RULE/FORM VOTE EXPLANATION

2.451 25-8 Creates new rule governing use of electronic

devices in courts.

RULE 2.451. USE OF ELECTRONIC DEVICES

(a) Electronic Devices Defined. Any device capable of making or

transmitting still or moving photographs, audio recordings, video
recordings or images of any kind, or creating, transmitting, or
receiving text or data, and any device capable of capturing or
recording sound, including, without limitation, film cameras, digital
cameras, video cameras, cameras of any kind, cellular telephones,
tape recorders, digital voice recorders, any other type of audio
recorders, laptops, personal digital assistants, or other similar
technological devices with the ability to make or transmit such video
recordings, audio recordings, images, text, or data.

(b) Juror Use of Electronic Devices.

(1) Electronic devices, as that term is defined in subdivision (a), may

be removed from all members of a jury panel at any time prior to
deliberations, but such electronic devices must be removed from all
members of a jury panel before jury deliberations begin. The electronic
devices will be removed by the bailiff, unless the chief judge of the
circuit determines that another person is more appropriate for that
circuit. The electronic devices removed from jurors will be
appropriately secured.

(2) The electronic devices removed from members of a jury panel

must be returned to the members of the jury panel during recesses in
the trial, unless the jurors are sequestered, in which case the presiding
judge may determine whether the electronic devices will be kept from
the jurors during the entire period of sequestration.

(3) During the trial on which a juror is serving, and during jury
deliberations, a juror shall not use electronic devices for any of the
following purposes:

(A) making or transmitting still or moving photographs, audio

recordings, video recordings or images of any kinds of the court
proceedings.

(B) transmitting or receiving text or data during the court proceedings;

(C) transmitting or receiving text or data about the case on which the
juror is serving;

(D) researching, sending, or receiving information about the case on

which the juror is serving;

(E) otherwise communicating about the case on which the juror is

serving; or

(F) otherwise communicating about the jury deliberations.

(4) Nothing in this rule is to be construed to limit or impair the

authority of a chief judge or presiding judge to grant permission to a
juror to retain his or her electronic device during trial proceedings.

(c) Judges’ Authority.

(1) Chief judges, presiding judges, and quasi-judicial officers retain

authority to control the use of electronic devices during judicial
proceedings, and may temporarily confiscate, or may direct law
enforcement to temporarily confiscate, any electronic device that is
being used in a manner that is determined to be disruptive to the
judicial proceeding, to be contrary to the orderly administration of
justice, to violate the rule of sequestration of witnesses, to interfere
with court security, or to violate the privacy rights of litigants,
witnesses, or other participants in the judicial proceeding, until the
proceeding is concluded.

(2) At the time the device is returned to the owner, the judge or quasi-
judicial officer may order the owner of the device to delete any
recordings or images taken with the device of the court proceedings
prior to its confiscation, or recordings or images that the judge
determines should be deleted, to prevent disruption to the judicial
proceedings, to preserve the orderly administration of justice, to
protect the rule of sequestration of witnesses, to preserve court
security, and to preserve the privacy of rights of litigants, witnesses,
or other participants in the judicial proceedings. If the owner objects
to deleting the recordings or images, the device may be kept by the
judge until a hearing can be held on the issue of whether such
recording or image is going to be deleted.

(3) Chief judges retain the authority to control the use of electronic
devices in any area of the courthouse when the use of such devices
would be disruptive to the judicial proceeding, be contrary to the
orderly administration of justice, violate the rule of sequestration of
witnesses, interfere with court security, or violate the privacy rights of
litigants, witnesses, or other participants in the judicial proceeding.
Such areas include, but are not limited to, ingress and egress to
courtrooms, chambers, and conference rooms, and secure areas
adjacent to courthouse entrances.

(4) Chief judges, presiding judges, and quasi-judicial officers may set
the parameters for the use of electronic devices in all proceedings, or
in a particular proceeding, via administrative orders, standing orders,
or orders in a specific case. If any person violates such an order, the
judge who entered the order may enforce the order by deleting any
recordings or images in accordance with subdivision (c)(1)(B) or under
the court’s civil contempt power, or under its criminal contempt power
under Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.830.

(5) Nothing in this rule shall be construed to limit or impair the

authority of a chief judge, presiding judge, or quasi-judicial officer to
exclude any item from the courtroom or the courthouse in order to
ensure that judicial proceedings are not disrupted; the orderly
administration of justice; enforcement of the rule of the sequestration
of witnesses; court security; or the protection of the privacy rights of
litigants, witnesses, or other participants in the judicial proceeding.

(d) Exceptions.

(1) The use of electronic devices by professional journalists, as defined

in s. 90.5015, Fla. Stat., is governed by Florida Rule of Judicial
Administration 2.450.

(2) Nothing in this rule is intended to impede the ability of court

personnel or of a court reporter as defined in rule 2.535(a), from using
electronic devices to create the official record of a court proceeding.
Committee Note

Due to variations in the design of courthouses, it is not practical to

establish statewide rules on the use of electronic devices in areas of
ingress and egress to courtrooms. The Chief Judge may establish any
restrictions on the use of electronic devices in each court facility by
administrative order.