Terms Used In Florida Statutes > Chapter 985 > Part I - General Provisions

• administration: means the direct application of a controlled substance, whether by injection, inhalation, ingestion, or any other means, to the body of a person or animal. See Florida Statutes 893.02
• Adult: means any natural person other than a child. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Affidavit: A written statement of facts confirmed by the oath of the party making it, before a notary or officer having authority to administer oaths.
• Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
• Arbitration: means a process whereby a neutral third person or panel, called an arbitrator or an arbitration panel, considers the facts and arguments presented by the parties and renders a decision which may be binding or nonbinding. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Arrest: Taking physical custody of a person by lawful authority.
• assessment: means the gathering of information for the evaluation of a juvenile offender's or a child's physical, psychological, educational, career and technical education, and social condition and family environment as they relate to the child's need for rehabilitative and treatment services, including substance abuse treatment services, mental health services, developmental services, literacy services, medical services, family services, and other specialized services, as appropriate. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
• Beneficiary: A person who is entitled to receive the benefits or proceeds of a will, trust, insurance policy, retirement plan, annuity, or other contract. ^{Source: OCC}
• Chief judge: The judge who has primary responsibility for the administration of a court but also decides cases; chief judges are determined by seniority.
• Child who has been found to have committed a delinquent act: means a child who, under this chapter, is found by a court to have committed a violation of law or to be in direct or indirect contempt of court, except that this definition does not include an act constituting contempt of court arising out of a dependency proceeding or a proceeding concerning a child or family in need of services. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Circuit: means any of the 20 judicial circuits as set forth in…. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
• Conditional release: means the care, treatment, help, supervision, and provision of transition-to-adulthood services provided to a juvenile released from a residential commitment program which is intended to promote rehabilitation and prevent recidivism. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Controlled substance: means any substance named or described in Schedules I-V of…. See Florida Statutes 893.02
• Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
• Court: means the circuit court assigned to exercise jurisdiction under this chapter, unless otherwise expressly stated. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• Day treatment: means a nonresidential, community-based program designed to provide therapeutic intervention to youth who are served by the department, placed on probation or conditional release, or committed to the minimum-risk nonresidential level. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
• Defense attorney: Represent defendants in criminal matters.
• Delinquency program: means any intake, probation, or similar program; regional detention center or facility; or community-based program, whether owned and operated by or contracted by the department, or institution owned and operated by or contracted by the department, which provides intake, supervision, or custody and care of children who are alleged to be or who have been found to be delinquent under this chapter. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• delinquent act: means a violation of any law of this state, the United States, or any other state which is a misdemeanor or a felony or a violation of a county or municipal ordinance which would be punishable by incarceration if the violation were committed by an adult. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• delivery: means the actual, constructive, or attempted transfer from one person to another of a controlled substance, whether or not there is an agency relationship. See Florida Statutes 893.02
• Department: means the Department of Juvenile Justice. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Department: means the Department of Health. See Florida Statutes 893.02
• Detention care: means the temporary care of a child in secure or supervised release detention, pending a court adjudication or disposition or execution of a court order. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Detention center or facility: means a facility used pending court adjudication or disposition or execution of court order for the temporary care of a child alleged or found to have committed a violation of law. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Detention hearing: means a hearing for the court to determine if a child should be placed in temporary custody, as provided for under part V in delinquency cases. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Disposition hearing: means a hearing in which the court determines the most appropriate dispositional services in the least restrictive available setting provided for under part VII, in delinquency cases. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Distribute: means to deliver, other than by administering or dispensing, a controlled substance. See Florida Statutes 893.02
• Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
• Family: means a collective of persons, consisting of a child and a parent, guardian, adult custodian, or adult relative, in which:
  (a) The persons reside in the same house or living unit; or
  (b) The parent, guardian, adult custodian, or adult relative has a legal responsibility by blood, marriage, or court order to support or care for the child. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Fiduciary: A trustee, executor, or administrator.
• Forgery: The fraudulent signing or alteration of another's name to an instrument such as a deed, mortgage, or check. The intent of the forgery is to deceive or defraud. ^{Source: OCC}
• Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
• Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
• Indictment: The formal charge issued by a grand jury stating that there is enough evidence that the defendant committed the crime to justify having a trial; it is used primarily for felonies.
