Assault or Battery on Hospital Personnel in Florida
Florida Statute Section 784.07, listed in Title XLVI of Chapter 784, reclassifies specified crimes committed against any person who qualifies as “hospital personnel.” The statute reclassifies certain specified offenses by increasing the maximum sentence that may be imposed for the offense and also increasing sentence points under the Criminal Punishment Code, if the offense is a felony.
The enhanced penalties for specified crimes against hospital personnel took effect on October 1, 2023.
The most commonly charges offense is battery on a hospital personnel. Battery against hospital personnel refers to the unlawful, unwanted physical touching or violence committed against healthcare workers while they are performing their duties. The reason this statute applies to hospital personnel is because such attacks have increased over the last few years.
These enhanced penalties might apply even when one person who qualifies as hospital personnel is accused of committing the crime against another person who qualifies as hospital personnel. As a result, this statute can lead to absurd results.
Attorney for Assault or Battery on Hospital Personnel in Florida
If you were charged with committing a crime against a person classified as hospital personnel, contact an attorney at Sammis Law Firm. We represent individuals accused of assault or battery on hospital personnel including a physician, nurse, and hospital security staff.
We understand how investigators and prosecutors gather evidence in these cases, and the best ways to fight the accusation.
During the free and confidential consultation, we can discuss the charges pending against you, the typical penalties imposed for those accusations, and the best ways to fight the accusation for an outright dismissal.
Our offices are conveniently located in downtown Tampa in Hillsborough County, in Clearwater in Pinellas County near the Criminal Justice Center (CJC) courthouse, and in New Port Richey across from the West Pasco Judicial Center.
Call 813-250-0500.
Examples of Hospital Personnel under Section 784.07(1)(c)
Under Section 784.07(1)(c), the term “hospital personnel” is defined to mean “health care practitioner as defined in s. 456.001, an employee, an agent, or a volunteer who is employed, under contract, or otherwise authorized by a hospital, as defined in s. 395.002, to perform duties directly associated with the care and treatment rendered by any department of a hospital or with the security thereof.”
The most common examples of hospital personnel under Section 784.07(1)(c) include the following:
- Attending physician
- Surgeon
- Specialist physician
- Primary care doctor
- Residents
- Interns
- Medical students working as staff in the hospital
- Registered nurses (RNs)
- Licensed practical nurses (LPNs)
- Nurse practitioners and physician’s assistants
- Patient advocates
- Patient care technicians
- Physical therapists
- Occupational therapists
- Speech pathologists
- Hospital pharmacists
- Social workers at a hospital
- Dietitians working at a hospital
- Interpreters working at a hospital
- Respiratory therapist
- Radiologist and radiology technician
- Clergy working at the hospital
- Hospital volunteers
Reclassification of Crimes Committed Against Hospital Personnel
Section 784.07(2) reclassifies the following offenses when any person knowingly committing an assault or battery upon hospital personnel engaged in the lawful performance of their duties:
- (a) An assault on hospital personnel is reclassifies from a misdemeanor of the second degree to a misdemeanor of the first degree;
- (b) A battery on hospital personnel is reclassifies from a misdemeanor of the first degree to a felony of the third degree;
- (c) A aggravated assault on hospital personnel is reclassifies from a felony of the third degree to a felony of the second degree; and
- (d) A aggravated battery on hospital personnel is reclassifies from a felony of the second degree to a felony of the first degree.
Additionally, under Section 784.07(3), and person who is convicted of a battery under paragraph (2)(b) and, during the commission of the offense, such person possessed:
- (a) A “firearm” or “destructive device” as those terms are defined in s. 790.001, shall be sentenced to a minimum term of imprisonment of 3 years.
- (b) A semiautomatic firearm and its high-capacity detachable box magazine, as defined in s. 775.087(3), or a machine gun as defined in s. 790.001, shall be sentenced to a minimum term of imprisonment of 8 years.
Notwithstanding Section 948.01, adjudication of guilt or imposition of sentence shall not be suspended, deferred, or withheld, and the defendant charged under Section 784.07 is not eligible for statutory gain-time under s. 944.275 or any form of discretionary early release, other than pardon or executive clemency, or conditional medical release under s. 947.149, prior to serving the minimum sentence.
Under Section 784.07(4), for purposes of sentencing under chapter 921, a felony violation of this section committed by a person acting in furtherance of a riot or an aggravated riot prohibited under s. 870.01 is ranked one level above the ranking under s. 921.0022 for the offense committed.
This article was last updated on Friday, April 3, 2026.
