Florida
Eyewitness Identification Reform
Photo and live lineups conducted by law enforcement agencies must be conducted using blind/blinded administration and witnesses must be given proper instructions before viewing a lineup. Noncompliance with these requirements is admissible in support of a claim of eyewitness misidentification and if the identification evidence is presented at trial, the jury shall be instructed to consider evidence of noncompliance in determining the reliability of an identification. Effective: 2017.
Recording of Interrogations
Florida has no state law requiring recorded interrogations.
Post Conviction DNA Testing
Anyone found guilty of committing a felony after a trial may apply for post-conviction DNA testing at any time. Those who entered a guilty plea or nolo contendre to a felony prior to July 1, 2006 may also apply. Where a defendant pled guilty or nolo contendere after July 1, 2006, state statute permits such a defendant to petition under certain limited circumstances. Effective: 2001; Amended most recently: 2006.
Evidence Preservation
State statute requires the automatic preservation of any physical evidence related to the conviction of an individual for a felony offense. The evidence must be preserved for the length of their sentence, or 60 days after the execution of a sentence (when the death penalty is imposed). Effective: 2001; Amended most recently: 2006.
Florida's statute meets the best practices standards outlined by the NIST Technical Working Group on Biological Evidence Preservation.
Exoneree Compensation
A wrongfully convicted individual found innocent by a prosecuting attorney or administrative court judge is entitled to $50,000 (adjusted for cost of living increases) annually, up to a maximum of $2 million, as long as he has no prior felony convictions. He may also receive 120 hours of tuition at a career center, community college or state university and reimbursement for any fines or costs imposed at the time of his sentence. Effective: 2008; Amended most recently: 2017.
In-Custody Informants
The Florida Supreme Court adopted a rule of criminal procedure in 2014 which requires that when informants offer testimony, the prosecution must disclose materials to the defense, including: the substance and circumstances of the statements the informant will testify about, the informant’s complete criminal history, and other cases in which they cooperated with law enforcement in exchange for benefits. Effective: 2014.