Several new Florida laws aimed at strengthening the state’s response to domestic violence and dating violence took effect Wednesday, including tougher penalties for repeat offenders.

The changes come right after as investigators in Jacksonville responded to a Northside shooting that police say stemmed from a domestic dispute and left a 4-year-old girl dead and her 2-year-old sister and their mother in life-threatening condition.

The new laws also arrive months after a high-profile domestic violence case in Bradford County. Deputies said a mother, Rachael Kerr, was killed in an apparent murder-suicide on Jan. 29 after her estranged husband shot her. Investigators said their two children were inside the home at the time.

Below is a breakdown of what’s changing under the new laws.

Tougher penalties for repeat domestic violence offenders (HB 277)

One of the biggest changes is a new penalty enhancement for people who commit a domestic violence crime and already have a prior domestic violence conviction.

Under HB 277, the penalty level for a new domestic violence offense can be reclassified upward if the person has a prior conviction for domestic violence.

Here’s the breakdown in the new law:

• A second-degree misdemeanor can be reclassified to a first-degree misdemeanor

• A first-degree misdemeanor can be reclassified to a third-degree felony

• A third-degree felony can be reclassified to a second-degree felony

• A second-degree felony can be reclassified to a first-degree felony

• A first-degree felony can be reclassified to a life felony

Electronic monitoring pilot programs for certain domestic violence and injunction cases (HB 277)

HB 277 also creates new electronic monitoring pilot programs that can apply in certain cases involving domestic violence crimes and violations of protective injunctions when a court has issued a no-contact order as a condition of probation.

The law creates:

• A misdemeanor-level pilot program in Pinellas County (July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2028)

• A felony-level pilot program in Florida’s Sixth Judicial Circuit (July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2028)

In those pilot areas, the law allows a judge to order electronic monitoring as a condition of probation. It also requires monitoring in certain situations if a judge finds clear and convincing evidence the defendant poses a threat of violence or physical harm to the victim.

The law also requires evaluations and reports to the Legislature on how the pilot programs are working.

Expanded address confidentiality protections for dating violence victims (SB 296)

Another new law, SB 296, expands Florida’s Address Confidentiality Program to include victims of dating violence, not just domestic violence.

The Address Confidentiality Program is designed to help victims keep their residential, work or school addresses from being publicly disclosed through records requests.

SB 296 also defines “dating violence” in state law for purposes of the program, describing a range of violent acts or threats committed by someone in a continuing and significant romantic or intimate relationship with the victim.

New 911 alert system feasibility study (SB 296)

SB 296 also directs the state to explore the creation of a web-based 911 alert system for victims of domestic violence and dating violence.

The law says the study should look at whether an alert system could do things like:

• Create a unique telephone number for each user that connects to a public safety answering point (PSAP)

• Allow a user to enter a code or phrase after contacting 911 to indicate they need immediate law enforcement help

• Support real-time data sharing between 911 centers and law enforcement agencies

The Division of Telecommunications within the Department of Management Services must report the results of that study to the Legislature by Jan. 31, 2027, according to the law.

Help is available

If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, help is available 24/7 through the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE.

Resources

If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence — help is available 24/7 through the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE.

Additionally, there are a number of resources in the Jacksonville area that provide help for victims of domestic violence.

Hubbard House

The Hubbard House has a hotline open 24/7 with operators who will talk confidentially to anyone experiencing domestic violence or questioning aspects of their relationship.

Operators can be contacted at 904-354-3114.

Victim services

The City of Jacksonville’s Social Services Division provides referral and victim advocacy services to victims of crime. Services are intended to help reduce trauma associated with domestic violence crimes.

Calls made to 904-630-6300 are all confidential.

InVEST (Intimate Violence Enhanced Services Team)

InVEST is a program aimed at increasing victim safety in the most potentially lethal cases. It’s a joint effort by the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, City of Jacksonville, and Hubbard House.

On a daily basis, InVEST staff review police reports and assess cases for lethal indicators. They then contact the victim to offer services.

For further information, please call (904) 255-3388.

Trinity Rescue Mission

Trinity Rescue Mission offers services to women who are trying to escape from dangerous circumstances and situations. It’s not a certified shelter, but it will provide assistance.

WESTON, Fla. — Mackenzie Wesley sports a big grin and bright blue Lilo & Stitch swim gear as she runs into her weekly swim lessons. It’s fitting, because the 5-year-old has something in common with movie character Lilo: She adores water.

“Whether it’s the pool or beach, she enjoys it fully,” says her dad Steven Wesley.

Mackenzie isn’t alone: Many kids with autism share a natural love for water because it can be sensory bliss — the feeling on their skin, the pressure and the sparkle of the water can all be soothing. Lucky for her, Mackenzie lives here, less than an hour outside of Miami in a state that’s dotted with bodies of water.

But there’s a tragic reality tied to that fact, as Mackenzie’s mom, Brittany Bucknor, is all too aware. “In Florida, there’s water everywhere, and also with kids her age, and also just being on the spectrum, it’s a very — way higher — rate of having an incident of drowning.”

Kids with autism are 160 times more likely than other children to die from drowning, according to a seminal 2017 study from Columbia University. In fact, in Florida, most children drown in backyard pools. That’s largely because about half of autistic children have a tendency to wander from safe settings. That fact, combined with an attraction to water can make for a dangerous combination. Quality swim lessons can help.

That’s one of the reasons Mackenzie’s parents enrolled her in Swim Buddies, the YMCA of South Florida’s low-cost program aimed at children with disabilities. It’s also why the state of Florida, which has one of the highest childhood drowning rates in the nation, is expanding a voucher program on July 1 that will put children ages 1-7 who have autism at the front of the line for subsidized swim lessons. “We have tragic circumstances and stories across the state of Florida of young children with autism that are wandering away, they’re eloping from their homes, from their classrooms,” says Florida state Rep. Anna Eskamani, a Democrat, and one of the lawmakers who sponsored the bipartisan bill that changed the state’s swim vouchers.