Bill Text: FL S0664 | 2011 | Regular Session | Enrolled
Bill Title: Missing Person Investigations/Silver Alert
Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Republican 5-2-1)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2011-05-04 - Ordered enrolled -SJ 851 [S0664 Detail]
Download: Florida-2011-S0664-Enrolled.html
ENROLLED 2011 Legislature CS for SB 664 2011664er 1 2 An act relating to missing person investigations; 3 amending s. 937.0201, F.S.; defining terms; amending 4 s. 937.021, F.S.; providing that certain specified 5 persons are immune from civil liability for damages 6 for complying with the request to release Silver Alert 7 information to appropriate agencies; providing a 8 presumption that a person recording, reporting, 9 transmitting, displaying, or releasing such 10 information acted in good faith; amending s. 937.022, 11 F.S., relating to the Missing Endangered Persons 12 Information Clearinghouse; authorizing only the law 13 enforcement agency having jurisdiction over a case to 14 request that the clearinghouse activate a state Silver 15 Alert involving a missing adult who is suspected by a 16 law enforcement agency of meeting the criteria for 17 activation of the Silver Alert Plan; providing an 18 effective date. 19 20 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 21 22 Section 1. Subsection (4) of section 937.0201, Florida 23 Statutes, is amended to read: 24 937.0201 Definitions.—As used in this chapter, the term: 25 (4) “Missing endangered person” means: 26 (a) A missing child; 27 (b) A missing adult younger than 26 years of age;or28 (c) A missing adult 26 years of age or older who is 29 suspected by a law enforcement agency of being endangered or the 30 victim of criminal activity; or 31 (d) A missing adult who meets the criteria for activation 32 of the Silver Alert Plan of the Department of Law Enforcement. 33 Section 2. Subsection (5) of section 937.021, Florida 34 Statutes, is amended to read: 35 937.021 Missing child and missing adult reports.— 36 (5)(a) Upon receiving a request to record, report, 37 transmit, display, or release Amber Alert or Missing Child Alert 38 information from the law enforcement agency having jurisdiction 39 over the missing child, the Department of Law Enforcement as the 40 state Amber Alert coordinator, any state or local law 41 enforcement agency, and the personnel of these agencies; any 42 radio or television network, broadcaster, or other media 43 representative; any dealer of communications services as defined 44 in s. 202.11; or any agency, employee, individual, or entity is 45 immune from civil liability for damages for complying in good 46 faith with the request and is presumed to have acted in good 47 faith in recording, reporting, transmitting, displaying, or 48 releasing Amber Alert or Missing Child Alert information 49 pertaining to thesuchchild. 50 (b) Upon receiving a request to record, report, transmit, 51 display, or release information and photographs pertaining to a 52 missing adult from the law enforcement agency having 53 jurisdiction over the missing adult, the department, a state or 54 local law enforcement agency, and the personnel of these 55 agencies; any radio or television network, broadcaster, or other 56 media representative; any dealer of communications services as 57 defined in s. 202.11; or any agency, employee, individual, or 58 person is immune from civil liability for damages for complying 59 in good faith with the request to provide information and is 60 presumed to have acted in good faith in recording, reporting, 61 transmitting, displaying, or releasing information or 62 photographs pertaining to the missing adult. 63 (c) Upon receiving a request to record, report, transmit, 64 display, or release Silver Alert information from the law 65 enforcement agency having jurisdiction over the missing adult, 66 the Department of Law Enforcement as the state Silver Alert 67 coordinator, any state or local law enforcement agency, and the 68 personnel of these agencies; any radio or television network, 69 broadcaster, or other media representative; any dealer of 70 communications services as defined in s. 202.11; or any agency, 71 employee, individual, or entity is immune from civil liability 72 for damages for complying in good faith with the request and is 73 presumed to have acted in good faith in recording, reporting, 74 transmitting, displaying, or releasing Silver Alert information 75 pertaining to the missing adult. 76 (d)(c)The presumption of good faith is not overcome if a 77 technical or clerical error is made by any agency, employee, 78 individual, or entity acting at the request of the local law 79 enforcement agency having jurisdiction, or if the Amber Alert, 80 Missing Child Alert,ormissing adult information, or Silver 81 Alert information is incomplete or incorrect because the 82 information received from the local law enforcement agency was 83 incomplete or incorrect. 84 (e)(d)Neither this subsection nor any other provision of 85 law creates a duty of the agency, employee, individual, or 86 entity to record, report, transmit, display, or release the 87 Amber Alert, Missing Child Alert,ormissing adult information, 88 or Silver Alert information received from the local law 89 enforcement agency having jurisdiction. The decision to record, 90 report, transmit, display, or release information is 91 discretionary with the agency, employee, individual, or entity 92 receiving the information. 93 Section 3. Subsection (3) of section 937.022, Florida 94 Statutes, is amended to read: 95 937.022 Missing Endangered Persons Information 96 Clearinghouse.— 97 (3) The clearinghouse shall: 98 (a) Establish a system of intrastate communication of 99 information relating to missing endangered persons. 100 (b) Provide a centralized file for the exchange of 101 information on missing endangered persons. 102 1. Every state, county, or municipal law enforcement agency 103 shall submit to the clearinghouse information concerning missing 104 endangered persons. 105 2. Any person having knowledge may submit a missing 106 endangered person report to the clearinghouse concerning a child 107 or adult younger than 26 years of age whose whereabouts is 108 unknown, regardless of the circumstances, subsequent to 109 reporting such child or adult missing to the appropriate law 110 enforcement agency within the county in which the child or adult 111 became missing, and subsequent to entry by the law enforcement 112 agency of the child or person into the Florida Crime Information 113 Center and the National Crime Information Center databases. The 114 missing endangered person report shall be included in the 115 clearinghouse database. 116 3. Only the law enforcement agency having jurisdiction over 117 the case may submit a missing endangered person report to the 118 clearinghouse involving a missing adult age 26 years or older 119 who is suspected by a law enforcement agency of being endangered 120 or the victim of criminal activity. 121 4. Only the law enforcement agency having jurisdiction over 122 the case may make a request to the clearinghouse for the 123 activation of a state Silver Alert involving a missing adult if 124 circumstances regarding the disappearance have met the criteria 125 for activation of the Silver Alert Plan. 126 (c) Collect, process, maintain, and disseminate information 127 on missing endangered persons and strive to maintain or 128 disseminate only accurate and complete information. 129 Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 2011.