Florida Statute 902.17 - Full Text and Legal Analysis

902.17 Procedure when witness does not give security.—

(1) If a witness required to enter into a recognizance to appear refuses to comply with the order, the trial court judge shall commit the witness to custody until she or he complies or she or he is legally discharged.

(2) If the trial court judge requires a witness to give security for her or his appearance and the witness is unable to give the security, the witness may apply to the court having jurisdiction to try the defendant for a reduction of the security.

(3) If it appears from examination on oath of the witness or any other person that the witness is unable to give security, the trial court judge or the court having jurisdiction to try the defendant shall make an order finding that fact, and the witness shall be detained pending application for her or his conditional examination. Within 3 days from the entry of the order, the witness shall be conditionally examined on application of the state or the defendant. The examination shall be by question and answer in the presence of the other party and counsel, and shall be transcribed by a court reporter or stenographer selected by the parties. At the completion of the examination the witness shall be discharged. The deposition of the witness may be introduced in evidence at the trial by the defendant, or, if the prosecuting attorney and the defendant and the defendant’s counsel agree, it may be admitted in evidence by stipulation. The deposition shall not be admitted on behalf of the state without the consent of the defendant.

(4) If a conditional examination is not made within 3 days, the witness shall be discharged.

(5) A witness detained for conditional examination shall be entitled to fees as a witness for the period of her or his commitment.

History.—s. 41, ch. 19554, 1939; CGL 1940 Supp. 8663(41); s. 17, ch. 70-339; s. 1471, ch. 97-102; s. 27, ch. 2004-11.

Cases Citing F.S. 902.17

Fla. Stat. § 902.17 (2026) Copy Cite Official Site Syfertize CourtListener Amendments
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·Davis v. State, 65 So. 2d 307 (Fla. 1953).
Cited 6 times | Published | Supreme Court of Florida | 1953 Fla. LEXIS 1292
...such evidence in a criminal trial, except in two instances. The first is, 902.12, that if the defendant testifies, and if he signs his deposition it may be used against him at the trial, and the second is that, in the case of depositions taken under Section 902.17, F.S.A....
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Cited as authorityJames (1971)
phrase: "rule_authority"
Cited as authorityBazarte (1959)
phrase: "rule_authority"
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·James v. State, 254 So. 2d 838 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 1971).
Published | District Court of Appeal of Florida | 1971 Fla. App. LEXIS 5810
that, in the case of depositions taken under Section 902.17, F.S.A. of a witness who does not give security
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Cited as authorityThompson (2008)
phrase: "rule_authority"
Cited as authorityOutlaw (1972)
phrase: "rule_authority"
Cert. deniedJames (1972)
phrase: "certiorari denied"
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·State ex rel. Gebhardt v. Buchanan, 175 So. 2d 803 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 1965).
Published | District Court of Appeal of Florida | 1965 Fla. App. LEXIS 4233
...e. By his petition for writ of habeas corpus Joel D. Gebhardt alleged that he is confined to the Dade County Jail as a material witness in a first-degree murder case, and that his confinement is illegal because he has not been discharged pursuant to § 902.17(4) Fla.Stat., F.S.A....
...Richard Charles Worthington, No. 2183, was set for trial on April 1, 1965, but has been continued because the defendant, Worthing-ton, has raised legal issues which must first be settled by the Supreme Court of Florida. The question which we must determine is whether § 902.17 Fla.Stat., F.S.A., applies to this petitioner so that his restraint is now illegal. This section provides as follows: “902.17 Procedure when witness does not give security....
...This is a matter as to which every court, when it is presented, must exercise a broad, humane discretion, having in view the rights of the citizen, and even higher rights of justice and of the state.” Crosby v. Potts, supra, 69 S.E. at 584 . Subsection (4) of Florida Statute 902.17, F.S.A....
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Cited "but see"(citing case) (2011)
phrase: "but see"
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Cases Citing F.S. 902.17

·Davis v. State, 65 So. 2d 307 (Fla. 1953).

·James v. State, 254 So. 2d 838 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 1971).

·State ex rel. Gebhardt v. Buchanan, 175 So. 2d 803 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 1965).