Opinion ID: 1697743
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Timing of the Civil Commitment Process

Text: The Ryce Act imposes specific deadlines for the events leading up to civil commitment. To initiate a commitment, the agency with jurisdiction over an alleged sexually violent offender must give written notice to a multidisciplinary team of mental health professionals of the offender's anticipated release date, with a copy to the appropriate state attorney. § 394.913(1), Fla. Stat. (2002). The notice must be given at least 545 days prior to the anticipated release from total confinement of the offender. § 394.913(1)(a), Fla. Stat. (2002). [8] The team then has 180 days to assess and evaluate the offender and recommend to the state attorney whether the offender is a sexually violent predator. § 394.913(3)(b), (e), Fla. Stat. (2002). At that point, if all of the above procedures have been followed [9] and the offender's release date has not been accelerated, [10] no less than 365 days of the offender's sentence should remain. After receiving the team's written report and recommendation, the state attorney may file a probable cause petition in the circuit court. § 394.914, Fla. Stat. (2002). The court must then determine whether probable cause exists that the offender is a sexually violent predator who qualifies for civil commitment. If the offender's sentence has not yet expired, the probable cause determination is made ex parte. § 394.915(1), Fla. Stat. (2002). However, if the offender's sentence expires or has already expired, the court must determine whether to hold an adversarial probable cause hearing with evidence, witnesses, and representation by counsel. § 394.915(2), Fla. Stat. (2002); see also Goode, 830 So.2d at 827 (stating that this secondary probable cause determination was apparently intended by the Legislature to be a fallback procedure for persons who were entitled to release from prison but still had not been brought to trial). After determining probable cause by either method, the circuit court has thirty days to conduct a trial. § 394.916, Fla. Stat. (2002). To summarize, the Ryce Act's timeline provides for the state attorney to receive a recommendation regarding civil commitment at least one year before a sexual offender is scheduled for release. The state attorney then has the discretion to file a probable cause petition. If a petition is filed, the court must hold a trial within thirty days of its probable cause determination, which ideally will be months before the offender's scheduled release. This timeline can be extended, however, if the state attorney delays filing the petition or the circuit court continues the trial. See Goode, 830 So.2d at 830 (holding that the thirty-day time limit between the probable cause determination and trial is mandatory, although not jurisdictional). Because of such delays, an offender can be detained beyond the expiration of the sentence solely on the basis of an ex parte probable cause determination.