LAKE COUNTY, Fla. — Dumping a body in Florida is only a misdemeanor, and it’s a fact that limits what investigators can do to solve certain crimes, but that could soon change.
We first reported Monday that a Lake County mother was advocating for a change to state law after her daughter’s body was dumped on the side of a road in 2020.
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Now a former Palm Bay detective, a local State Senator, and the Orange County Sheriff’s Office all are supporting a bill that would make that crime a third-degree felony.
It would apply in cases where individuals fail to report certain deaths or tamper with a body to intentionally hide evidence.
The Orange County Sheriff’s Office first proposed the change to Senator Linda Stewart who introduced the bill this session.
Deputies told lawmakers during a committee meeting Tuesday that as the law currently stands, they’re running in to a major hurdle and it’s hurting their investigations.
“The statue already exists. The issue is that it’s a misdemeanor. It’s not one of those misdemeanor exceptions, so we can’t get a warrant for it,” explained Captain Antorrio Wright with the Orange County Sheriff’s Office.
State Senator Linda Stewart says the issue is cut and dry. She says the change in her bill would allow law enforcement to obtain search warrants sooner for the purpose of investigation.
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“Law enforcement has to be able to investigate these crimes and these dead bodies that are laying around. They just have to be able to go further than what they’re able to do now,” said Stewart.
Former Palm Bay Detective Dawn Taplin advocated for the change nearly 20 years ago.
In Taplin’s 14-year career with the Palm Bay Police Department, she investigated several cases where bodies were moved and dumped elsewhere. In the process, critical evidence was destroyed, but Taplin said she never saw anyone charged with that crime.
“Because of the way the statutes are written, you really do get to the point as an investigator sometimes that your hands are tied,” said Taplin.
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After a case she worked in 2002, she began writing letters and working with local police departments advocating to up the misdemeanor charge to a felony. Though that never led to a legislative proposal.
However, that work is gaining ground now as SB 768 has unanimously moved forward in Tallahassee to change the penalty to a felony, therefore helping law enforcement.
The bill is now moving onto its second senate committee and a companion bill is also advancing in the house.
If it becomes law, dumping a body would be a third-degree felony punishable by up to 5 years in prison and a 5 thousand dollar fine.
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