1999 Florida Code
TITLE XLVII CRIMINAL PROCEDURE AND CORRECTIONS
Chapter 943 Department of Law Enforcement  
943.325   Blood specimen testing for DNA analysis.

943.325  Blood specimen testing for DNA analysis.--

(1)(a)  Any person convicted, or who was previously convicted and is still incarcerated, in this state for any offense or attempted offense defined in chapter 794, chapter 800, s. 782.04, s. 784.045, s. 812.133, or s. 812.135, and who is within the confines of the legal state boundaries, shall be required to submit two specimens of blood to a Department of Law Enforcement designated testing facility as directed by the department.

(b)  For the purpose of this section, the term "any person" shall include both juveniles and adults committed to or under the supervision of the Department of Corrections or the Department of Juvenile Justice or 1committed to a county jail.

(2)  The withdrawal of blood for purposes of this section shall be performed in a medically approved manner and only under the supervision of a physician, registered nurse, licensed practical nurse, or duly licensed medical personnel.

2(3)  Upon a conviction of any person for any offense under paragraph (1)(a) which results in the commitment of the offender to a county jail, correctional facility, or juvenile facility, the entity responsible for the facility shall assure that the blood specimens required by this section are promptly secured and transmitted to the Department of Law Enforcement. If the person is not incarcerated following such conviction, the person may not be released from the custody of the court or released pursuant to a bond or surety until the blood specimens required by this section have been taken. The chief judge of each circuit shall, in conjunction with the sheriff or other entity that maintains the county jail, assure implementation of a method to promptly collect required blood specimens and forward the specimens to the Department of Law Enforcement. The Department of Law Enforcement, in conjunction with the sheriff, the courts, the Department of Corrections, and the Department of Juvenile Justice, shall develop a statewide protocol for securing the blood specimens of any person required to provide specimens under this section. Personnel at the jail, correctional facility, or juvenile facility shall implement the protocol as part of the regular processing of offenders.

2(4)  If any blood specimens submitted to the Department of Law Enforcement under this section are found to be unacceptable for analysis and use or cannot be used by the department in the manner required by this section, the Department of Law Enforcement may require that another set of blood specimens be taken as set forth in subsection (11).

(5)  The Department of Law Enforcement shall provide the specimen vials, mailing tubes, labels, and instructions for the collection of blood specimens. The specimens shall thereafter be forwarded to the designated testing facility for analysis to determine genetic markers and characteristics for the purpose of individual identification of the person submitting the sample.

(6)  The analysis, when completed, shall be entered into the automated database maintained by the Department of Law Enforcement for such purpose, and shall not be included in the state central criminal justice information repository.

(7)  The results of a DNA analysis and the comparison of analytic results shall be released only to criminal justice agencies as defined in s. 943.045(10), at the request of the agency. Otherwise, such information is confidential and exempt from the provisions of s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution.

(8)  The Department of Law Enforcement and the statewide criminal laboratory analysis system shall establish, implement, and maintain a statewide automated personal identification system capable of, but not limited to, classifying, matching, and storing analyses of DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) and other biological molecules. The system shall be available to all criminal justice agencies.

(9)  The Department of Law Enforcement shall:

(a)  Receive, process, and store blood samples and the data derived therefrom furnished pursuant to subsection (1) or pursuant to a requirement of supervision imposed by the court or the Parole Commission with respect to a person convicted of any offense specified in subsection (1).

(b)  Collect, process, maintain, and disseminate information and records pursuant to this section.

(c)  Strive to maintain or disseminate only accurate and complete records.

(d)  Adopt rules prescribing the proper procedure for state and local law enforcement and correctional agencies to collect and submit blood samples pursuant to this section.

