Florida Statutes
Fla. Stat. § 944.28 (2025)
Forfeiture of gain-time and the right to earn gain-time in the future.
✓ 2025 Florida Statutes — current through the 2025 Regular Session Cite as: Fla. Stat. § 944.28 (2025)
Find cases:
SyfertCases citing this section
FL-LEGleg.state.fl.us
JustiaFla. Statutes
CornellLII Search
CasesGoogle Scholar
944.28 Forfeiture of gain-time and the right to earn gain-time in the future.—
(1) If a prisoner is convicted of escape, or if the clemency, conditional release as described in chapter 947, probation or community control as described in chapter 948, provisional release as described in 1s. 944.277, parole, or control release as described in s. 947.146 granted to the prisoner is revoked, the department may, without notice or hearing, declare a forfeiture of all gain-time earned according to the provisions of law by such prisoner prior to such escape or his or her release under such clemency, conditional release, probation, community control, provisional release, control release, or parole.
(2)(a) All or any part of the gain-time earned by a prisoner according to the provisions of law is subject to forfeiture if such prisoner unsuccessfully attempts to escape; assaults another person; threatens or knowingly endangers the life or person of another person; refuses by action or word to carry out any instruction duly given to him or her; neglects to perform in a faithful, diligent, industrious, orderly, and peaceful manner the work, duties, and tasks assigned to him or her; is found by a court to have brought a frivolous suit, action, claim, proceeding, or appeal in any court; is found by a court to have knowingly or with reckless disregard for the truth brought false information or evidence before the court; or violates any law of the state or any rule or regulation of the department or institution.
(b) A prisoner’s right to earn gain-time during all or any part of the remainder of the sentence or sentences under which he or she is imprisoned may be declared forfeited because of the seriousness of a single instance of misconduct or because of the seriousness of an accumulation of instances of misconduct.
(c) The method of declaring a forfeiture under paragraph (a) or paragraph (b) shall be as follows: A written charge shall be prepared, which shall specify each instance of misconduct upon which it is based and the approximate date thereof. A copy of such charge shall be delivered to the prisoner, and he or she shall be given notice of a hearing before the disciplinary committee created under the authorization of rules heretofore or hereafter adopted by the department for the institution in which he or she is confined. The prisoner shall be present at the hearing. If at such hearing the prisoner pleads guilty to the charge or if the committee determines that the prisoner is guilty thereof upon the basis of proof presented at such hearing, it shall find him or her guilty. If the committee considers that all or part of the prisoner’s gain-time and the prisoner’s right to earn gain-time during all or any part of the sentence or sentences under which he or she is imprisoned shall be forfeited, it shall so recommend in its written report. Such report shall be presented to the warden of the institution, who may approve such recommendation in whole or in part by endorsing such approval on the report. In the event of approval, the warden shall forward the report to the department. Thereupon, the department may, in its discretion, declare the forfeiture thus approved by the warden or any specified part thereof.
(3) Upon the recommendation of the warden, the department may, in its discretion, restore all or any part of any gain-time forfeited under this section.
History.—s. 26, ch. 57-121; s. 18, ch. 61-530; s. 2, ch. 63-243; s. 1, ch. 65-197; ss. 19, 35, ch. 69-106; s. 20, ch. 74-112; s. 48, ch. 77-120; s. 58, ch. 79-3; s. 1, ch. 82-39; s. 9, ch. 88-122; s. 6, ch. 89-526; s. 6, ch. 89-531; s. 2, ch. 91-280; s. 6, ch. 96-106; ss. 1854, 1855, ch. 97-102; s. 14, ch. 2000-161; s. 39, ch. 2010-117.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 201
cases (4 in the last 5 years), 1963–2024 · leading case: Hall v. State
Hall v. State (2000)
“The Department's rules have long provided for gain time forfeiture and the Department has long looked to section 944.28 for its gain time forfeiture authority.”
Larimore v. State (2009)
“28(1) where Larimore's offense occurred before the effective date of the amendment to section 944.28 authorizing the forfeiture of gaintime upon revocation of probation.”
Gibson v. Florida Dept. of Corrections (2004)
“Statutory Authority Section 944.28(1), Florida Statutes (1993), provides: If a prisoner is convicted of escape, or if the clemency, conditional release as described in chapter 947, probation or community control as described in chapter 948, provisional release as described in s.”
Larimore v. Florida Dept. of Corrections (2004)
“However, effective October 1, 1989, the Legislature amended section 944.28, Florida Statutes, to permit forfeiture of gain-time earned on the incarcerative portion of a split sentence, when determining the amount of credit to apply to the new sentence imposed upon revocation of…”
Mercade v. State (1997)
“We use this case, therefore, to send a message to prisoners collaterally attacking sentences imposed by the trial courts of this district that we fully intend to invoke the applicable provisions of section 944.28, Florida Statutes (Supp.1996), governing the forfeiture of gain…”
Saucer v. State (1998)
“The gain-time forfeiture provisions of section 944.28 did not contain a civil action limitation; however, there was no declared intent in chapter 96-106 to target frivolous or malicious proceedings in criminal matters.”
