Florida Statutes

Fla. Stat. § 394.9215 (2025)

Right to habeas corpus.

✓ 2025 Florida Statutes — current through the 2025 Regular Session

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394.9215 Right to habeas corpus.—

(1)(a) At any time after exhausting all administrative remedies, a person held in a secure facility under this part may file a petition for habeas corpus in the circuit court for the county in which the facility is located alleging that:

1. The person’s conditions of confinement violate a statutory right under state law or a constitutional right under the State Constitution or the United States Constitution; or

2. The facility in which the person is confined is not an appropriate secure facility, as that term is used in s. 394.915.

(b) Upon filing a legally sufficient petition stating a prima facie case under paragraph (a), the court may direct the Department of Children and Families to file a response. If necessary, the court may conduct an evidentiary proceeding and issue an order to correct a violation of state or federal rights found to exist by the court. A final order entered under this section may be appealed to the district court of appeal. A nonfinal order may be appealed to the extent provided by the Florida Rules of Appellate Procedure. An appeal by the department shall stay the trial court’s order until disposition of the appeal.

(2) Any claim referred to in subsection (1) may be asserted only as provided in this section. No claim referred to in subsection (1) shall be considered in commitment proceedings brought under this part. A person does not have a right to appointed counsel in any proceeding initiated under this section.

(3) Relief granted on a petition filed under this section must be narrowly drawn and may not exceed that which is minimally necessary to correct, in the least intrusive manner possible, the violation of the state or federal rights of a particular petitioner. A court considering a petition under this section must give substantial weight to whether the granting of relief would adversely impact the operation of the detention and treatment facility or would adversely impact public safety.

(4) The court may not enter an order releasing a person from secure detention unless the court expressly finds that no relief short of release will remedy the violation of state or federal rights which is found to have occurred.

History.—s. 1, ch. 2002-36; s. 106, ch. 2014-19.

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 13 cases (4 in the last 5 years), 2004–2024 · leading case: Morel v. Wilkins, 84 So. 3d 226 (Fla. 2012).

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Morel v. Wilkins, 84 So. 3d 226 (Fla. 2012). · cites it 9× “That changed in 2002, when the Legislature added section 394.9215, Florida Statutes, to the Act, providing respondents with an avenue for raising confinement issues through habeas corpus.”

In Re Florida Rules of Civil Procedure for Involuntary Commitment of Sexually Violent Predators, 13 So. 3d 1025 (Fla. 2009). · cites it 5× “By its terms, the rule does not apply to habeas corpus proceedings brought under section 394.9215, Florida Statutes (2008).”

Gering v. State, 252 So. 3d 334 (Fla. 3d DCA 2018). · cites it 2× “460; § 394.9215, Fla. Stat. (2016). Additionally, the state attorney’s office is charged with the responsibility of filing the petition seeking involuntary 3 Analogously, other proceedings incorporate similar due process protections to protect important liberty interests, but…”

State v. Ducharme, 881 So. 2d 70 (Fla. 5th DCA 2004). · cites it 2× “I note that automatic stay provisions are contained in section 394.9215, Florida Statutes (2002), which provides that individuals held in a secure facility may file a petition for writ of habeas corpus alleging that the conditions of confinement violate their statutory or…”

Morel v. Sheldon, 67 So. 3d 1062 (Fla. 2d DCA 2010). · cites it 2× “See § 394.9215, Fla. Stat. (2010). This case is an extreme example, but from our anecdotal experience, it is not unique.”

Curry v. Hadi, 903 So. 2d 242 (Fla. 2d DCA 2005). · cites it 4× “The trial court rested its dismissal on the rationale that the petition did not comply with section 394.9215, Florida Statutes (2003), a provision of the Jimmy Ryce Act authorizing a detainee to file a petition for habeas corpus to challenge conditions of confinement or the…”

Pearson v. State, 888 So. 2d 110 (Fla. 3d DCA 2004). · cites it 4× “The statute contains a specific method for bringing such a challenge, but such a challenge cannot be brought during commitment proceedings.”

McKee v. Jacobo, 127 So. 3d 857 (Fla. 2d DCA 2013). · cites it 8× “Having a myriad of complaints pertaining to both the quality and quantity of the rehabilitative services and treatment that the for-profit operator of the facility provides him and others similarly detained, he filed a petition seeking the issuance of a writ of habeas corpus…”

Longino v. Masters (M.D. Fla. 2023). · cites it 4× “conditions of his confinement, but he cannot do so because he is not sure what “exhaustion of administrative remedies” means under Florida Statute § 394.9215 and he is not “sure what exactly it is he is supposed to do before filing his habeas corpus petition.”

Lavender v. Caroll (M.D. Fla. 2020). · cites it 3× “6 5 Under Fla. Stat. § 394.9215 , Right to habeas corpus, a person held in a secure facility under the Involuntary Civil Commitment of Sexually Violent Predators, may file a petition in the circuit court, after exhausting administrative remedies, challenging the conditions of…”

In Re: Amendments to Florida Rules of Civil Procedure for Involuntary Commitment of Sexually Violent Predators (Fla. 2023). · cites it 2× “All other habeas corpus petitions, including petitions filed pursuant to section 394.9215(1)(a), Florida Statutes, must be - 25 - filed in the county where the facility in which the petitioner is confined is located.”

Show all 13 citing cases →

— 394.9215(1) — 1 case

Morel v. Wilkins, 84 So. 3d 226 (Fla. 2012). “That changed in 2002, when the Legislature added section 394.9215, Florida Statutes, to the Act, providing respondents with an avenue for raising confinement issues through habeas corpus.”

— 394.9215(1)(a) — 4 cases

In Re: Amendments to Florida Rules of Civil Procedure for Involuntary Commitment of Sexually Violent Predators (Fla. 2023). “All other habeas corpus petitions, including petitions filed pursuant to section 394.9215(1)(a), Florida Statutes, must be - 25 - filed in the county where the facility in which the petitioner is confined is located.”

Longino v. Masters (M.D. Fla. 2023). “conditions of his confinement, but he cannot do so because he is not sure what “exhaustion of administrative remedies” means under Florida Statute § 394.9215 and he is not “sure what exactly it is he is supposed to do before filing his habeas corpus petition.”

Aaron Shaw v. the State of Florida (Fla. 3d DCA 2024).

— 394.9215(2) — 1 case

Pearson v. State, 888 So. 2d 110 (Fla. 3d DCA 2004). “The statute contains a specific method for bringing such a challenge, but such a challenge cannot be brought during commitment proceedings.”

— 394.9215(l)(a) — 2 cases

In Re Florida Rules of Civil Procedure for Involuntary Commitment of Sexually Violent Predators, 13 So. 3d 1025 (Fla. 2009). “By its terms, the rule does not apply to habeas corpus proceedings brought under section 394.9215, Florida Statutes (2008).”

— 394.9215(l)(b) — 1 case

McKee v. Jacobo, 127 So. 3d 857 (Fla. 2d DCA 2013). “Having a myriad of complaints pertaining to both the quality and quantity of the rehabilitative services and treatment that the for-profit operator of the facility provides him and others similarly detained, he filed a petition seeking the issuance of a writ of habeas corpus…”

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