(10)(a)  The court shall include in the judgment of conviction for an offense specified in this section, or a finding that a person described in subsection (1) violated a condition of probation, community control, or any other court-ordered supervision, an order stating that blood specimens are required to be drawn by the appropriate agency in a manner consistent with this section and, unless the convicted person lacks the ability to pay, the person shall reimburse the appropriate agency for the cost of drawing and transmitting the blood specimens to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. The reimbursement payment may be deducted from any existing balance in the inmates's bank account. If the account balance is insufficient to cover the cost of drawing and transmitting the blood specimens to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, 50 percent of each deposit to the account must be withheld until the total amount owed has been paid. If the judgment places the convicted person on probation, community control, or any other court-ordered supervision, the court shall order the convicted person to submit to the drawing of the blood specimens as a condition of the probation, community control, or other court-ordered supervision. For the purposes of a person who is on probation, community control, or any other court-ordered supervision, the collection requirement must be based upon a court order. If the judgment sentences the convicted person to time served, the court shall order the convicted person to submit to the drawing of the blood specimens as a condition of such sentence.

(b)  The appropriate agency shall cause the specimens to be drawn as soon as practical after conviction but, in the case of any person ordered to serve a term of incarceration as part of the sentence, the specimen shall be drawn as soon as practical after the receipt of the convicted person by the custodial facility. For the purpose of this section, the appropriate agency shall be the Department of Corrections whenever the convicted person is committed to the legal and physical custody of the department. Conviction information contained in the offender information system of the Department of Corrections shall be sufficient to determine applicability under this section. The appropriate agency shall be the sheriff or officer in charge of the county correctional facility whenever the convicted person is placed on probation, community control, or any other court-ordered supervision or form of supervised release or is committed to the legal and physical custody of a county correctional facility.

(c)  Any person previously convicted of an offense specified in this section, or a crime which, if committed in this state, would be an offense specified in this section, and who is also subject to the registration requirement imposed by s. 775.13, shall be subject to the collection requirement of this section when the appropriate agency described in this section verifies the identification information of the person. The collection requirement of this section does not apply to a person as described in s. 775.13(6).

(d)  For the purposes of this section, conviction shall include a finding of guilty, or entry of a plea of nolo contendere or guilty, regardless of adjudication or, in the case of a juvenile, the finding of delinquency.

2(e)  If necessary, the state or local law enforcement or correctional agency having authority over the person subject to the sampling under this section shall assist in the procedure. The law enforcement or correctional officer so assisting may use reasonable force if necessary to require such person to submit to the withdrawal of blood. The withdrawal shall be performed in a reasonable manner. A hospital, clinical laboratory, medical clinic, or similar medical institution; a physician, certified paramedic, registered nurse, licensed practical nurse, or other personnel authorized by a hospital to draw blood; a licensed clinical laboratory director, supervisor, technologist, or technician; or any other person who assists a law enforcement officer is not civilly or criminally liable as a result of withdrawing blood specimens according to accepted medical standards when requested to do so by a law enforcement officer or any personnel of a jail, correctional facility, or juvenile detention facility, regardless of whether the convicted person resisted the drawing of blood specimens.

2(11)  If the Department of Law Enforcement determines that a convicted person who is required to submit blood specimens under this section has not provided the specimens, the department, a state attorney, or any law enforcement agency may apply to the circuit court for an order that authorizes taking the convicted person into custody for the purpose of securing the required specimens. The court shall issue the order upon a showing of probable cause. Following issuance of the order, the convicted person shall be transported to a location acceptable to the agency that has custody of the person, the blood specimens shall be withdrawn in a reasonable manner, and the person shall be released if there is no other reason to justify retaining the person in custody. The agency that takes the convicted person into custody may, but is not required to, transport the person back to the location where the person was taken into custody.

(12)  Unless the 3convicted person has been declared indigent by the court, the 3convicted person shall pay the actual costs of collecting the blood specimens required under this section.

2(13)  If a court, a law enforcement agency, or the Department of Law Enforcement fails to strictly comply with this section or to abide by a statewide protocol for collecting blood specimens, such failure is not grounds for challenging the validity of the collection or the use of a specimen, and evidence based upon or derived from the collected blood specimens may not be excluded by a court.

