FL
Florida House Bill H6535

Florida 2025 Regular Session

Florida House Bill H6535 Compare Versions

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1010 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
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1414 A bill to be entitled 1
1515 An act for the relief of L.E. by the Department of 2
1616 Children and Families; providing an appropriation to 3
1717 compensate L.E. for injuries and damages sustained as 4
1818 a result of the negligence of the department; 5
19-providing a limitation on compensation and the payment 6
20-of attorney fees; providing an effective date. 7
21- 8
22- WHEREAS, L.E. was born on July 29, 2019, and, at birth, 9
23-tested positive for amphetamines, and 10
24- WHEREAS, L.E.'s biological mother tested positive for 11
25-amphetamines after the delivery of L.E., and 12
26- WHEREAS, while at the hospital, L.E.'s biological mother 13
27-and father engaged in a violent altercation with each other, and 14
28- WHEREAS, shortly after L.E.'s birth, the D epartment of 15
29-Children and Families received two child abuse hotline reports, 16
30-one alleging intrafamily violence threatening L.E. and the other 17
31-alleging drug exposure of newborn L.E., and 18
32- WHEREAS, the department is charged under s. 39.001, Florida 19
33-Statutes, with conducting child protective investigations to 20
34-ensure child safety and prevent further harm to children and 21
35-owed L.E. a duty to ensure her safety and prevent further harm, 22
36-and 23
37- WHEREAS, the department sent a child protective 24
38-investigator to the hospit al to initiate an investigation into 25
19+requiring that specified liens be waived and paid by 6
20+the state; providing a limitation on compensation and 7
21+the payment of attorney fees; providing an effective 8
22+date. 9
23+ 10
24+ WHEREAS, L.E. was born on July 29, 2019, and, at birth, 11
25+tested positive for amphetamines, and 12
26+ WHEREAS, L.E.'s biological mother tested positive for 13
27+amphetamines after the delivery of L.E., and 14
28+ WHEREAS, while at the hospital, L.E.'s biological mother 15
29+and father engaged in a violent altercation with each other, and 16
30+ WHEREAS, shortly after L.E.'s birth, the Department of 17
31+Children and Families received two child abuse hotline reports, 18
32+one alleging intrafamily violence threatening L.E. and the other 19
33+alleging drug exposure of newborn L.E., and 20
34+ WHEREAS, the department is charged under s. 39.001, Florida 21
35+Statutes, with conducting child protective investigations to 22
36+ensure child safety and prevent further harm to children and 23
37+owed L.E. a duty to ensure her safety and prevent further harm, 24
38+and 25
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4747 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
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51-the reported abuse, and 26
52- WHEREAS, the department discovered that L.E.'s mother had a 27
53-history of substance misuse, untreated mental health issues, and 28
54-a criminal history involving violence, and 29
55- WHEREAS, the department d iscovered that both L.E.'s mother 30
56-and father had an extensive history of involvement with the 31
57-department, including, collectively, at least 20 prior child 32
58-abuse hotline reports, and 33
59- WHEREAS, one of those prior reports involved egregious 34
60-abuse of L.E.'s biological father's other daughter when she was 35
61-not yet 6 months old, resulting in long -bone fractures, and 36
62- WHEREAS, the department removed that daughter from the 37
63-father's care, and 38
64- WHEREAS, L.E.'s mother's other two biological children had 39
65-previously been removed from her care due to verified child 40
66-abuse, and 41
67- WHEREAS, as L.E.'s mother placed her third child for 42
68-adoption, she was also planning to place L.E. for adoption and 43
69-made such arrangements prior to L.E.'s birth, and 44
70- WHEREAS, shortly after L.E. was born, L.E.'s mother 45
71-abandoned L.E. at the hospital and, against medical advice, left 46
72-the hospital with L.E.'s father, and 47
73- WHEREAS, an adoption specialist arrived at the hospital to 48
74-visit L.E., and 49
75- WHEREAS, while L.E. was still in the hospital following her 50
51+ WHEREAS, the department sent a child protective 26
52+investigator to the hospital to initiate an investigation into 27
53+the reported abuse, and 28
54+ WHEREAS, the department discovered that L.E.'s mother had a 29
55+history of substance misuse, untreated mental health issues, and 30
56+a criminal history involving violence, and 31
57+ WHEREAS, the department discovered that both L.E.'s mother 32
58+and father had an extensive history of involvement with the 33
59+department, including, collectively, at least 20 prior child 34
60+abuse hotline reports, and 35
61+ WHEREAS, one of those prior reports involved egregious 36
62+abuse of L.E.'s biological father's other daughter when she was 37
