1 | 1 | | |
---|
2 | 2 | | |
---|
3 | 3 | | HB 393 2023 |
---|
4 | 4 | | |
---|
5 | 5 | | |
---|
6 | 6 | | |
---|
7 | 7 | | CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. |
---|
8 | 8 | | hb0393-00 |
---|
9 | 9 | | Page 1 of 2 |
---|
10 | 10 | | 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 |
---|
11 | 11 | | |
---|
12 | 12 | | |
---|
13 | 13 | | |
---|
14 | 14 | | A bill to be entitled 1 |
---|
15 | 15 | | An act relating to gay and transgender panic legal 2 |
---|
16 | 16 | | defenses; creating s. 900.06, F.S.; providing a short 3 |
---|
17 | 17 | | title; providing legislative findings; defining terms; 4 |
---|
18 | 18 | | prohibiting individuals from using a nonviolent sexual 5 |
---|
19 | 19 | | advance or specified perceptions or beliefs about 6 |
---|
20 | 20 | | another individual as a defense to a criminal offense, 7 |
---|
21 | 21 | | to excuse or justify the conduct of an individual who 8 |
---|
22 | 22 | | commits a criminal offense, or to mitigate the 9 |
---|
23 | 23 | | severity of a criminal offense; providing an effective 10 |
---|
24 | 24 | | date. 11 |
---|
25 | 25 | | 12 |
---|
26 | 26 | | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 13 |
---|
27 | 27 | | 14 |
---|
28 | 28 | | Section 1. Section 900.06, Florida Statutes, is created to 15 |
---|
29 | 29 | | read: 16 |
---|
30 | 30 | | 900.06 Use of gay and transgender panic legal defenses 17 |
---|
31 | 31 | | prohibited.— 18 |
---|
32 | 32 | | (1) SHORT TITLE.—This act may be cited as the "Gay and 19 |
---|
33 | 33 | | Transgender Panic Legal Defenses Prohibition Act." 20 |
---|
34 | 34 | | (2) LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS. —The Legislature finds that gay 21 |
---|
35 | 35 | | and transgender panic legal defenses raised in criminal 22 |
---|
36 | 36 | | proceedings characte rize sexual orientation and gender 23 |
---|
37 | 37 | | expression or gender identity as objectively reasonable excuses 24 |
---|
38 | 38 | | for a perpetrator's loss of self -control, and that these 25 |
---|
39 | 39 | | |
---|
40 | 40 | | HB 393 2023 |
---|
41 | 41 | | |
---|
42 | 42 | | |
---|
43 | 43 | | |
---|
44 | 44 | | CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. |
---|
45 | 45 | | hb0393-00 |
---|
46 | 46 | | Page 2 of 2 |
---|
47 | 47 | | 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 |
---|
48 | 48 | | |
---|
49 | 49 | | |
---|
50 | 50 | | |
---|
51 | 51 | | defenses thereby illegitimately attempt to mitigate the 26 |
---|
52 | 52 | | responsibility of the perpetrator for harm d one to lesbian, gay, 27 |
---|
53 | 53 | | bisexual, or transgender individuals. 28 |
---|
54 | 54 | | (3) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section, the term: 29 |
---|
55 | 55 | | (a) "Gay and transgender panic legal defense" means a 30 |
---|
56 | 56 | | legal strategy that asks a judge or a jury to find that a 31 |
---|
57 | 57 | | victim's sexual orientation o r gender identity is the cause of 32 |
---|
58 | 58 | | the defendant's reaction and commission of a criminal offense. 33 |
---|
59 | 59 | | (b) "Gender expression" or "gender identity" means gender -34 |
---|
60 | 60 | | related identity, appearance, or behavior, regardless of whether 35 |
---|
61 | 61 | | such gender-related identity, appe arance, or behavior is 36 |
---|
62 | 62 | | different from that traditionally associated with a person's 37 |
---|
63 | 63 | | physiology or assigned sex at birth. 38 |
---|
64 | 64 | | (c) "Sexual orientation" means an individual's actual or 39 |
---|
65 | 65 | | perceived heterosexuality, homosexuality, or bisexuality. 40 |
---|
66 | 66 | | (4) PROHIBITION ON GAY AND TRANSGENDER PANIC LEGAL 41 |
---|
67 | 67 | | DEFENSES.—A nonviolent sexual advance or the perception or 42 |
---|
68 | 68 | | belief, even if inaccurate, of the sex, sexual orientation, 43 |
---|
69 | 69 | | gender expression, or gender identity of an individual may not 44 |
---|
70 | 70 | | be used as a defense to a criminal offe nse, to excuse or to 45 |
---|
71 | 71 | | justify the conduct of an individual who commits a criminal 46 |
---|
72 | 72 | | offense, or to mitigate the severity of a criminal offense 47 |
---|
73 | 73 | | during sentencing. 48 |
---|
74 | 74 | | Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2023. 49 |
---|