• Intake: means the initial acceptance and screening by the department or juvenile assessment center personnel of a complaint or a law enforcement report or probable cause affidavit of delinquency to determine the recommendation to be taken in the best interests of the child, the family, and the community. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Judge: means the circuit judge exercising jurisdiction pursuant to this chapter. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
• Juvenile justice continuum: includes , but is not limited to, prevention programs and services designed for the purpose of preventing or reducing delinquent acts, including criminal activity by criminal gangs, and juvenile arrests, as well as programs and services targeted at children who have committed delinquent acts, and children who have previously been committed to residential treatment programs for delinquents. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). ^{Source: OCC}
• Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
• Listed chemical: means any precursor chemical or essential chemical named or described in…. See Florida Statutes 893.02
• Manufacture: means the production, preparation, propagation, compounding, cultivating, growing, conversion, or processing of a controlled substance, either directly or indirectly, by extraction from substances of natural origin, or independently by means of chemical synthesis, or by a combination of extraction and chemical synthesis, and includes any packaging of the substance or labeling or relabeling of its container, except that this term does not include the preparation, compounding, packaging, or labeling of a controlled substance by:
  1. See Florida Statutes 893.02
• Manufacturer: means and includes every person who prepares, derives, produces, compounds, or repackages any drug as defined by the Florida Drug and Cosmetic Act. See Florida Statutes 893.02
• Mediation: means a process whereby a neutral third person called a mediator acts to encourage and facilitate the resolution of a dispute between two or more parties. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• minor: includes any person who has not attained the age of 18 years. See Florida Statutes 1.01
• Mixture: means any physical combination of two or more substances, including, but not limited to, a blend, an aggregation, a suspension, an emulsion, a solution, or a dosage unit, whether or not such combination can be separated into its components by physical means, whether mechanical or thermal. See Florida Statutes 893.02
• Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
• Mother-infant program: means a residential program designed to serve the needs of juvenile mothers or expectant juvenile mothers who are committed as delinquents, which is operated or contracted by the department. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Next of kin: means an adult relative of a child who is the child's brother, sister, grandparent, aunt, uncle, or first cousin. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
• Parent: means a woman who gives birth to a child and a man whose consent to the adoption of the child would be required under…. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
• person: includes individuals, children, firms, associations, joint adventures, partnerships, estates, trusts, business trusts, syndicates, fiduciaries, corporations, and all other groups or combinations. See Florida Statutes 1.01
• Pharmacist: means a person who is licensed pursuant to chapter 465 to practice the profession of pharmacy in this state. See Florida Statutes 893.02
• Possession: includes temporary possession for the purpose of verification or testing, irrespective of dominion or control. See Florida Statutes 893.02
• Practitioner: means a physician licensed under chapter 458, a dentist licensed under chapter 466, a veterinarian licensed under chapter 474, an osteopathic physician licensed under chapter 459, an advanced practice registered nurse licensed under chapter 464, a naturopath licensed under chapter 462, a certified optometrist licensed under chapter 463, a psychiatric nurse as defined in…. See Florida Statutes 893.02
• Prescription: includes any order for drugs or medicinal supplies which is written or transmitted by any means of communication by a licensed practitioner authorized by the laws of this state to prescribe such drugs or medicinal supplies, is issued in good faith and in the course of professional practice, is intended to be dispensed by a person authorized by the laws of this state to do so, and meets the requirements of…. See Florida Statutes 893.02
• Prevention: means programs, strategies, initiatives, and networks designed to keep children from making initial or further contact with the juvenile justice system. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Probable cause: A reasonable ground for belief that the offender violated a specific law.
• Probation: means the legal status of probation created by law and court order in cases involving a child who has been found to have committed a delinquent act. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Probation: A sentencing alternative to imprisonment in which the court releases convicted defendants under supervision as long as certain conditions are observed.
• Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
• Relative: means a grandparent, great-grandparent, sibling, first cousin, aunt, uncle, great-aunt, great-uncle, niece, or nephew, whether related by the whole or half blood, by affinity, or by adoption. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Restitution: The court-ordered payment of money by the defendant to the victim for damages caused by the criminal action.
• Restrictiveness level: means the level of programming and security provided by programs that service the supervision, custody, care, and treatment needs of committed children. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Secure detention: means temporary custody of the child while the child is under the physical restriction of a secure detention center or facility pending adjudication, disposition, or placement. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Settlement: Parties to a lawsuit resolve their difference without having a trial. Settlements often involve the payment of compensation by one party in satisfaction of the other party's claims.
• Shelter: means a place for the temporary care of a child who is alleged to be or who has been found to be delinquent. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Substance abuse: means using, without medical reason, any psychoactive or mood-altering drug, including alcohol, in such a manner as to induce impairment resulting in dysfunctional social behavior. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Summons: Another word for subpoena used by the criminal justice system.
• Supervised release detention: means temporary, nonsecure custody of the child while the child is released to the custody of the parent, guardian, or custodian in a physically nonrestrictive environment under the supervision of the department staff pending adjudication or disposition, through programs that include, but are not limited to, electronic monitoring, day reporting centers, and nonsecure shelters. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Taken into custody: means the status of a child immediately when temporary physical control over the child is attained by a person authorized by law, pending the child's release, detention, placement, or other disposition as authorized by law. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Temporary legal custody: means the relationship that a juvenile court creates between a child and an adult relative of the child, adult nonrelative approved by the court, or other person until a more permanent arrangement is ordered. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Temporary release: means the terms and conditions under which a child is temporarily released from a residential commitment facility or allowed home visits. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
• Transcript: A written, word-for-word record of what was said, either in a proceeding such as a trial or during some other conversation, as in a transcript of a hearing or oral deposition.
• Transition-to-adulthood services: means services that are provided for youth in the custody of the department or under the supervision of the department and that have the objective of instilling the knowledge, skills, and aptitudes essential to a socially integrated, self-supporting adult life. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Trauma-informed care: means services that are provided to children with a history of trauma, recognizing the symptoms of trauma and acknowledging the role that trauma has played in the child's life. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.
• Trustee: A person or institution holding and administering property in trust.
• Usury: Charging an illegally high interest rate on a loan. ^{Source: OCC}
• Waiver hearing: means a hearing provided for under…. See Florida Statutes 985.03
• writing: includes handwriting, printing, typewriting, and all other methods and means of forming letters and characters upon paper, stone, wood, or other materials. See Florida Statutes 1.01
• youth: means any person under the age of 18 or any person who is alleged to have committed a violation of law occurring prior to the time that person reached the age of 18 years. See Florida Statutes 985.03