Senate committee advances 'Chris Tristan Murphy Act' to expand mental‑health diversion for defendants

The Senate committee reported favorably on CS for SB 168, titled the Chris Tristan Murphy Act, a bill that seeks to divert clinically appropriate defendants with mental illness from the criminal justice system into treatment instead of incarceration. The committee adopted a technical amendment before voting to advance the measure.

Senator Bradley, sponsor of SB 168, told the committee that “Senate bill 168 is a bill that addresses the intersection between mental health and the criminal justice system.” He said the measure is intended to produce long‑term recovery and stability rather than repeated incarceration.

Why it matters: Committee supporters — including family members of Tristan Murphy, advocacy groups and law enforcement leaders — said county jails and prisons are not equipped to be treatment centers, and that diversion and earlier assessment can reduce costly recidivism and save lives. Cindy Murphy, Tristan’s mother, and her son, Cody Murphy, described failures in how Tristan was handled by the criminal justice system and urged passage.

The bill would: create a model process for pretrial misdemeanor and felony mental‑health diversion; require courts to make release and diversion decisions conditioned on compliance with treatment where ordered; expand allowable uses of the criminal justice, mental health, and substance abuse reinvestment grant program to include specialized 9‑1‑1 and EMT training and veteran treatment court programs; exempt fiscally constrained counties from required matching funds for certain grants; require the Department of Corrections to evaluate mental health before assigning inmates to work programs and to document approval; add Hillsborough County to counties eligible for a forensic hospital diversion pilot program; and establish a Florida behavioral health data repository to collect and analyze behavioral‑health information.

Sheriff Bill Promell of Charlotte County said his office has seen people “fall through the cracks” and argued the bill provides treatment options and could save lives. Carol Lee McClain, executive director of NAMI Florida, and Cheryl Virta of NAMI Jacksonville also offered support, urging training for 9‑1‑1 operators and law enforcement crisis intervention.

The committee adopted amendment barcode 857776, which the sponsor said “corrects a technical drafting error and makes the provision relating to the assessment and release of a defendant who has been assessed for pretrial diversion apply to all circumstances that a defendant may be assessed for mental health diversion.” With the amendment adopted, the committee reported CS for SB 168 favorably by roll call.

Cody Murphy, Tristan’s son, addressed senators: “What he did was wrong, but he needed medication, not punishment.” His and his mother’s testimony framed the bill as a response to a specific family tragedy and as a policy meant to prevent similar outcomes.

The committee vote was recorded as all senators present voting in favor; the clerk announced CS for SB 168 was reported favorably.

Next steps: The committee advanced the bill to its next committee stop with the amendment adopted; committee members and public speakers said they expect further conversations on implementation and funding.