A close-up, low-angle shot from behind a police cruiser, focusing on the illuminated red and amber emergency light bar on the roof. The numbers "303" are visible on the trunk in the foreground. In the blurred background, another police vehicle's lights are visible on a tree-lined street under a bright, overcast sky. — A St. Petersburg Police Department car on Sept. 12, 2027. Credit: cityofstpete / Flickr

Last year, a GOP lawmaker attempted to pass a bill that would have banned anonymous complaints against law enforcement officers.

While the measure passed in the House, it never moved in the Senate.

Now that bill (HB 1283) has been reworked.

“We changed it this year to make a deal in the Senate and we are saying that you can have an anonymous complaint if it comes with corroborating evidence,” said Rep. Tom Fabricio, R-Miami Lakes, who sponsored the bill last year in the House and is co-sponsoring it this session with Rep. Omar Blanco, R-Miami.

The bill includes other provisions favorable to law enforcement. It requires that a copy of a signed complaint be provided to a law enforcement or corrections officer under investigation by his or her department before any interrogation, and prohibits punitive action unless the accused officer has received a copy.

And it says that an individual who makes a false complaint against a law enforcement or corrections officer commits perjury, which is punishable as a third degree felony, punishable by up to 5 years in prison and a $5,000 fine. If the investigation against the officer does not result in disciplinary action, the episode could not harm the officer’s ability to receive a promotion, raise, or other commendation.

Although South Florida Democratic Rep. Mike Gottlieb said he thought the change made the bill better than what was passed in the House a year ago, critics remain.

Robin Graber is deputy director of the Florida Council Against Sexual Violence. He said that right now there are guardrails in place to ensure fairness in responding to allegations of misconduct by law enforcement, but said that removing the ability to report anonymously “unjustly targets the victim’s right to autonomy, as well as longstanding practices against trauma.”

He cited an incident involving a police officer in Bay County who was arrested for sexual violence last fall. There wasn’t any corroborating evidence, Graber said. After an investigation, it was learned that geo tracking had been obtained, something the survivor had no access to.

“Survivors will have none of that information,” he said.

Rep. Dianne Hart-Lowman has visited more than 60 Florida prisons since elected to the House in 2018. She said that inmates who make complaints against correction officers are not afraid of providing their names, but the problem is that they are retaliated against.

“I don’t know what we’re going to do here in Florida as it relates to our prisons in ensuring that those body-cams are on,” she said. “That people are not taken into bathrooms. That people are not taken into areas where there are no cameras. I’ve had officers draw maps for me to show me where the blindspots are inside of these prisons where people get beat.”

Hart-Lowman was the only member of the House Criminal Justice Subcommittee to oppose the bill.

Law enforcement remains split on the proposal

One rank-and-file police officer discussed his support for the legislation.

“It strengthens the due process protection for our law enforcement officers and corrections officers, while maintaining accountability in a fair, responsible way,” said Felix Del Rosario, a police officer with the City of Miami.

“Right now, anonymous or unsworn complaints sometimes are driven by persons with grudges if not outright malice can launch full investigations, tie up resources, damage reputations, and create unnecessary stress for officers and their families.”

The Florida Police Benevolent Association supports the bill. The Florida Sheriffs Association and the Florida Police Chiefs Association opposes the measure. Officials with those organizations chose not to speak during the hearing.

A Senate companion (SB 1544) has been filed by South Florida independent Jason Pizzo.

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