Title: Emergency Alerts

Summary: Authorizing a local law enforcement agency to activate the Emergency Alert System and issue a Lockdown Alert to public and private schools and child care facilities under certain circumstances; requiring the Department of Law Enforcement, in cooperation with the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles and the Department of Transportation, to activate the Emergency Alert System and issue an Imminent Threat Alert to the public at the request of a local law enforcement agency under certain circumstances, etc.

Full Text:
An act relating to emergency alerts; creating s. 784.072, F.S.; defining terms; authorizing a local law enforcement agency to activate the Emergency Alert System and issue a Lockdown Alert to public and private schools and child care facilities under certain circumstances; requiring local law enforcement agencies to create and maintain a list of all public schools, private schools, and child care facilities within their jurisdictions which must be included in the Lockdown Alert notification; authorizing public or private schools or child care facilities to contact their local law enforcement agencies to verify that they are included on the list or to register for inclusion on the list; requiring a local law enforcement agency to take a private school or child care facility off the list if the school or facility requests that it be taken off the list; requiring the Department of Law Enforcement, in cooperation with the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles and the Department of Transportation, to activate the Emergency Alert System and issue an Imminent Threat Alert to the public at the request of a local law enforcement agency under certain circumstances; specifying information that must be provided in Imminent Threat Alerts, if available; requiring Imminent Threat Alerts to be disseminated to the public through the Emergency Alert System and through the use of certain dynamic message signs; providing that the agency responsible for posting the Imminent Threat Alert on the dynamic message sign does not violate this section if certain traffic emergency information is displayed on the sign in lieu of the alert; providing an effective date. Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: Section 1. Section 784.072, Florida Statutes, is created to read: 784.072 Notification of imminent threat to schools and child care facilities or the public; Lockdown Alert; Imminent Threat Alert.  (1) As used in this section, the term: (a) Child care facility  has the same meaning as in s. 402.302. (b) Imminent Threat Alert  means a notification issued pursuant to subsection (3) which informs the public that an imminent threat exists such that the lives and safety of people are endangered, including, but not limited to, instances in which a person suspected of killing or causing serious bodily injury to another person or assaulting another person with a deadly weapon has fled the scene of the offense. (c) Lockdown Alert  means a notification issued pursuant to subsection (2) which informs public schools, private schools, and child care facilities that an imminent threat exists, including, but not limited to, instances in which a person suspected of killing or causing serious bodily injury to another person or assaulting another person with a deadly weapon has fled the scene of the offense. The alert advises the schools and facilities to lock their doors and encourages persons in those schools and facilities to remain in lockdown and be vigilant in watching for and reporting any suspicious activity. (d) Private school  has the same meaning as in s. 1002.01. (2)(a) A local law enforcement agency that has jurisdiction over the scene of an incident giving rise to an imminent threat to the public may activate the Emergency Alert System and issue a Lockdown Alert to all public and private schools and child care facilities that it determines are at risk, given their proximity to the incident, including an incident in which the following conditions are satisfied: 1. A person has been killed or has suffered serious bodily injury or a person has been assaulted with a deadly weapon by another person. 2. The person suspected of committing the offense has fled the scene. 3. The law enforcement agency investigating the offense has determined that the suspect poses an imminent threat to the public safety. (b) For purposes of complying with this subsection, each local law enforcement agency shall create and maintain a list of all public schools, private schools, and child care facilities within its jurisdiction. (c) A public or private school or child care facility may contact local law enforcement agencies to verify that it is included on the list of those that will receive a Lockdown Alert or to register to be included on the list. A local law enforcement agency must take a private school or child care facility off the list if the school or facility requests that it be taken off the list. (3) At the request of a local law enforcement agency, the Department of Law Enforcement, in cooperation with the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles and the Department of Transportation, must activate the Emergency Alert System and issue an Imminent Threat Alert to the public when the local law enforcement agency confirms that an imminent threat to the public exists, including, but not limited to, circumstances in which the following conditions have been satisfied: (a) A person has been killed or has suffered serious bodily injury or a person has been assaulted with a deadly weapon by another person. (b) The person suspected of committing the offense has fled the scene. (c) The law enforcement agency has determined that the suspect poses an imminent threat to the public safety. (4)   An Imminent Threat Alert must, to the extent practicable, provide a detailed description of a suspect s vehicle or other means of escape, the license plate number of the suspect s vehicle, or any other available information that may assist in averting further harm or in the apprehending of the suspect. (5)(a) An Imminent Threat Alert must be immediately disseminated to the public through the Emergency Alert System and through the use of the dynamic message signs that are located along the State Highway System. (b) If a traffic emergency arises requiring that information pertaining to the traffic emergency be displayed on a dynamic message sign on a state highway in lieu of an Imminent Threat Alert, the agency responsible for posting the Imminent Threat Alert on the dynamic message sign does not violate this section. Section 2. This act shall take effect October 1, 2018.