Florida Statutes

Fla. Stat. § 985.01 (2025)

Purposes and intent.

✓ 2025 Florida Statutes — current through the 2025 Regular Session

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985.01 Purposes and intent.—

(1) The purposes of this chapter are:

(a) To increase public safety by reducing juvenile delinquency through effective prevention, intervention, and treatment services that strengthen and reform the lives of children.

(b) To provide judicial and other procedures to assure due process through which children, victims, and other interested parties are assured fair hearings by a respectful and respected court or other tribunal and the recognition, protection, and enforcement of their constitutional and other legal rights, while ensuring that public safety interests and the authority and dignity of the courts are adequately protected.

(c) To provide an environment that fosters healthy social, emotional, intellectual, educational, and physical development; to ensure secure and safe custody; and to promote the health and well-being of all children under the state’s care.

(d) To ensure the protection of society, by providing for a comprehensive standardized assessment of the child’s needs so that the most appropriate control, discipline, punishment, and treatment can be administered consistent with the seriousness of the act committed, the community’s long-term need for public safety, the prior record of the child, and the specific rehabilitation needs of the child, while also providing, whenever possible, restitution to the victim of the offense.

(e) To preserve and strengthen the child’s family ties whenever possible, by providing for removal of the child from the physical custody of a parent only when his or her welfare or the safety and protection of the public cannot be adequately safeguarded without such removal; and, when the child is removed from his or her own family, to secure custody, care, and discipline for the child as nearly as possible equivalent to that which should have been given by the parents.

(f)1. To assure that the adjudication and disposition of a child alleged or found to have committed a violation of Florida law be exercised with appropriate discretion and in keeping with the seriousness of the offense and the need for treatment services, and that all findings made under this chapter be based upon facts presented at a hearing that meets the constitutional standards of fundamental fairness and due process.

2. To assure that the sentencing and placement of a child tried as an adult be appropriate and in keeping with the seriousness of the offense and the child’s need for rehabilitative services, and that the proceedings and procedures applicable to such sentencing and placement be applied within the full framework of constitutional standards of fundamental fairness and due process.

(g) To provide children committed to the department with training in life skills, including career and technical education, when appropriate.

(h) To care for children in the least restrictive and most appropriate service environments to ensure that children assessed as low and moderate risk to reoffend are not committed to residential programs, unless the court deems such placement appropriate.

(i) To allocate resources for the most effective programs, services, and treatments to ensure that children, their families, and their community support systems are connected with these programs at the points along the juvenile justice continuum where they will have the most impact.

(2) It is the intent of the Legislature that this chapter be liberally interpreted and construed in conformity with its declared purposes.

History.—s. 1, ch. 97-238; s. 12, ch. 2001-125; s. 64, ch. 2004-267; ss. 2, 87, ch. 2006-120; s. 1, ch. 2014-162.

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 27 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 1999–2025 · leading case: E.A.R. v. State, 4 So. 3d 614 (Fla. 2009).

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E.A.R. v. State, 4 So. 3d 614 (Fla. 2009). · cites it 13× “(2007); see also § 985.01-.02, Fla. Stat. (2007). Conversely, in the decision below, the Fourth District focused exclusively upon one statutory provision, section 985.”

City of Jacksonville v. Smith, 159 So. 3d 888 (Fla. 1st DCA 2015). · cites it 2× “, § 985.01(l)(f), Fla. Stat. (juvenile justice hearing must meet “constitutional standards of fundamental fairness and due process.”

BM v. Dobuler, 979 So. 2d 308 (Fla. 3d DCA 2008). · cites it 3× “]" § 985.01, Fla. Stat. (2007). That is good enough for us.”

EAR v. State, 4 So. 3d 614 (Fla. 2009). · cites it 13× “[26] Therefore, a disposition hearing is actually the culmination of a more extensive process, which the Legislature constructed to provide adjudicated juvenile offenders "the most appropriate dispositional services in the least restrictive available setting" while also…”

D.G. v. State, 170 So. 3d 1 (Fla. 2d DCA 2015). · cites it 2× “(2007); see also § 985.01-.02, Fla. Stat. (2007). 4 So.3d at 628 (footnotes omitted).”

J.A.B. v. State, 25 So. 3d 554 (Fla. 2010). · cites it 5× “§ 985.01 (l)(c), Fla. Stat. (2005) (emphasis added); see also § 985.”

V.K.E. v. State, 934 So. 2d 1276 (Fla. 2006). “Section 985.01 provides that the purposes of the chapter are, inter alia: (c) To ensure the protection of society, by providing for a comprehensive standardized assessment of the child’s needs so that the most appropriate control, discipline, punishment, and treatment can be…”

J.I.S. v. State, 930 So. 2d 587 (Fla. 2006). · cites it 2× “§ 985.01(l)(c), Fla. Stat. (2005). The statutory definition of high-risk residential commitment, to which J.”

