody of the Department of Corrections. To qualify for the 15
program an inmate must: 16
(a) Be a first-time felony offender. 17
(b) Have served 20 years or more of his or her sentence. 18
(c) Have been offered a plea bargain prior to trial which 19
he or she declined to accept. Such a plea bargain offer must: 20
1. Have provided the inmate with a shorter sen tence than 21
the sentence the inmate ultimately received. 22
2. Be provable either through documentation or other 23
evidence. 24
(d) Maintain eligibility to earn gain -time due to a lack 25
HB 171 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb0171-00
Page 2 of 2
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
of a disciplinary violation while he or she has been 26
incarcerated. 27
(e) Not have been convicted for actually killing a victim 28
or for actually engaging in an act constituting a sexual battery 29
as defined in s. 794.011(1). 30
(2) Beginning October 1, 2023, an inmate eligible under 31
subsection (1) may petition either the circuit court which 32
originally sentenced the inmate or the circuit court in which 33
the inmate currently resides and request that he or she be 34
resentenced in accordance with the terms of the qualifying plea 35
agreement. 36
(3) If the circuit court determines by a preponderan ce of 37
the evidence that the inmate is eligible under subsection (1), 38
the court shall resentence the inmate in accordance with the 39
terms of sentence in the plea agreement. When the circuit court 40
determines the inmates eligibility, the Department of 41
Corrections shall release the inmate or recalculate the release 42
date accordingly, as appropriate. 43
(4) This section expires September 30, 2025. 44
Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2023. 45