63+not yet 6 months old, resulting in long -bone fractures, and 38
64+ WHEREAS, the department removed that daughter from the 39
65+father's care, and 40
66+ WHEREAS, L.E.'s mother's other two biological children had 41
67+previously been removed from her care due to verified child 42
68+abuse, and 43
69+ WHEREAS, as L.E.'s mother placed her third child for 44
70+adoption, she was also planning to place L.E. for adoption and 45
71+made such arrangements prior to L.E.'s birth, and 46
72+ WHEREAS, shortly after L.E. was born, L.E.'s mother 47
73+abandoned L.E. at the hospital and, against medical advice, left 48
74+the hospital with L.E.'s father, and 49
75+ WHEREAS, an adoption specialist arrived at the hospital to 50
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8484 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
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88-birth, the department determined that L.E. was in "present 51
89-danger" if left in the care of her parents and that immediate 52
90-action was necessary to protect L.E. from further abuse or 53
91-neglect, and 54
92- WHEREAS, the department contracted with a child welfare 55
93-agency and, instead of removing L.E. from her parents' care 56
94-through a judicial process, the department and its subcontractor 57
95-developed an out-of-home safety plan to place L.E. with a friend 58
96-of L.E.'s mother, and 59
97- WHEREAS, within 3 weeks after that placement, the friend 60
98-realized that she could no longer care for L.E. and informed the 61
99-department of this, and 62
100- WHEREAS, despite a reassessment that established that there 63
101-was still a "present danger" to L.E. i f left in the care of her 64
102-parents, the department relied upon information from its 65
103-subcontracted agency, and the joint decision was made to place 66
104-L.E. into her parents' care, and 67
105- WHEREAS, on August 21, 2019, L.E. was placed into her 68
106-parents' home, and 69
107- WHEREAS, on or about, September 17, 2019, less than 4 weeks 70
108-later, the department determined that it would be closing its 71
109-investigation, despite acknowledging that L.E.'s home situation 72
110-was volatile and unstable and that L.E.'s mother remained 73
111-violent and impulsive, and 74
112- WHEREAS, the subcontractor planned to decrease its 75
88+visit L.E., and 51
89+ WHEREAS, while L.E. was still in the hospital following her 52
90+birth, the department determined that L.E. was in "present 53
91+danger" if left in the care of her parents and that immediate 54
92+action was necessary to protect L.E. from further abuse or 55
93+neglect, and 56
94+ WHEREAS, the department contracted with a child welfare 57
95+agency and, instead of removing L.E. from her parents' care 58
96+through a judicial process, the department and its subcontractor 59
97+developed an out-of-home safety plan to place L.E. with a friend 60
98+of L.E.'s mother, and 61
99+ WHEREAS, within 3 weeks after that placement, the friend 62
100+realized that she could no longer care for L.E. and informed the 63
101+department of this, and 64
102+ WHEREAS, despite a reassessment that established that there 65
103+was still a "present danger" to L.E. if left in the care of her 66
104+parents, the department relied upon information from its 67
105+subcontracted agency, and the joint decision was made to place 68
106+L.E. into her parents' care, and 69
107+ WHEREAS, on August 21, 2019, L.E. was placed into her 70
108+parents' home, and 71
109+ WHEREAS, on or about, September 17, 2019, less than 4 weeks 72
110+later, the department determined that it would be closing its 73
111+investigation, despite acknowledging that L.E.'s home situation 74
112+was volatile and unstable and that L.E.'s mother remained 75
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121121 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
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125-monitoring of L.E. and the home upon the department closing its 76
126-investigation, and 77
127- WHEREAS, on September 18, 2019, the subcontractor 78
128-transitioned its services from safety management to nonju dicial 79
129-in-home services, which inherently decreased monitoring of L.E. 80
130-by child welfare professionals, and 81
131- WHEREAS, on September 24, 2019, the department closed its 82
132-investigation, despite the fact that there was no evidence of 83
133-change or progress with L.E. 's parents, and 84
134- WHEREAS, despite the subcontractor's claims that it had 85
135-provided services to the parents, the department expressly 86
136-acknowledged in its own investigative summary that, at the time 87
137-of closing its case, "[t]he home environment continues to be 88
138-volatile and unstable on a normal basis. The fighting in the 89
139-home will stabilize for a period of time but will always return 90
140-to a chaotic and aggressive environment... [violent and 91
