FLORIDA (Boca Post) (Copyright © 2025) — Florida’s largest police union is lining up behind HB 277, a domestic-violence reform package that’s starting its run through the House. The Florida PBA, who represents PBSO, BSO, and many other local law enforcement agencies in our area, sent the letter over the weekend to Rep. Debra Tendrich, saying the bill gives first responders a better shot at handling calls that can go sideways fast — the kind officers see late at night off Glades or tucked into apartment complexes where people don’t always open the door.
PBA President John Kazanjian told her his 31,000 members “know first-hand” how volatile these scenes are. The letter made it clear the union’s ready to help shepherd the bill as it moves through committees.
HB 277 itself is long, almost sprawling, but the big pieces are straightforward. It would require Florida’s 911 system to flag addresses tied to domestic or dating-violence calls. Those flags would stick for a year, resetting if another call comes in — the idea being that the next crew pulling up knows something about what they’re walking into.
The bill also orders new training for EMTs, paramedics, and firefighters. Two hours, focused on domestic violence, dating violence, and strangulation — required for new certifications starting July 2026 and folded into renewals for those already working.
For law enforcement, there’s more. Agencies would have to use lethality assessments statewide, follow up with victims within 24 hours when an assessment is done, keep body cameras running during every domestic- or dating-violence investigation, and hand out updated “rights and remedies” notices, including whether text-to-911 works in that county. Officers must also give victims a pamphlet on the medical impact of strangulation, which many agencies say is underreported.
There’s a short aside in the bill about how these follow-ups work — phone calls, no voicemails, and if they can’t reach you, they come by in person. Probably not something most people know is in statute.
Courts would get expanded authority too. Judges could order electronic monitoring in domestic- and dating-violence cases, but in several situations they’d have no choice: prior injunction violations, certain high-risk findings in a lethality assessment, or other red-flag factors. The bill defines electronic monitoring down to the technology, including GPS options that can alert victims if someone crosses a boundary.
Another section creates a diversion program for first-time misdemeanor domestic-violence offenders — but only if they admit guilt and agree to a treatment plan. Weekly progress reports go back to the court. If they finish, charges get dismissed. If not, the case slides back to prosecution.
Penalties go up across the board. That includes enhanced charges for violating injunctions and tougher minimum jail sentences when a crime happens in front of a child. Victim relocation assistance would jump from $1,500 to $5,000, with a higher lifetime cap too.
Kazanjian said the PBA is “grateful” for Tendrich taking up the issue, though the letter keeps the tone measured. The bill was filed Oct. 28, then routed on Nov. 4 to Criminal Justice, Civil Justice & Claims, Justice Budget, and Judiciary. It’s still sitting in its first committee, waiting to be heard.
A long road ahead, but the union’s clearly planting its flag early.
