Bill > S0020

Introduced Session

An act for the relief of H.H. by the Department of Children and Families; providing an appropriation to compensate H.H. for injuries and damages sustained as a result of the negligence of the department; providing legislative intent; providing a limitation on compensation and the payment of certain fees and costs; providing an effective date. WHEREAS, on May 3, 2017, H.H. was a healthy, normally developing 18 month old, when the Department of Children and Families received its first child abuse hotline report regarding H.H., which alleged substance abuse by H.H.’s mother and stepfather and that H.H.’s mother and stepfather were selling drugs out of, and harboring a fugitive in, their home, and WHEREAS, during the course of its investigation of the initial child abuse hotline report, the department discovered that the stepfather had been released from the Department of Corrections 7 months before initiation of the Department of Children and Families’ investigation after being incarcerated for 3 1/2 years, was on probation, had been married to the mother for only 1 month and had been dating the mother for only 3 months before initiation of the department’s investigation, and had a significant and dangerous criminal history that showed a pattern of impulsivity and violence, and WHEREAS, at the time of the initial child abuse hotline report, the stepfather had been involved in at least 35 incidents resulting in police reports, and his criminal history, ranging from 2003 through 2013, included a 2003 charge for driving under the influence, marijuana possession, and drug equipment possession; a 2003 charge for driving under the influence and possession of liquor by a person under the age of 21; a 2003 charge for driving while his license was suspended or revoked, including a prior suspension for refusal to submit to a lawful test of breath; a 2003 charge for burglary; 2004 felony convictions for possession of cocaine, possession of drug paraphernalia, and burglary of a dwelling, for which he served concurrent sentences of 270 days and 55 days in jail; a 2004 arrest for resisting an officer without violence during a disturbance; a 2005 charging affidavit for violation of a court order and making threats toward his girlfriend’s parents; a 2007 battery charge; a 2007 felony conviction for fleeing and eluding; a 2009 arrest for violation of probation relating to drug charges; a 2009 charge for marijuana possession, violation of driver license restrictions, and drug equipment possession; a 2010 arrest for possession of a controlled substance and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon; a 2010 arrest for involvement in a marijuana growing operation and the cultivation and manufacturing of cannabis; 2011 felony convictions for possession of a Schedule II controlled substance, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, manufacture of cannabis, possession of cocaine, fleeing and eluding, burglary of a dwelling, possession of drug paraphernalia, driving while his license was suspended, battery of a law enforcement officer, and escape, for which he was sentenced to two 366-day sentences in prison; and 2013 felony convictions for resisting arrest with violence, fleeing or attempting to elude, driving while his license was suspended or revoked, battery on a law enforcement officer, and escape, for which he was sentenced to 4 years in prison, and WHEREAS, during the course of the department’s investigation of the initial child abuse hotline report, H.H.’s stepfather refused to submit to a drug test, and WHEREAS, during the course of the department’s investigation of the initial abuse report, H.H.’s mother admitted to smoking marijuana and tested positive for marijuana, and WHEREAS, despite the department’s discoveries regarding risk of harm to H.H. during the investigation, the department failed to thoroughly investigate the child abuse hotline report by failing to speak with any persons who may have had information regarding H.H.’s safety, such as family members or the stepfather’s probation officer, and failing to request relevant records and to refer the family to appropriate services, and WHEREAS, despite the department’s knowledge of the potential risk for harm to H.H. as a result of the initial investigation, the department incorrectly assessed the danger to H.H. as “no present danger” under the care of her mother and stepfather, and WHEREAS, on June 2, 2017, while the initial investigation remained open, the department received a second child abuse hotline report regarding H.H., alleging substance misuse by the mother and stepfather and neglect of H.H. by the mother, and WHEREAS, between June 2 and June 28, 2017, the department failed to investigate the allegations of the second abuse report, failing to conduct a home visit at the family’s residence to observe H.H. and failing to refer the family to appropriate services, and WHEREAS, on June 28, 2017, the department visited a motel to which the family had relocated, but failed to conduct any additional investigation in connection with the second abuse report, and WHEREAS, on July 2, 2017, the