Last year, a Judge’s Baker Act order slipped through the cracks during the Thanksgiving holiday in Daytona Beach. The man who should have been Baker Acted ended up barricading himself in a condo, firing more than 740 rounds — including shots at a Sheriff’s Office vehicle.
The man ended up being killed by law enforcement. Now, Gov. Ron DeSantis has signed legislation (HB 513) that officials hope will prevent a future tragedy from happening again.
It sets a deadline for Clerks of Courts to electronically transmit specified petitions, including orders for an involuntary examination under the Baker Act and risk protection orders.
“This bill says that once an order is signed, it must be transmitted to the Sheriff’s Office within six hours,” said Rep. Richard Gentry, the bill’s sponsor, during the first committee stop in front of the House Criminal Justice Subcommittee last month. “The Sheriff is always on duty. He’s always got a shift there. And it’s always possible to get these orders to them. They’re ready for them.”
The Baker Act is used when a person who is deemed a risk to hurting himself or others is placed in an involuntary hold for up to 72 hours to get examined and receive emergency mental health services.
Gentry, an Astor Republican, told the story of a man’s wife going before a Judge Nov. 26 to get an ex parte Baker Act. The Judge granted the order, which was immediately transferred to the Clerk’s Office.
But “that order sat there inadvertently over the Thanksgiving holiday,” according to Gentry. The man ended up barricading himself with a gun Nov. 28.
HB 513 was presented on the Governor’s desk April 11 and DeSantis signed it Friday, the final day before it would have expired.
The bill had passed the House with a 108-0 vote April 3, followed by the Senate approving it with a 37-0 vote April 9.
Rep. Taylor Yarkosky said he was shocked there was not a current deadline in place. “I can’t believe we have to pass a law to do this, or I can’t believe there’s not already a law that does this,” the Montverde Republican said during the committee debate last month. “This is the kind of stuff that absolutely matters to the everyday quality life for those that we get the honor to serve.”
As of Monday, DeSantis has signed 10 new bills so far during the Regular Session that is scheduled to end May 2.
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