141-impulsive behaviors] are clearly evident and severe... there has 92
142-been no clear changes made to their behaviors and the patterns 93
143-continue... [and] all of the children [including L.E.] are 94
144-vulnerable," and 95
145- WHEREAS, the very next day, on September 25, 2019, L.E. was 96
146-brought to Rockledge Regional Hospital in distress and 97
147-experiencing seizures, and 98
148- WHEREAS, medical staff at Rockledge Regional Hospital found 99
149-makeup covering obvious bruising across her forehead, and 100
125+violent and impulsive, and 76
126+ WHEREAS, the subcontractor planned to decrease its 77
127+monitoring of L.E. and the home upon the department closing its 78
128+investigation, and 79
129+ WHEREAS, on September 18, 2019, the subcontractor 80
130+transitioned its services from safety management t o nonjudicial 81
131+in-home services, which inherently decreased monitoring of L.E. 82
132+by child welfare professionals, and 83
133+ WHEREAS, on September 24, 2019, the department closed its 84
134+investigation, despite the fact that there was no evidence of 85
135+change or progress wi th L.E.'s parents, and 86
136+ WHEREAS, despite the subcontractor's claims that it had 87
137+provided services to the parents, the department expressly 88
138+acknowledged in its own investigative summary that, at the time 89
139+of closing its case, "[t]he home environment continue s to be 90
140+volatile and unstable on a normal basis. The fighting in the 91
141+home will stabilize for a period of time but will always return 92
142+to a chaotic and aggressive environment... [violent and 93
143+impulsive behaviors] are clearly evident and severe... there has 94
144+been no clear changes made to their behaviors and the patterns 95
145+continue... [and] all of the children [including L.E.] are 96
146+vulnerable," and 97
147+ WHEREAS, the very next day, on September 25, 2019, L.E. was 98
148+brought to Rockledge Regional Hospital in distress and 99
149+experiencing seizures, and 100
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158158 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
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162- WHEREAS, doctors determined that L.E. had suffered 101
163-catastrophic injuries from child abuse which had occurred over a 102
164-period of time, including a parietal calvarial skull fracture; a 103
165-left frontal parietal subdural hematoma with bilateral frontal, 104
166-temporal, and parietal cortical edema and encephalomalacia; 105
167-healing fractures of the left sixth and seventh ribs; a healing 106
168-fracture of the right eighth rib; acute fractures to the right 107
169-tenth and eleventh ribs; a pelvic fracture –left acetabular 108
170-cortical avulsion fracture; cortical buckling of the right 109
171-proximal tibial medial metaphysis; and multiple ecchymotic 110
172-lesions to the forehea d, and 111
173- WHEREAS, L.E. was immediately transferred to Nemours 112
174-Children's Hospital in Orlando and admitted in critical 113
175-condition, due to severe organ system injury and dysfunction, 114
176-and was diagnosed as being at risk for hypoxia, hypercarbia, 115
177-hypotension, sepsis, shock, cardiorespiratory arrest, 116
178-intracranial hypertension, cerebral edema, stroke, and death, 117
179-and 118
180- WHEREAS, L.E. was diagnosed with shaken baby syndrome 119
181-causing traumatic brain injury, seizures, and cerebral palsy, as 120
182-well as malnourishment, and 121
183- WHEREAS, between August 21, 2019, and September 25, 2019, 122
184-L.E. was subjected to repeated and severe child abuse and 123
185-neglect while in the care of her parents, and 124
186- WHEREAS, L.E.'s parents were arrested, charged, and 125
162+ WHEREAS, medical staff at Rockledge Regional Hospital found 101
163+makeup covering obvious bruising across her forehead, and 102
164+ WHEREAS, doctors determined that L.E. had suffered 103
165+catastrophic injuries from child abuse which had occurred ove r a 104
166+period of time, including a parietal calvarial skull fracture; a 105
167+left frontal parietal subdural hematoma with bilateral frontal, 106
168+temporal, and parietal cortical edema and encephalomalacia; 107
169+healing fractures of the left sixth and seventh ribs; a healing 108
170+fracture of the right eighth rib; acute fractures to the right 109
171+tenth and eleventh ribs; a pelvic fracture –left acetabular 110
172+cortical avulsion fracture; cortical buckling of the right 111
173+proximal tibial medial metaphysis; and multiple ecchymotic 112
174+lesions to the forehead, and 113
175+ WHEREAS, L.E. was immediately transferred to Nemours 114
176+Children's Hospital in Orlando and admitted in critical 115
177+condition, due to severe organ system injury and dysfunction, 116
178+and was diagnosed as being at risk for hypoxia, hypercarbia, 117
179+hypotension, sepsis, shock, cardiorespiratory arrest, 118
180+intracranial hypertension, cerebral edema, stroke, and death, 119
181+and 120
