Florida Statutes
Part V - Detention (Ss. 985.24-985.275)
985.26 - Length of detention.

(1) A child may not be placed into or held in detention care for longer than 24 hours unless the court orders such detention care, and the order includes specific instructions that direct the release of the child from such detention care, in accordance with s. 985.255. The order shall be a final order, reviewable by appeal under s. 985.534 and the Florida Rules of Appellate Procedure. Appeals of such orders shall take precedence over other appeals and other pending matters.

(2)(a)1. A court may order a child to be placed on supervised release detention care for any time period until an adjudicatory hearing is completed. However, if a child has served 60 days on supervised release detention care, the court must conduct a hearing within 15 days after the 60th day, to determine the need for continued supervised release detention care. At the hearing, and upon good cause being shown that the nature of the charge requires additional time for the prosecution or defense of the case or 1that the totality of the circumstances, including the preservation of public safety, warrants an extension, the court may order the child to remain on supervised release detention care until the adjudicatory hearing is completed.
2. Except as provided in paragraph (b) or paragraph (c), a child may not be held in secure detention care under a special detention order for more than 21 days unless an adjudicatory hearing for the case has been commenced in good faith by the court.
3. This section does not prohibit a court from transitioning a child to and from secure detention care and supervised release detention care, including electronic monitoring, when the court finds such a placement necessary, or no longer necessary, to preserve public safety or to ensure the child’s safety, appearance in court, or compliance with a court order. Each period of secure detention care or supervised release detention care counts toward the time limitations in this subsection whether served consecutively or nonconsecutively.

(b) Upon good cause being shown that the nature of the charge requires additional time for the prosecution or defense of the case or 1that the totality of the circumstances, including the preservation of public safety, warrants an extension, the court may extend the length of secure detention care for up to an additional 21 days if the child is charged with an offense which, if committed by an adult, would be a capital felony, a life felony, a felony of the first degree or the second degree, or a felony of the third degree involving violence against any individual. The court may continue to extend the period of secure detention care in increments of up to 21 days each by conducting a hearing before the expiration of the current period to determine the need for continued secure detention of the child. At the hearing, the court must make the required findings in writing to extend the period of secure detention. If the court extends the time period for secure detention care, it shall ensure an adjudicatory hearing for the case commences as soon as is reasonably possible considering the totality of the circumstances. The court shall prioritize the efficient disposition of cases in which the child has served 60 or more days in secure detention care.
(c) A prolific juvenile offender under s. 985.255(1)(f) shall be placed on supervised release detention care with electronic monitoring or in secure detention care under a special detention order until disposition. If secure detention care is ordered by the court, it must be authorized under this part and may not exceed:
1. Twenty-one days unless an adjudicatory hearing for the case has been commenced in good faith by the court or the period is extended by the court pursuant to paragraph (b); or
2. Fifteen days after the entry of an order of adjudication.
As used in this paragraph, the term “disposition” means a declination to file under s. 985.15(1)(h), the entry of nolle prosequi for the charges, the filing of an indictment under s. 985.56 or an information under s. 985.557, a dismissal of the case, or an order of final disposition by the court.

(d) A prolific juvenile offender under s. 985.255(1)(f) who is taken into custody for a violation of the conditions of his or her supervised release detention must be held in secure detention until a detention hearing is held.

(3) Except as provided in subsection (2), a child may not be held in detention care for more than 15 days after the entry of an order of adjudication.
(4) The time limits in subparagraph (2)(a)2. and subsection (3) do not include periods of delay resulting from a continuance granted by the court for cause on motion of the child or his or her counsel or of the state. Upon the issuance of an order granting a continuance for cause on a motion by either the child, the child’s counsel, or the state, the court shall conduct a hearing at the end of each 72-hour period, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays, to determine the need for continued secure detention of the child and the need for further continuance of proceedings for the child or the state.
(5) A child who was not in secure detention at the time of the adjudicatory hearing, but for whom residential commitment is anticipated or recommended, may be placed under a special detention order for a period not to exceed 72 hours, excluding weekends and legal holidays, for the purpose of conducting a comprehensive evaluation as provided in s. 985.185. Motions for the issuance of such special detention order may be made subsequent to a finding of delinquency. Upon said motion, the court shall conduct a hearing to determine the appropriateness of such special detention order and shall order the least restrictive level of detention necessary to complete the comprehensive evaluation process that is consistent with public safety. Such special detention order may be extended for an additional 72 hours upon further order of the court.
(6) If a child is detained and a petition for delinquency is filed, the child shall be arraigned in accordance with the Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure within 48 hours after the filing of the petition for delinquency.
(7) Any electronic monitoring ordered by a court as a condition of supervised release detention care under this section may be supervised by the department, a law enforcement agency, or the department and a law enforcement agency working in partnership. However, nothing in this subsection requires a law enforcement agency to supervise a child placed on electronic monitoring.
History.—s. 5, ch. 90-208; s. 31, ch. 94-209; s. 1343, ch. 95-147; s. 5, ch. 96-398; s. 23, ch. 97-238; s. 13, ch. 98-207; s. 9, ch. 2000-134; s. 24, ch. 2000-135; s. 4, ch. 2005-263; s. 35, ch. 2006-120; s. 18, ch. 2014-162; s. 4, ch. 2017-164; ss. 10, 11, ch. 2018-86; s. 151, ch. 2019-167; s. 172, ch. 2020-2; s. 2, ch. 2022-181.
1Note.—The word “that” was inserted by the editors to improve clarity.
Note.—Subsection (1) former s. 39.044(5)(a); s. 985.215(5)(a). Subsection (2) former s. 39.044(5)(b); s. 985.215(5)(c), (g). Subsection (3) former s. 39.044(5)(c); s. 985.215(5)(d). Subsection (4) former s. 39.044(5)(d); s. 985.215(5)(f). Subsection (5) former s. 985.215(5)(e). Subsection (6) former s. 39.044(7); s. 985.215(7).