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Committee backs bill requiring clerks to send court orders to sheriffs electronically within six hours
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Summary
Senators approved SB 774 after testimony that a delay in delivering an ex parte order to a sheriff’s office contributed to a fatal 2024 standoff; supporters said the change will reduce human error in urgent cases.
TALLAHASSEE — The Judiciary Committee reported Senate Bill 774 favorably after witnesses described a 2024 Volusia County incident in which an ex parte mental‑health order was docketed but not transmitted to the sheriff’s office, contributing to a later fatal confrontation.
Senator Wright, the sponsor, told the committee the bill would require clerks to transmit operative paperwork for involuntary mental‑health examinations, involuntary substance‑abuse examinations, and risk‑protection orders to the county sheriff by electronic means no later than six hours after the court signs the order.
Why it matters: Law enforcement said the change would reduce dangerous delays and human error. Captain Kurt Scheps (Volusia County Sheriff's Office) recounted a case in which a Thanksgiving‑day standoff ended with deputies using lethal force after they could not find a docketed ex parte order in the sheriff’s records; the clerk’s office had docketed the order but not transmitted it for service.
“We believe this bill is extremely important because the timeframe, the way the order will be sent will eliminate human error due to the urgency of it being sent to the sheriff to be served,” Captain Scheps said during testimony.
The sponsor and multiple senators noted that prior family‑law injunction legislation had required electronic transmittal within 24 hours and that six hours reflects the urgency of mental‑health and risk‑protection situations.
Senators asked whether the bill should also cover domestic‑violence injunctions; the sponsor said he was willing to include that area. Law‑enforcement speakers and some appearance forms supported the bill; no opponents spoke for the record. The committee approved the bill unanimously (11 yays, 0 nays).
Ending: The bill advances to the full Senate; sponsors said the measure aims to align court clerks’ delivery practices with current technology and public‑safety imperatives (vote on SB 774: 11–0).
