HB 6007 2024
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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 for the relief of Julia Perez by the St. Johns 2
County Sheriff's Office; providing for an 3
appropriation to compensate Julia Perez for personal 4
injuries and damages sustained as a result of the 5
negligence of an employee of the St. Johns County 6
Sheriff's Office; providing legislative intent for the 7
waiver of certain lien interests; providing a 8
limitation on compensation and the payment of attorney 9
fees; providing an effective date. 10
11
WHEREAS, at 5:09 p.m. on April 7, 2019, Julia Perez, then 12
51 years of age, and her companion, Tom Eiland, then 59 years of 13
age, were both wearing helmets and lawfully operating separate 14
motorcycles within the posted speed limit, traveling east on 15
State Road 16 in the correct travel lane in unincorporated St. 16
Johns County, and 17
WHEREAS, at the same time, Deputy Brandon Hetzler, then 28 18
years of age, a newly sworn employee of the St. Johns County 19
Sheriff's Office (SJSO ), acting in the course and scope of his 20
employment, was operating a marked SJSO patrol vehicle and 21
traveling west on State Road 16 in the left turn lane at the 22
intersection of State Road 16 and Harvest Lane, and 23
WHEREAS, the afternoon sky was clear, the road was dry, and 24
there were no obstructions when Deputy Hetzler suddenly entered 25
HB 6007 2024
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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
the intersection of State Road 16 and Harvest Lane and attempted 26
a left turn directly in front of both motorcycles operated by 27
Ms. Perez and Mr. Eiland, and 28
WHEREAS, the front right side of Deputy Hetzler's vehicle 29
collided with the front of Ms. Perez's motorcycle, ejecting Ms. 30
Perez from her motorcycle, with her making contact with the hood 31
of the patrol car and being propelled over the roof, striking 32
the trunk before she la nded on the pavement of State Road 16, 33
and 34
WHEREAS, the front right side of Deputy Hetzler's vehicle 35
collided with the left side of Mr. Eiland's motorcycle, ejecting 36
Mr. Eiland from his motorcycle and onto the pavement, and 37
WHEREAS, the Florida Highway P atrol's traffic crash 38
investigators conducted an extensive investigation of the 39
accident, which included preparation for a traffic homicide 40
reconstruction due to Ms. Perez's grave condition, and 41
WHEREAS, witnesses on the scene told investigators that at 42
the time of the crash, the eastbound traffic had a steady green 43
signal and that Ms. Perez and Mr. Eiland had the right of way, 44
and 45
WHEREAS, the investigation revealed that Deputy Hetzler had 46
overheard a service call and was responding to it, but he did 47
not activate his siren or emergency lights, and 48
WHEREAS, the investigation determined that the actions of 49
Ms. Perez and Mr. Eiland were reasonable and did not contribute 50
HB 6007 2024
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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
to or cause the collisions, and 51
WHEREAS, the Florida Highway Patrol investigation found 52
Deputy Hetzler to be solely at fault in the accident and issued 53
him a traffic citation for failure to yield to oncoming traffic 54
in violation of s. 316.122, Florida Statutes, and 55
WHEREAS, SJSO policy 61.16 states, "It shall be the 56
responsibility of each e mployee to operate agency vehicles 57
efficiently, maintain the vehicle, and drive the vehicle in 58
observance of all rules of the road in order to reduce the 59
likelihood of traffic crashes or injury," and 60
WHEREAS, SJSO policy 61.16 also states, "All crashes an d 61
incidents involving agency vehicle damage shall be reviewed by 62
the Traffic Crash Review Board within thirty days of the crash," 63
and 64
WHEREAS, the SJSO Traffic Crash Review Board found Deputy 65
Hetzler to be at fault for causing the crash and injuries, and 66
WHEREAS, Deputy Hetzler's negligence was the sole cause of 67
the collisions, and 68
WHEREAS, the St. Johns County Sheriff's Office admitted 69
negligence for causing the collision and liability for Ms. 70
Perez's injuries, and 71
WHEREAS, Ms. Perez suffered multiple open and comminuted 72
fractures of the pelvis, arms, and legs, as well as organ 73
lacerations and punctures, including a punctured left lung, 74
resulting in cardiopulmonary arrest due to blood loss, and 75
HB 6007 2024
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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
WHEREAS, Ms. Perez wa s found unresponsive at the scene of 76
the accident and had to be resuscitated on the street by first 77
responders before St. Johns County Fire Rescue arrived to assume 78
rescue efforts, and 79
WHEREAS, Ms. Perez was intubated in the field and rushed to 80