182+ WHEREAS, L.E. was diagnosed with shaken baby syndrome 121
183+causing traumatic brain injury, seizures, and cerebral palsy, as 122
184+well as malnourishment, a nd 123
185+ WHEREAS, between August 21, 2019, and September 25, 2019, 124
186+L.E. was subjected to repeated and severe child abuse and 125
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195195 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
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199-convicted of aggravated child abuse based up on their abuse of 126
200-L.E. while she was in their home between August 21, 2019, and 127
201-September 25, 2019, and 128
202- WHEREAS, L.E. was subsequently adopted by her maternal 129
203-grandmother and relocated to Chicago, where she is followed by a 130
204-medical team at Lurie Children' s Hospital, and 131
205- WHEREAS, L.E. has received, and will continue to receive, 132
206-therapeutic services across a host of disciplines, including 133
207-occupational, physical, speech, nutritional, vision, and 134
208-cognitive therapy, and 135
209- WHEREAS, L.E., who just turned 5 years old, is currently 136
210-under an individual educational plan at school for her 137
211-disability, which has been formally classified as traumatic 138
212-brain injury, and 139
213- WHEREAS, L.E. requires and will continue to require 140
214-constant care, monitoring, supervision, various ther apies, 141
215-multiple specialist services, and supportive care throughout the 142
216-remainder of her life, which may include admission to a skilled 143
217-residential home if her adoptive parent is no longer able to 144
218-care for her, and 145
219- WHEREAS, the department, charged with op erating Florida's 146
220-child welfare system, failed in its duties to ensure L.E.'s 147
221-safety and protect her from harm, and 148
222- WHEREAS, the department's negligence, in combination with 149
223-the failures of its subcontracted agency, caused catastrophic 150
199+neglect while in the care of her parents, and 126
200+ WHEREAS, L.E.'s parents were arrested, charged, and 127
201+convicted of aggravated child abuse b ased upon their abuse of 128
202+L.E. while she was in their home between August 21, 2019, and 129
203+September 25, 2019, and 130
204+ WHEREAS, L.E. was subsequently adopted by her maternal 131
205+grandmother and relocated to Chicago, where she is followed by a 132
206+medical team at Lurie Ch ildren's Hospital, and 133
207+ WHEREAS, L.E. has received, and will continue to receive, 134
208+therapeutic services across a host of disciplines, including 135
209+occupational, physical, speech, nutritional, vision, and 136
210+cognitive therapy, and 137
211+ WHEREAS, L.E., who just turned 5 years old, is currently 138
212+under an individual educational plan at school for her 139
213+disability, which has been formally classified as traumatic 140
214+brain injury, and 141
215+ WHEREAS, L.E. requires and will continue to require 142
216+constant care, monitoring, supervision, vario us therapies, 143
217+multiple specialist services, and supportive care throughout the 144
218+remainder of her life, which may include admission to a skilled 145
219+residential home if her adoptive parent is no longer able to 146
220+care for her, and 147
221+ WHEREAS, the department, charged with operating Florida's 148
222+child welfare system, failed in its duties to ensure L.E.'s 149
223+safety and protect her from harm, and 150
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232232 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
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236-brain injury that will have a significant impact on L.E. for the 151
237-remainder of her life, and 152
238- WHEREAS, the department agreed to resolve L.E.'s claims 153
239-against the department through a negotiated settlement in the 154
240-Circuit Court for the 18th Judicial Circuit in and for Brevard 155
241-County, under case number 05 -2022-CA-033685, in the total amount 156
242-of $4 million, and 157
243- WHEREAS, the settlement agreement required that the 158
244-department make an initial payment of $200,000, which is the 159
245-maximum amount allowed under the sovereign immunity limitat ions 160
246-imposed under s. 768.28, Florida Statutes; and that the 161
247-remaining $3.8 million be paid contingent upon the passage and 162
248-funding of this claim bill, which the department has expressly 163
249-agreed it does not, and will not oppose, and 164
250- WHEREAS, on July 9, 202 4, the settlement agreement was 165
251-approved by the circuit court, and, with the department's 166
252-agreement and consent, a final judgment was entered against the 167
253-department in the amount of $4 million pursuant to the 168
254-negotiated settlement, and 169
255- WHEREAS, L.E.'s civil claims against the subcontracted 170
256-child welfare agency remain pending, NOW, THEREFORE, 171
257- 172
258-Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 173
