Florida HB 6525: Relief/Marcus Button/Pasco County School Board

Bill Text

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HB 6525 2026

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb6525-00
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S

A bill to be entitled 1
An act for the relief of Reginald Jackson by the City 2
of Lakeland; providing an appropriation to compensate 3
Mr. Jackson for injuries and damages sustained as a 4
result of the negligence of Mike Cochran, a police 5
officer with the Lakeland Police Department; providing 6
a limitation on the payment of compensation and 7
attorney fees; providing an effective date. 8
9
WHEREAS, on October 18, 2001, Officer Mike Cochran of the 10
Lakeland Police Department stopped Reginald Jackson for driving 11
with an invalid license tag after the officer incorrectly typed 12
the tag number into his computer and the tag number was, 13
therefore, identified as invalid, and 14
WHEREAS, Officer Cochran then issued a citation to Mr. 15
Jackson for transporting his girlfriend's 18-month-old brother 16
without a child safety seat and forbade Mr. Jackson to move the 17
vehicle without properly restraining the child, and 18
WHEREAS, Mr. Jackson asked if Officer Cochran could escort 19
his vehicle to his home a short distance away, but the officer 20
refused and directed Mr. Jackson to use an immediately adjacent 21
pay phone to call someone to bring a car seat for the child, and 22
WHEREAS, after the stop, Officer Cochran drove away and 23
positioned himself in an alley parallel to the site of the 24
initial stop and observed Mr. Jackson drive to a pay phone on 25



HB 6525 2026

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb6525-00
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S

the next block, which Mr. Jackson did after determining that the 26
immediately adjacent pay phone was not operational, and 27
WHEREAS, while Mr. Jackson attempted to use the second pay 28
phone, Officer Cochran approached him and told him that he was 29
under arrest for disobeying a law enforcement officer, and 30
WHEREAS, Mr. Jackson was startled by the officer and ran 31
back to his vehicle, got inside, backed up a short distance, and 32
then drove forward without pressing the gas pedal, and 33
WHEREAS, when Officer Cochran told Mr. Jackson to stop the 34
vehicle or he would shoot, Mr. Jackson then pumped his brakes 35
twice, and the officer fired a .45 caliber bullet through the 36
windshield which struck Mr. Jackson in the neck and exited 37
through his back, and 38
WHEREAS, Mr. Jackson was unarmed and seated next to an 18-39
month-old child, and 40
WHEREAS, after the shooting, the police transported the 41
child to the police station in a marked vehicle without a child 42
safety seat, and 43
WHEREAS, as a result of his injury, Mr. Jackson will suffer 44
pain and be disabled for the rest of his life, and 45
WHEREAS, Officer Cochran, as an employee of the Lakeland 46
Police Department acting within the scope of employment, owed a 47
duty to Mr. Jackson to conduct himself in a reasonable manner 48
and exercise reasonable care, but he breached that duty by 49
discharging his firearm through Mr. Jackson's windshield in a 50



HB 6525 2026

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb6525-00
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S

careless and negligent manner, and 51
WHEREAS, a jury in the Circuit Court of the Tenth Judicial 52
Circuit in and for Polk County awarded Mr. Jackson $412,500 in 53
damages, and 54
WHEREAS, due to the limits of s. 768.28, Florida Statutes, 55
at the time of the incident, Mr. Jackson has collected only 56
$100,000 of his judgment against the City of Lakeland, and the 57
remainder may be recovered only through passage of a claim bill 58
by the Legislature, NOW, THEREFORE, 59
60
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 61
62
Section 1. The facts stated in the preamble to this act 63
are found and declared to be true. 64
Section 2. The City of Lakeland is authorized and directed 65
to appropriate from funds of the city not otherwise encumbered 66
and to draw a warrant in the sum of $312,500 payable to Reginald 67
Jackson as compensation for injuries and damages sustained. 68
Section 3. The amount paid by the City of Lakeland 69
pursuant to s. 768.28, Florida Statutes, and the amount awarded 70
under this act are intended to provide the sole compensation for 71
all present and future claims arising out of the factual 72
situation resulting in the shooting of Reginald Jackson as 73
described in this act. The total amount paid for attorney fees 74
relating to this claim may not exceed 25 percent of the amount 75

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HB 6525 2026

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb6525-00
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S

awarded under this act. 76
Section 4. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law. 77