the Trauma Center at Memorial Hospital Jacksonville, arriving 81
comatose and undergoing a series of blood transfusions, and 82
WHEREAS, Ms. Perez spent 3 months on a ventilator and 83
feeding tube; battled a pulmonary embolism, a deep vein 84
thrombosis, and episodes of pneum onia; suffered at least one 85
myocardial infarction; and endured multiple systemic infections, 86
and 87
WHEREAS, Ms. Perez was unconscious for 3 months and 88
bedridden for 7 months, resulting in two painful pressure sores, 89
and 90
WHEREAS, in July 2019, a nurse reinj ured Ms. Perez's 91
fractured arm while turning her to prevent pressure sores, and 92
WHEREAS, in August 2019, Ms. Perez's bladder was 93
inadvertently nicked during a surgery to insert a plate into her 94
pelvis, causing internal bleeding and necessitating a repair 95
surgery, and 96
WHEREAS, Ms. Perez remained hospitalized and was in a 97
nursing home for almost 8 months following the crash, and 98
WHEREAS, being bedridden and immobile have caused Ms. Perez 99
to suffer bowel obstructions, leading to multiple emergency care 100
HB 6007 2024
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visits, and 101
WHEREAS, because of blood loss and infection, Ms. Perez has 102
suffered renal tubular necrosis and permanent kidney injury, and 103
WHEREAS, Mr. Eiland has transported Ms. Perez to 104
Jacksonville three times per week for kidney dialysis because 105
she is in chronic, end-stage kidney failure, meaning she will 106
likely either be placed on a kidney donor list as a transplant 107
candidate or be on dialysis for the rest of her life, and 108
WHEREAS, Ms. Perez suffers from incontinence and, due to 109
her dialysis catheter, is unable to shower or bathe, and instead 110
relies on a process of cleaning herself with wet towelettes, 111
which typically takes an hour or longer to complete, and 112
WHEREAS, Ms. Perez suffers from substantial pain when 113
trying to accomplish simple tasks of daily living and 114
experiences interrupted sleep on a nightly basis, and 115
WHEREAS, Ms. Perez suffers from chronic migraine headaches 116
and severely elevated blood pressure, which has resulted in 117
multiple emergency care visits, and 118
WHEREAS, Ms. Perez has suffered a traumatic brain injury as 119
a result of the crash, causing memory loss, confusion, 120
communication difficulties, fatigue, frustration, and 121
depression, and she is under the treatment of a neurologist, and 122
WHEREAS, Ms. Perez has undergone dozens of surgeries an d is 123
faced with many more, and past medical bills and liens amount to 124
more than $3,863,108.09 for her care and treatment, all due to 125
HB 6007 2024
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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
injuries resulting from the crash, and 126
WHEREAS, the costs of future medical care, treatment, and 127
equipment is estimated to be between $3,318,811.56 and 128
$4,077,923.57 over the course of her 30 -year life expectancy, 129
and 130
WHEREAS, Ms. Perez is totally disabled, and her loss of 131
earning capacity is conservatively estimated to be $282,110, 132
based on her full Social Security retireme nt age of 67 and a 133
minimum-wage earning capacity, and 134
WHEREAS, Ms. Perez seeks the total sum of $15 million in 135
equitable relief from the Legislature for satisfaction of her 136
injuries and damages, NOW, THEREFORE, 137
138
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the S tate of Florida: 139
140
Section 1. The facts stated in the preamble to this act 141
are found and declared to be true. 142
Section 2. The St. Johns County Sheriff's Office is 143
authorized and directed to appropriate from funds of the county 144
not otherwise encumbere d and to pay Julia Perez $15 million, or 145
an alternative amount not to exceed $15 million in the event the 146
parties reach an agreement, to compensate her for the injuries 147
and damages she sustained due to the negligence of an employee 148
of the St. Johns County Sheriff's Office. 149
Section 3. It is the intent of the Legislature that all 150
HB 6007 2024
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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
lien interests held by the state, if any, resulting from the 151
treatment and care of Julia Perez for the occurrences described 152
in this act are waived. 153
Section 4. The amount awarded under this act is intended 154
to provide the sole compensation for all present and future 155
claims arising out of the factual situation described in this 156
act which resulted in injuries and damages to Julia Perez. The 157
total amount paid for attorney fees rel ating to this claim may 158
not exceed 25 percent of the total amount awarded under this 159
act. 160
Section 5. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law. 161