236+ WHEREAS, the department's negligence, in combination with 151
237+the failures of its subcontracted agency, caused catastrophic 152
238+brain injury that will have a significant impact on L.E. for the 153
239+remainder of her life, and 154
240+ WHEREAS, the department agreed to resolve L.E.'s claims 155
241+against the department through a negotiated settlement in the 156
242+Circuit Court for the 18th Judicial Circuit in and for Br evard 157
243+County, under case number 05 -2022-CA-033685, in the total amount 158
244+of $4 million, and 159
245+ WHEREAS, the settlement agreement required that the 160
246+department make an initial payment of $200,000, which is the 161
247+maximum amount allowed under the sovereign immunity limitations 162
248+imposed under s. 768.28, Florida Statutes; and that the 163
249+remaining $3.8 million be paid contingent upon the passage and 164
250+funding of this claim bill, which the department has expressly 165
251+agreed it does not, and will not oppose, and 166
252+ WHEREAS, on July 9, 2024, the settlement agreement was 167
253+approved by the circuit court, and, with the department's 168
254+agreement and consent, a final judgment was entered against the 169
255+department in the amount of $4 million pursuant to the 170
256+negotiated settlement, and 171
257+ WHEREAS, L.E.'s civil claims against the subcontracted 172
258+child welfare agency remain pending, NOW, THEREFORE, 173
259259 174
260- Section 1. The facts stated in the preamble to this act 175
260+Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 175
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269269 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
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273-are found and declared to be true. 176
274- Section 2. The sum of $3.8 million is appropriated from 177
275-the General Revenue Fund to the Department of Children and 178
276-Families for the relief of L.E. for injuries and damages 179
277-sustained as a result of the negligence of the department. 180
278- Section 3. The Chief Financial Officer is directed to draw 181
279-a warrant in favor of L.E., payable to the irrevocable trust 182
280-which has already been created for the exclusive use and benefit 183
281-of L.E., in the sum of $3.8 million upon funds of the Department 184
282-of Children and Families in the S tate Treasury and to pay the 185
283-same out of such funds in the State Treasury. 186
284- Section 4. The amount paid by the Department of Children 187
285-and Families pursuant to s. 768.28, Florida Statutes, and the 188
286-amount awarded under this act are intended to provide the only 189
287-compensation for all present and future claims against the 190
288-department arising out of the factual situation described in 191
289-this act which resulted in injuries and damages to L.E. The 192
290-total amount paid for attorney fees relating to this claim 193
291-against the department may not exceed 25 percent of the total 194
292-amount awarded under this act. 195
293- Section 5. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law. 196
273+ 176
274+ Section 1. The facts stated in the preamble to this act 177
275+are found and declared to be true. 178
276+ Section 2. The sum of $3.8 million is appropriated from 179
277+the General Revenue Fund to the Department of Children and 180
278+Families for the relief of L.E. for injuries and damages 181
279+sustained as a result of the negligence of the department. 182
280+ Section 3. It is the intent of the Legislature that all 183
281+government liens, including Medicaid liens, resulting from the 184
282+treatment and care of L.E. for the occurrences described in this 185
283+act be waived and paid by the state. 186
284+ Section 4. The Chief Financial Officer is directed to draw 187
285+a warrant in favor of L.E., payable to the irrevocable trust 188
286+which has already been created for the exclusive use and benefit 189
287+of L.E., in the sum of $3.8 million upon funds of the Department 190
288+of Children and Families in the State Treasury and to pay the 191
289+same out of such funds in the State Treasury. 192
290+ Section 5. The amount paid by the Department of Children 193
291+and Families pursuant to s. 768.28, Florida Statutes, and the 194
292+amount awarded under this act are intended to provide the only 195
293+compensation for all present and future claims against the 196
294+department arising out of the factual situation described in 197
295+this act which resulted in injuries and damages to L.E. The 198
296+total amount paid for attorney fees relating to this claim 199
297+against the department may not excee d 25 percent of the total 200
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306+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
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310+amount awarded under this act. 201
311+ Section 6. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law. 202