Waldrup v. Dugger (1990)
“(1981) with § 944.28, Fla. Stat. (1981). Although DOC typically granted the basic gain-time awards to every inmate not guilty of any infraction, the statutory language reveals that DOC possessed considerable discretion in determining what constituted "satisfactory and…”
Dowdy v. Singletary (1998)
“(codified at § 944.28(1), Fla. Stat. (Supp.1988)); id.”
Burgess v. Crosby (2004)
“In the complaint for mandamus filed in the Leon County Circuit Court, appellant challenged the revocation of his conditional release by the Florida Parole Commission ("the Commission") and the subsequent forfeiture of gain time by the Department of Corrections ("the Department")…”
Bradley v. State (1997)
“§ 944.28(2)(a), Fla. Stat. When one prisoner ignored this warning, this court directed the Department of Corrections to forfeit the applicable gain time earned by the defendant.”
Eldridge v. Moore (2000)
“See § 944.28(1), Fla. Stat. (1999). [3] There is nothing in the statute that requires that the trial court must award the gain time before the Department is permitted to forfeit it, and as discussed above, the inmate retains the previously awarded gain time until it is forfeited.”
Schmidt v. Crusoe (2003)
“See § 944.28(2)(a), Fla. Stat. (2002); ch. 96-106, § 6, Laws of Fla.”
— 944.28(1) — 99 cases
Gibson v. Florida Dept. of Corrections (2004)
“Statutory Authority Section 944.28(1), Florida Statutes (1993), provides: If a prisoner is convicted of escape, or if the clemency, conditional release as described in chapter 947, probation or community control as described in chapter 948, provisional release as described in s.”
Larimore v. State (2009)
“28(1) where Larimore's offense occurred before the effective date of the amendment to section 944.28 authorizing the forfeiture of gaintime upon revocation of probation.”
Larimore v. Florida Dept. of Corrections (2004)
“However, effective October 1, 1989, the Legislature amended section 944.28, Florida Statutes, to permit forfeiture of gain-time earned on the incarcerative portion of a split sentence, when determining the amount of credit to apply to the new sentence imposed upon revocation of…”
Dowdy v. Singletary (1998)
“(codified at § 944.28(1), Fla. Stat. (Supp.1988)); id.”
Burgess v. Crosby (2004)
“In the complaint for mandamus filed in the Leon County Circuit Court, appellant challenged the revocation of his conditional release by the Florida Parole Commission ("the Commission") and the subsequent forfeiture of gain time by the Department of Corrections ("the Department")…”
— 944.28(2) — 7 cases
Saucer v. State (1998)
“The gain-time forfeiture provisions of section 944.28 did not contain a civil action limitation; however, there was no declared intent in chapter 96-106 to target frivolous or malicious proceedings in criminal matters.”
Cassady v. State (1996)
Hall v. State (2000)
“The Department's rules have long provided for gain time forfeiture and the Department has long looked to section 944.28 for its gain time forfeiture authority.”
Britt v. Chiles (1997)
Van Meter v. State (1999)
— 944.28(2)(a) — 72 cases
Hall v. State (2000)
“The Department's rules have long provided for gain time forfeiture and the Department has long looked to section 944.28 for its gain time forfeiture authority.”
Mercade v. State (1997)
“We use this case, therefore, to send a message to prisoners collaterally attacking sentences imposed by the trial courts of this district that we fully intend to invoke the applicable provisions of section 944.28, Florida Statutes (Supp.1996), governing the forfeiture of gain…”
Saucer v. State (1998)
“The gain-time forfeiture provisions of section 944.28 did not contain a civil action limitation; however, there was no declared intent in chapter 96-106 to target frivolous or malicious proceedings in criminal matters.”
Bradley v. State (1997)
“§ 944.28(2)(a), Fla. Stat. When one prisoner ignored this warning, this court directed the Department of Corrections to forfeit the applicable gain time earned by the defendant.”
Schmidt v. Crusoe (2003)
“See § 944.28(2)(a), Fla. Stat. (2002); ch. 96-106, § 6, Laws of Fla.”
— 944.28(2)(b) — 6 cases
Buffa v. Singletary (1995)
Britt v. Chiles (1997)
Williams v. Wasi (1996)
Hall v. State (2012)
— 944.28(2)(c) — 2 cases
Mercade v. State (1997)
“We use this case, therefore, to send a message to prisoners collaterally attacking sentences imposed by the trial courts of this district that we fully intend to invoke the applicable provisions of section 944.28, Florida Statutes (Supp.1996), governing the forfeiture of gain…”
Osterback v. Singletary (1996)
— 944.28(3) — 1 case
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the
Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and
treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.