department closed both investigations with no findings without conducting a thorough investigation or ensuring H.H.’s safety, and WHEREAS, on September 4, 2017, only 2 months after closing the first two cases alleging abuse of H.H., the department received four additional child abuse hotline reports regarding severe abuse and neglect of H.H., and WHEREAS, on September 4, 2017, H.H. was admitted to the hospital with life-threatening injuries, and WHEREAS, upon admission to the hospital, H.H. was unconscious and unresponsive; had a severe traumatic head injury; had multiple areas of bleeding in her brain; had severe brain swelling caused by repetitive abusive head trauma; had eye injuries; was in respiratory failure requiring ventilator support; was placed in a medically induced coma; underwent two cranioplasties to remove parts of her skull to allow her brain swelling to go down; received various other intensive medical interventions and treatment; and was determined to be the victim of severe, prolonged, repeated, life-threatening physical abuse that caused permanent damage, and WHEREAS, due to the significance of her injuries, H.H. remained in the hospital for 109 days, and WHEREAS, a law enforcement investigation determined that H.H. had been physically abused, neglected, and tortured by her mother and stepfather, and WHEREAS, the department only removed H.H. from her mother’s care and placed her in its custody after the law enforcement investigation, and WHEREAS, as a result of the law enforcement investigation, H.H.’s mother was charged with and convicted of aggravated child abuse and child neglect causing great bodily harm and was sentenced to 40 years in prison, and H.H.’s stepfather was charged with and convicted of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, aggravated child abuse, and child abuse and child neglect causing great bodily harm and was sentenced to 25 years in prison, and WHEREAS, as a consequence of the department’s negligence and failure to take protective action, H.H. suffered catastrophic and permanent injuries, including, but not limited to, permanent traumatic brain damage, cerebral palsy, encephalomalacia, ventriculomegaly, profound developmental delays, inability to walk or talk, inability to sit up independently, dysphagia, inability to eat without use of a feeding tube, posttraumatic epilepsy and seizures that necessitated surgery and the implantation of a vagus nerve stimulation device in her chest, spasticity, neurostorming/autonomic dysfunction, obstructive sleep apnea, chronic constipation and gastroesophageal reflux disease, and chronic lung disease/restrictive lung disease, and WHEREAS, H.H. has also been treated for acute respiratory failure, anemia, transaminitis, hyperglycemia, fevers, tachycardia, candida stomatitis, and acute tracheitis, and WHEREAS, in November 2022, H.H. underwent corpus callosotomy surgery to treat seizures that were occurring multiple times daily, and she had another brain surgery in January 2025, and WHEREAS, H.H. will require additional brain surgical procedures in the future and will be catheterized to assist with urination, and WHEREAS, H.H.’s care is monitored by multiple physicians, including specialists in pediatrics, palliative care, neurology, neurosurgery, gastroenterology, pulmonology, orthopedics, and urology, and WHEREAS, H.H. receives physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech therapy, and WHEREAS, H.H. requires and will continue to require constant care, monitoring, supervision, various therapies, multiple specialist services, and supportive care throughout the remainder of her life, and WHEREAS, as the state agency charged under chapter 39, Florida Statutes, with operating the child welfare system in this state, including conducting child protective investigations to ensure child safety and to prevent further harm to children, the department failed in its duty to ensure H.H.’s safety and protect her from harm, and WHEREAS, following a jury trial, a verdict was rendered on December 8, 2023, in the amount of $15 million in favor of H.H., and WHEREAS, the jury found that, but for the department’s negligence in failing to complete a thorough child protective investigation to ensure H.H.’s safety and to protect H.H. from further abuse and neglect, which was its primary duty, H.H. would not have suffered catastrophic and permanent injuries, and WHEREAS, $200,000 of the jury award was recovered from the department, which has exhausted the sovereign immunity limits set forth in s. 768.28, Florida Statutes, and WHEREAS, the trial court entered a cost judgment awarding taxable costs in the amount of $126,639.56 to H.H., to be paid by the department, and WHEREAS, a total of $14,926,639.56, representing $14.8 million in excess of the sovereign immunity limits and $126,639.56 in costs awarded to H.H., plus interest, remains unpaid by the department, and WHEREAS, H.H. is responsible for payment of attorney fees and all remaining costs and expenses relating to this claim, subject to the limitations set forth in this act, NOW, THEREFORE,

Joe Gruters (R)*, 

Introduced (on 01/13/2026)

Official Document