Florida SB 1544: Complaints Against Law Enforcement and Correctional Officers

Bill Text

1544 
Complaints Against Law Enforcement and Correctional Officers 
2026-01-09T03:18:15Z 
Requiring that a copy of a complaint, signed by the complainant under oath, be provided to law enforcement officers and correctional officers who are under investigation before any interrogation begins; providing that complainant names and signatures are not required if a complaint is accompanied by corroborating evidence; prohibiting certain personnel actions from being taken against a law enforcement officer or correctional officer unless such officer receives a copy of the complaint signed by the complainant under oath, etc. 
Original Filed Version 
2026 
S 
2026-07-01T00:00:00Z 
GB 
General Bill 
__ 

 Florida Senate - 2026 SB 1544 

 By Senator Pizzo 

 37-00267A-26 20261544__ 
 1 A bill to be entitled 
 2 An act relating to complaints against law enforcement 
 3 and correctional officers; amending s. 112.532, F.S.; 
 4 requiring that a copy of a complaint, signed by the 
 5 complainant under oath, be provided to law enforcement 
 6 officers and correctional officers who are under 
 7 investigation before any interrogation begins; 
 8 providing that complainant names and signatures are 
 9 not required if a complaint is accompanied by 
 10 corroborating evidence; prohibiting certain personnel 
 11 actions from being taken against a law enforcement 
 12 officer or correctional officer unless such officer 
 13 receives a copy of the complaint signed by the 
 14 complainant under oath; providing an exception; 
 15 requiring that the investigative file of certain 
 16 investigations of a law enforcement officer or 
 17 correctional officer be included in such officer’s 
 18 personnel file; providing that certain investigations 
 19 do not affect such officer’s ability to receive a 
 20 promotion, a raise, or any other commendation; 
 21 amending s. 112.533, F.S.; requiring a complaint 
 22 against a law enforcement officer or correctional 
 23 officer to be in writing and signed under oath by the 
 24 person filing the complaint; providing an exception; 
 25 providing penalties for making a false complaint; 
 26 providing an effective date. 
 27 
 28 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 
 29 
 30 Section 1. Paragraph (d) of subsection (1) and subsection 
 31 (4) of section 112.532, Florida Statutes, are amended, and 
 32 subsection (8) is added to that section, to read: 
 33 112.532 Law enforcement officers’ and correctional 
 34 officers’ rights.—All law enforcement officers and correctional 
 35 officers employed by or appointed to a law enforcement agency or 
 36 a correctional agency shall have the following rights and 
 37 privileges: 
 38 (1) RIGHTS OF LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS AND CORRECTIONAL 
 39 OFFICERS WHILE UNDER INVESTIGATION.—Whenever a law enforcement 
 40 officer or correctional officer is under investigation and 
 41 subject to interrogation by members of his or her agency for any 
 42 reason that could lead to disciplinary action, suspension, 
 43 demotion, or dismissal, the interrogation must be conducted 
 44 under the following conditions: 
 45 (d) The law enforcement officer or correctional officer 
 46 under investigation must be informed of the nature of the 
 47 investigation and the names of all complainants and must be 
 48 provided with a copy of the complaint, signed by the complainant 
 49 under oath, before any interrogation begins, and he or she must 
 50 be informed of the names of all complainants. However, if a 
 51 complaint is accompanied by corroborating evidence, the 
 52 complainant names and a signature are not required. All 
 53 identifiable witnesses shall be interviewed, whenever possible, 
 54 prior to the beginning of the investigative interview of the 
 55 accused officer. The complaint, all witness statements, 
 56 including all other existing subject officer statements, and all 
 57 other existing evidence, including, but not limited to, incident 
 58 reports, GPS locator information, and audio or video recordings 
 59 relating to the incident under investigation, must be provided 
 60 to each officer who is the subject of the complaint before the 
 61 beginning of any investigative interview of that officer. An 
 62 officer, after being informed of the right to review witness 
 63 statements, may voluntarily waive the provisions of this 
 64 paragraph and provide a voluntary statement at any time. 
 65 (4) NOTICE OF DISCIPLINARY ACTION; COPY OF AND OPPORTUNITY 
 66 TO ADDRESS CONTENTS OF INVESTIGATIVE FILE; CONFIDENTIALITY.— 
 67 (a) A dismissal, demotion, transfer, reassignment, or other 
 68 personnel action that might result in loss of pay or benefits or 
 69 that might otherwise be considered a punitive measure may not be 
 70 taken against any law enforcement officer or correctional 
 71 officer unless the law enforcement officer or correctional 
 72 officer is notified of the action and the reason or reasons for 
 73 the action and is provide