SB 18 Florida Senate · 2026 Regular Session

Relief of the Estate of M.N. by the Broward County Sheriff’s Office

Summary

Relief of the Estate of M.N. by the Broward County Sheriff’s Office; Providing for the relief of the Estate of M.N. by the Broward County Sheriff’s Office; providing an appropriation to compensate the estate for injuries sustained by M.N. and her subsequent death as a result of the negligence of the Broward County Sheriff’s Office; providing a limitation on compensation and the payment of attorney fees, etc. CLAIM: $2,588,259

Issues: ✓ Criminal Justice

Bill status died 1 of 4 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

Floor Vote

Governor

Introduced Jan 13, 2026 Last action Mar 13, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

S 18 Filed → S 18 c1 · 5 edits

MODERATE

The bill was updated from a draft version to a Committee Substitute version, incorporating significant factual details about the case. The new version adds specific dates regarding the child's death, details of the fatal injuries, and the outcome of a previous court trial where the Sheriff's Office admitted negligence. It also clarifies the remaining unpaid judgment amount and sets a specific 25% cap on attorney fees.

Scope change

The bill's scope expanded to include a detailed factual recitation of the case history, the specific injuries that led to the child's death, and the results of the prior civil litigation, which establishes the legal basis for the requested appropriation.

FISCAL

The specific total appropriation amount was calculated and defined as $2,588,258.50, representing the remaining unpaid judgment from a prior court verdict.

TIMELINE

Specific dates were added regarding the child's death (October 28, 2016) and the closure of the Sheriff's Office investigation (July 17, 2017).

ELIGIBILITY

The bill now explicitly states that the compensation is intended to be the sole remedy for claims arising from this specific incident.

REQUIREMENT

A new requirement was added limiting attorney fees to a maximum of 25% of the total amount awarded under the act.

DEFINITION

The text was expanded to include a detailed narrative of the child's final injuries, the court trial admission of negligence, and the specific financial breakdown of the judgment.

Floor votes

How they voted

No floor votes recorded yet.

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Feb 10, 2026

Upper · Passed

Favorable by Community Affairs; YEAS 6 NAYS 2

upper

Feb 5, 2026

Upper · Passed

On Committee agenda-- Community Affairs, 02/10/26, 3:00 pm, 37 Senate Building

upper

Feb 4, 2026

Upper · Passed

Pending reference review under Rule 4.7(2) - (Committee Substitute)

upper

Jan 29, 2026

Upper · Passed

On Committee agenda-- Judiciary, 02/03/26, 1:00 pm, 110 Senate Building

upper

Jan 13, 2026

Introduced

upper

Oct 6, 2025

Committee

Referred to Special Master on Claim Bills; Judiciary; Community Affairs; Rules

upper

1 primary · 0 co-sponsors