Title: Crimes Evidencing Prejudice

Summary: Requires grounds for reclassification of crimes to include prejudice based on gender or gender identity of victim; defines "gender identity"; requires grounds for reclassification of crimes to include prejudice based on disability of victim; revises definition of term "disability."

Full Text:
An act relating to crimes evidencing prejudice; amending s. 775.085, F.S.; requiring grounds for reclassification of crimes to include prejudice based on the gender or gender identity of the victim; defining the term "gender identity"; amending s. 775.0863, F.S.; requiring grounds for reclassification of crimes to include prejudice based on a disability of the victim; revising the definition of the term "disability"; reenacting s. 921.0022(2), F.S., relating to the Criminal Punishment Code and the offense severity ranking chart, to incorporate the amendments made to ss. 775.085 and 775.0863, F.S., in references thereto; providing an effective date. Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: Section 1. Subsection (1) of section 775.085, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 775.085 Evidencing prejudice while committing offense; reclassification.-(1)(a) The penalty for any felony or misdemean or shall be reclassified as provided in this subsection if the commission of such felony or misdemeanor evidences prejudice in whole or in part based on the race, color, ancestry, ethnicity, religion, HB 1413 2017 sexual orientation, national origin, homeless status, or advanced age,gender, or gender identity of the victim: 1. A misdemeanor of the second degree is reclassified to a misdemeanor of the first degree. 2. A misdemeanor of the first degree is reclassified to a felony of the third degree. 3. A felony of the third degree is reclassified to a felony of the second degree. 4. A felony of the second degree is reclassified to a felony of the first degree. 5. A felony of the first degree is reclassified to a life felony. (b) As used in paragraph (a), the term: 1. "Advanced age" means that the victim is older than 39 years of age. 2. "Gender identity" means the victim's internal sense of being male, female, or a combination of both. A victim's internal sense of gender may be different from the victim's gender determined at birth. 3.2. "Homeless status" means that the victim: a. Lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence; or b. Has a primary nighttime residence that is: (I) A supervised publicly or privately operated shelter designed to provide temporary living accommodations; or HB 1413 2017 (II) A public or private place not designed for, or ordinarily used as, a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings. Section 2. Subsection (1) of section 775.0863, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 775.0863 Evidencing prejudice while committing offense against person with mental or physical disability; reclassification.-(1)(a) The penalty for any felony or misdemeanor shall be reclassified as provided in this subsection if the commission of such felony or misdemeanor evidences prejudice in whole or in part based on a mental or physical disability of the victim: 1. A mi sdemeanor of the second degree is reclassified to a misdemeanor of the first degree. 2. A misdemeanor of the first degree is reclassified to a felony of the third degree. 3. A felony of the third degree is reclassified to a felony of the second degree. 4. A felony of the second degree is reclassified to a felony of the first degree. 5. A felony of the first degree is reclassified to a life felony. (b) As used in paragraph (a), the term "disability" "mental or physical disability" means a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a person's ability to HB 1413 2017 perform one or more major life activities a condition of mental or physical incapacitation due to a developmental disability, organic brain damage, or mental illness, and one or more ment al or physical limitations that restrict a person's ability to perform the normal activities of daily living.Section 3. For the purpose of incorporating the amendments made by this act to sections 775.085 and 775.0863, Florida Statutes, in references thereto, subsection (2) of section 921.0022, Florida Statutes, is reenacted to read: 921.0022 Criminal Punishment Code; offense severity ranking chart.-(2) The offense severity ranking chart has offense levels, ranked from least severe, which are level offenses, to most severe, which are level offenses, and each felony offense is assigned to a level according to the severity of the offense. For purposes of determining which felony offenses are specifically listed in the offense severity ranking chart and which severity level has been assigned to each of these offenses, the numerical statutory references in the left column of the chart and the felony degree designations in the middle column of the chart are controlling; the language in the right column of the chart is provided solely for descriptive purposes. Reclassification of the degree of the felony through the application of s. 775.0845, s. 775.085, s. 775.0861, s. 775.0862, s. 775.0863, s. 775.087, s. 775.0875, s. 794.023, or HB 1413 2017 any other law that provides an enhanced penalty for a felony offense, to any offense listed in the offense severity ranking chart in this section shall not cause the offense to become unlisted and is not subject to the provisions of s. 921.0023. Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 2017.