The sweeping changes to the Florida speedy trial law in effect as of July 1, 2025, are the biggest changes to speedy trial protections in decades, with big implications for anyone facing criminal charges in Florida.
Revolutionary Changes to Criminal Court Trial Protections
On March 13, 2025, the Florida Supreme Court issued a landmark ruling in Case No. SC2022-1123 that dramatically restructured Florida speedy trial law, known as Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.191. The court made four big changes that shift the balance of power in Florida’s criminal court system in favor of prosecutors. The biggest and most important change is the timing of when the speedy trial clock begins ticking.
Before, in order to protect the rights of people accused of crimes, the law said that a trial has to be held within 90 days of an arrest for misdemeanors, and 175 days for felonies. Now, the law says that the clock on those timelines starts running only after formal charges are filed. This change effectively eliminates speedy trial protections for individuals who are arrested but not immediately charged with a crime. Prosecutors can now wait longer to file charges, which helps prosecutors but increases jail time for criminal defendants in Florida.
New Speedy Trial Law: More Jail Time Without Being Charged With a Crime
The amendments also extends the deadline for when a trial must start after a defendant files a written demand for speedy trial. Before, prosecutors had 45 days to start a trial. The new law extends that time to 60 days, which gives prosecutors more time to prepare their cases — while the defendant racks up jail time.
Perhaps most significantly, the new Florida speedy trial law extends the recapture period from 10 days to 30 days. The recapture period represents the final opportunity for the state to bring a defendant to trial after the speedy trial deadline has expired and a Notice of Expiration has been filed. Prosecutors will now have triple the amount of time to salvage cases that have exceeded speedy trial limits — that can potentially triple jail time for defendants.
Weakened Dismissal Protections in Florida Speedy Trial Law
Another big change is the penalty that prosecutors must pay for missing a speedy trial deadline. Before, if a prosecutor missed the deadline, the judge could dismiss the case with prejudice, which means that the case is permanently dismissed. Under the new amended rule, dismissals will be without prejudice. That means prosecutors can just refile the charges and start over, unless the judge rules that they violated the defendant’s constitutional rights. What this really means is that a criminal defendant’s rights under Florida law have been weakened — a lot.
How Orlando Criminal Defense Attorneys Will Deal with the New Law
These changes mean that Orlando criminal defense attorneys must approach speedy trial issues in a new way. Defense attorneys must now focus on ensuring that formal charges are filed within prescribed deadlines and carefully track new timelines once a defendant is charged with a crime. The extended recapture period and presumption of dismissal without prejudice require defense attorneys to more aggressively pursue constitutional speedy trial arguments to protect the constitutional rights of their clients.
Criminal defense attorneys must also be more careful about potential waivers of speedy trial rights because courts have consistently held that any delay requested by the defendant or defense counsel can waive speedy trial protections. This includes requests for additional discovery time, continuances to secure counsel, or any other defense-initiated delays.
Constitutional Rights Still Protected Despite Florida Speedy Trial Law Changes
The amended Florida speedy trial law maintains the distinction between statutory speedy trial rights under Rule 3.191 and constitutional speedy trial protections. Even though legal protections are now weaker than they were, a criminal defendant still has a right to a speedy trial under the Sixth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and Section 16 of the Florida Constitution.
To decide whether the right to a speedy trial has been violated, the court looks at several factors. It examines how long the delay was and why it happened. It also considers if the defendant claimed their right to a speedy trial. Finally, it looks at how the delay affected the defendant’s case.
An experienced Orlando criminal defense attorney protects these constitutional rights by carefully monitoring case timelines, objecting to unnecessary delays, and building a record of prejudice when violations occur. Defense attorneys must also ensure that clients understand the implications of requesting continuances or other delays that could waive their speedy trial rights under the new Florida speedy trial law.
Call 407-644-2466 to speak with an experienced and aggressive Orlando criminal defense attorney at the Rivas Law Firm.