A bill that would require every county in Florida to designate a location where parents can safely exchange custody of their children has cleared its first legislative hurdle with support on both sides of the dais.
The House Civil Justice Subcommittee voted unanimously to move forward HB 385 to the second of three panel hearings it was assigned to last month.
The measure is named after a 37-year-old woman from Navarre Cassie Carliwho disappeared in a restaurant parking lot near her home in late March 2022 after a planned custody exchange for her preschool-aged daughter.
she was found dead six weeks later in a shallow grave in Alabama. The police arrested her ex-boyfriend and the child's father is facing charges in connection with her death.
The proposed “Cassie Carli Act” by Navarre Rep. Joel Rudman for the second year in a row, aims to reduce the likelihood that a similar tragedy will befall another person in Florida
Rudman's bill and a similar Senate companion (SB 580) by Jacksonville Sen. Clay Yarborough would require that all court-approved shared parental custody plans, unless both parents have agreed otherwise, include a list of “designated authorized places” for the release of their children.
In cases where a parent provides evidence that he or his child is at risk of harm, a court may require the parent to conduct the exchange in the parking lot of the county sheriff's office.
The sheriff's designated parking area must be well lit, accessible at all times, marked with a purple light or sign identifying the area as a “neutral safe exchange location,” and have video surveillance.
Each sheriff would be required to host at least one exchange per county, although the measure does not impose a cap on the number. Representative. Kimberly Daniels from Jacksonville and Rick Roth of Wellington expressed the hope that there would be multiple locations in each county, which Rudman said should not place “an additional burden on the county.”
Rudman said giving the sheriff authority over where the exchange site would be located was one of several changes he made to the measure this year previous version It was passed in the last session of the House of Representatives before failing in the Senate.
Another change, he said, would add a checkbox to domestic violence protection forms allowing parents to request the use of an exchange site at a sheriff's office.
Tampa Rep. Traci Kostera lawyer for marriage and family law, praised the regulation because it makes it easy for parents at risk of violence to protect themselves with a simple stroke of the pen.
“When you fill out an application for a domestic violence restraining order, you are on your own. You've just been abused. “You don’t differentiate between up and down, and when you’re checking boxes on a form you don’t know,” she said. “Now there’s a box that someone can check, and it’s a lot easier than trying to read, understand and understand a law.”
During Wednesday's hearing, Rudman also submitted approval for an amendment that would shield counties and their sheriffs from legal liability for any adverse incidents during an exchange. He attributed the initial failure to a “rookie mistake” on his part.
Asked by Sarasota Rep. Fiona McFarland If the sheriffs supported his bill, Rudman said there was broad support among them for the current version based on changes he made after receiving “backlash” last session. The previous version, he said, gave county commissions the say over the locations of the exchanges, rather than sheriffs, as HB 385 does.
Republican Rep. Joel Rudman of Navarre is making a second legislative push to pass the Cassie Carli Act. Image via Colin Hackley/Florida Politics.
A Florida PTA representative and several members of the public, including two of Carli's friends, spoke in favor of the bill.
Kristy Sullivan said Carli “got tired” after four years of contentious custody battles with her ex and “hurriedly left” for an uncertain, dark place.
“At that point, there was no other area in our county that would have given her everything she needed to save her life,” she said. “This bill could make a big difference. I truly believe that if this had existed in our district, she would be with us today.”
Another friend, former police officer from Alabama Stacy Cole, noted that Carli had never reported or spoken about physical abuse from her ex before her disappearance. But Carli feared his behavior would escalate and may have sought the protections of HB 385.
“By passing HB 385, you are saving future Cassies,” she said. “It may not be 100% perfect, and things may still come up, because I would like to fly to our nation's capital and make sure this becomes federal law.”
Lawyer Andrea Reid, representing the Florida Bar's family law section, said the group has worked closely with Rudman over the past two years to refine and improve his bill. She compared it to in spirit and possible effect Greyson's Lawa measure the Legislature passed unanimously in April that allows courts to consider threats against ex-partners or spouses when setting child visitation and custody policies.
Dania Beach Rep. Hillary Casselwho sponsored Greyson's law, is sponsoring the proposed “Cassie Carli Law” alongside Rudman.
“This is actually one of those bills that will definitely make a difference,” Reid said. “I applaud this body and the Senate for working Greyson's Law so well, (and) we are now paying attention to the types of situations Cassie Carli found herself in last year. We’re bringing it all together and continually committed to keeping parents and children safe, and this bill will make that happen.”
HB 385 is next scheduled to go before the House Judiciary Committee, its final stop in the chamber before a floor vote. SB 580 awaits consideration before the first of two committees chaired by the Senate president Kathleen Passidomo referred it on Tuesday.
If passed, the measure will take effect on July 1. It doesn't take into account Miami-Dade County, which won't have an elected sheriff until 2025.
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