History.--s. 1, ch. 89-335; s. 9, ch. 93-204; s. 3, ch. 94-90; s. 52, ch. 95-283; s. 19, ch. 96-322; s. 447, ch. 96-406; s. 8, ch. 98-81; s. 14, ch. 98-251; s. 7, ch. 98-417.

1Note.--As amended by s. 8, ch. 98-81. Amendment by s. 14, ch. 98-251, does not include the term "committed to."

2Note.--As enacted by s. 8, ch. 98-81. Section 14, ch. 98-251, enacted substantially similar language in subsections (3) and (4), paragraph (e) of subsection (10), and subsections (11) and (13), and those versions read:

(3)  Upon conviction of any person for any offense under paragraph (1)(a), resulting in the commitment of the offender to a county jail, correctional facility, or juvenile facility, the entity responsible for the facility shall ensure that a blood specimen as required by this section is promptly secured and transmitted to the Department of Law Enforcement. Should the disposition be any option other than commitment to incarceration in a county jail, correctional facility, or juvenile facility, the person shall not be released from the custody of the court or, when a bond or surety has been posted, shall not have the person's bond or surety released until such time as the blood specimen required by this section has been taken. The chief administrative judge of each circuit shall, in conjunction with the sheriff of each county or other entity maintaining the county jail, ensure that a method of prompt collection of the required blood specimen and forwarding to the Department of Law Enforcement is implemented. The Department of Law Enforcement, in conjunction with the sheriffs, courts, Department of Corrections, and Department of Juvenile Justice shall develop a statewide protocol for the securing of blood specimens for any person required to provide the specimen under this section who will not be incarcerated in such a manner as to allow the drawing of the specimen by jail personnel, correctional personnel, or juvenile justice personnel as part of the regular in-processing of offenders.

(4)  Any person convicted of an offense under this section for which the submission of blood specimens is required shall, upon request, submit to the drawing of the person's blood. If the blood specimens submitted to the Department of Law Enforcement are found not to be acceptable for analysis and use under this section, or for any other reason cannot be used by the department in the manner required by this section, the department may require that another set of blood specimens be taken as provided in subsection (11).

(e)  If necessary, the state or local law enforcement or correctional agency having authority over the person subject to the sampling under this section shall assist in the procedure. The law enforcement or correctional officer so assisting may use reasonable force if necessary to require such person to submit to the withdrawal of blood. The withdrawal shall be performed in a reasonable manner. No hospital, clinical laboratory, medical clinic, or similar medical institution or physician, certified paramedic, registered nurse, licensed practical nurse, or other personnel authorized by a hospital to draw blood, or duly licensed clinical laboratory director, supervisor, technologist, or technician, or other person assisting a law enforcement officer shall incur any civil or criminal liability as a result of the withdrawal of blood specimens pursuant to accepted medical standards when requested by a law enforcement officer, or any jail, correctional, or juvenile justice detention personnel to draw blood for the purposes of this section, regardless of whether or not the subject resisted the blood drawing.

(11)  Upon a determination by the Department of Law Enforcement that a person convicted of an offense for which blood specimens are to be provided under this section has not provided the required specimens, the department, any state attorney, or any law enforcement agency may apply to the circuit court for an order authorizing the taking of the person into custody for the purposes of securing the required specimen. The court, upon a showing of probable cause that the person is required to provide a specimen and has not provided the specimen, shall issue the order. Any person taken into custody under an order authorized by this subsection shall be promptly transported to a location acceptable to the agency having custody of the person where blood specimens may be drawn, and the blood specimens shall be withdrawn in a reasonable manner. Upon securing the specimens, if there is no other reason justifying retaining the person in custody, the person shall be released. The agency taking any such person into custody under the authority of this section may, but is not required to, transport the person back to the location where the person was taken into custody.

(13)  The failure of any court or agency or the department to strictly comply with this section or to abide by a protocol shall not constitute a ground for challenging the validity of the collection or use of the sample as provided in this section or for exclusion of evidence based upon, or derived from, any specimen so taken.

3Note.--As amended by s. 8, ch. 98-81. Amendment by s. 14, ch. 98-251, uses the term "offender."