K.Q.S. v. State, 975 So. 2d 536 (Fla. 1st DCA 2008). · cites it 2× “”); see also § 985.01(1)(a), Fla. Stat. (2007) (stating that one of the legislature’s goals within Chapter 985 is to ensure that “the authority and dignity of the courts are adequately protectéd”).”

S.B.L. v. State, 737 So. 2d 1131 (Fla. 1st DCA 1999). · cites it 4× “See § 985.01, Fla. Stat. (1997); ch. 97-238, § 1, at 4212-13, Laws of Fla.”

B.O. v. State, 25 So. 3d 586 (Fla. 4th DCA 2009). · cites it 2× “22(9) may be employed in spite of the absence of notice in the charging document of the facts supporting the enhanced punishment.”

M.P. v. State, 988 So. 2d 1266 (Fla. 5th DCA 2008). “See §§ 985.01-.807, Fla. Stat. (2007). This arrangement imposes a unique set of limitations on the ability of the circuit judges in this state to control juvenile delinquents.”

Show all 27 citing cases →

— 985.01(1)(a) — 5 cases

K.Q.S. v. State, 975 So. 2d 536 (Fla. 1st DCA 2008). “”); see also § 985.01(1)(a), Fla. Stat. (2007) (stating that one of the legislature’s goals within Chapter 985 is to ensure that “the authority and dignity of the courts are adequately protectéd”).”

B.O. v. State, 25 So. 3d 586 (Fla. 4th DCA 2009). “22(9) may be employed in spite of the absence of notice in the charging document of the facts supporting the enhanced punishment.”

BO v. State, 25 So. 3d 586 (Fla. 4th DCA 2009).

KQS v. State, 975 So. 2d 536 (Fla. 1st DCA 2008).

SBL v. State, 737 So. 2d 1131 (Fla. 1st DCA 1999).

— 985.01(1)(c) — 4 cases

JAB v. State, 25 So. 3d 554 (Fla. 2010).

EAR v. State, 4 So. 3d 614 (Fla. 2009). “[26] Therefore, a disposition hearing is actually the culmination of a more extensive process, which the Legislature constructed to provide adjudicated juvenile offenders "the most appropriate dispositional services in the least restrictive available setting" while also…”

JIS v. State, 930 So. 2d 587 (Fla. 2006).

JAB v. State, 993 So. 2d 1150 (Fla. 2d DCA 2008).

— 985.01(1)(e) — 1 case

— 985.01(2) — 3 cases

E.A.R. v. State, 4 So. 3d 614 (Fla. 2009). “(2007); see also § 985.01-.02, Fla. Stat. (2007). Conversely, in the decision below, the Fourth District focused exclusively upon one statutory provision, section 985.”

D.G. v. State, 170 So. 3d 1 (Fla. 2d DCA 2015). “(2007); see also § 985.01-.02, Fla. Stat. (2007). 4 So.3d at 628 (footnotes omitted).”

— 985.01(c) — 3 cases

B.S. v. State, 862 So. 2d 15 (Fla. 2d DCA 2003).

D.V. v. State, 216 So. 3d 3 (Fla. 4th DCA 2017).

BS v. State, 862 So. 2d 15 (Fla. 2d DCA 2003).

— 985.01(f)(2) — 1 case

India Comer & Shantearia Gaines v. State of Florida (Fla. 3d DCA 2025).

— 985.01(l)(a) — 1 case

S.B.L. v. State, 737 So. 2d 1131 (Fla. 1st DCA 1999). “See § 985.01, Fla. Stat. (1997); ch. 97-238, § 1, at 4212-13, Laws of Fla.”

— 985.01(l)(c) — 3 cases

J.I.S. v. State, 930 So. 2d 587 (Fla. 2006). “§ 985.01(l)(c), Fla. Stat. (2005). The statutory definition of high-risk residential commitment, to which J.”

J.A.B. v. State, 25 So. 3d 554 (Fla. 2010). “§ 985.01 (l)(c), Fla. Stat. (2005) (emphasis added); see also § 985.”

E.M. v. State, 761 So. 2d 1177 (Fla. 4th DCA 2000).

— 985.01(l)(c)(d)(g) — 1 case

D.V. v. State, 216 So. 3d 3 (Fla. 4th DCA 2017).

— 985.01(l)(e) — 3 cases

J.A.B. v. State, 993 So. 2d 1150 (Fla. 2d DCA 2008).

J.A.B. v. State, 25 So. 3d 554 (Fla. 2010). “§ 985.01 (l)(c), Fla. Stat. (2005) (emphasis added); see also § 985.”

— 985.01(l)(f) — 1 case

City of Jacksonville v. Smith, 159 So. 3d 888 (Fla. 1st DCA 2015). “, § 985.01(l)(f), Fla. Stat. (juvenile justice hearing must meet “constitutional standards of fundamental fairness and due process.”

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