Latest news with #Warehoused:TheLifeandDeathof
CBS News
03-05-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
"Tristin Murphy Act" passes unanimously, heading to Gov. DeSantis
On Friday evening, the Florida Legislature formally passed the Tristin Murphy Act, the most comprehensive reform to mental health inside the criminal justice system in decades. Murphy, a 37-year-old schizophrenic, had been in and out of jail for years because of his mental illness, without ever receiving the treatment or long-term care he needed. Murphy's final arrest came when he allowed his pickup truck to roll into a pond near the Charlotte County Jail. Prosecutors charged him with littering, and because of the weight of the truck, it was deemed a third-degree felony. Arguing he had no other recourse, a judge sentenced him to three years in prison. On September 16, 2021, a month after arriving at the South Florida prison to begin serving his sentence, Murphy killed himself at the facility with a chainsaw. Murphy's story was chronicled in the 2023 CBS Miami documentary, "Warehoused: The Life and Death of Tristin Murphy." The Tristin Murphy Act will stress treatment, rather than incarceration, for non-violent offenders with serious mental illnesses. The bill will also make mental health treatment and follow-up care a condition of probation or release – an option the judge in the Tristin Murphy case said he did not have. After passing the Senate last month, the House took up the bill and passed it unanimously Friday evening. The bill is now headed to the Governor's desk for his signature. "Today we turn a wrong into a right. We shift from incarceration to treatment and from handcuffs to humanity," said the House sponsor of the bill, State Representative Nan Cobb, a Republican from Eustis. "Mr. and Mrs. Murphy, I know you're watching. Please know that your son Tristin didn't die in vain. He has changed the course and lives of individuals who suffer from mental illness. My promise to you and Tristin's sons is to continue to make this bill even better in the future. He will not be forgotten." Cindee Murphy broke down in tears as the House voted. She had travelled to Tallahassee to meet with lawmakers over the past two years, arguing she didn't want what happened to her son to happen to anyone else. In a statement to CBS Miami Friday evening, she wrote: "Dennis and I are thrilled that the Tristin Murphy Act passed the Legislature. There were so many people who worked so hard on this bill, and we're so grateful for everyone's effort." "We hope that this will make a real difference in how people with mental illness are treated when they find themselves caught up in the criminal justice system," she continued. "We look forward to even more improvements being made in mental health care and the criminal justice system in the years to come. Let this be a beginning, not an end." The documentary about Tristin's case caught the attention of legislators, most notably Senate President Ben Albritton, who made mental health reform among his top priorities this year. "Humanity gets the credit for this," Albritton said last month when the Senate voted unanimously to pass the bill, "not any individual, because this bill will save lives. It's going to change the trajectory for people in Florida who don't even know it yet. It's going to make our system stronger." "The tragedy of Tristin is a painful reminder of what each of us knows to be true, and that is that the intersection between mental health and our criminal justice system is a very dangerous place for people to be," offered the Senate sponsor of the bill, Senator Jennifer Bradley. "Jails and prisons in Florida struggle with how to manage our mentally ill population, which is where most of our mentally ill are now. For the acutely mentally ill, the cycle is jail, a forensic hospital, living on the street, and inevitably re-arrest. And this bill will break that cycle. And it will focus our resources on treatment, long-term recovery, and stability." The bill significantly expands a program that has been in effect in Miami-Dade County for years and provides more resources across the state. Both the Senate President and Bradley stressed that this bill will make communities safer. "There may be some that read this bill and hear this testimony, and they might think it is soft on crime," Albritton said. "I say it's strong on crime, but it is stronger on common sense." "This bill will provide hope, it will save lives, and more importantly, or just as importantly, this is a bill for public safety," Bradley added. "Getting treatment and long-term stability for these individuals is a public safety bill."
CBS News
13-04-2025
- CBS News
Tristin Murphy Act passes the Florida Senate
Florida legislators unanimously passed Senate Bill 168 - the Tristin Murphy Act . It is designed to reform how mentally ill people like Tristin Murphy are treated in the state's criminal justice system by offering them treatment rather than prison. Tristin Murphy was a 37-year-old schizophrenic when he was sent to a prison on a littering charge. A little more than a month later he killed himself with a chainsaw. Since his death his mother has been fighting for change. Following his death, CBS News Miami launched a two-year investigation into the events that led to that fateful day. Our investigation revealed how police, prosecutors, judges, jailers, and prison officials moved Tristin through the criminal justice system without ever truly addressing his underlying mental problems. Murphy's story was chronicled in the 2023 CBS Miami documentary, Warehoused: The Life and Death of Tristin Murphy . The documentary caught the attention of legislators, most notably Senate President Ben Albritton, who made mental health reform among his top priorities this year. And we discovered Tristin's case is not unique as jails and prisons are being overwhelmed with an ever growing mentally ill population. "Humanity gets the credit for this," Albritton said before the vote, "not any individual, because this bill will save lives. It's going to change the trajectory for people in Florida that don't even know it yet. It's going to make our system stronger."
CBS News
09-04-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
Florida Senate approves criminal justice bill created in aftermath of CBS Miami's "Warehoused" documentary
The Florida Senate, in a unanimous vote, passed the Tristin Murphy Act on Thursday which will transform the way people with mental health issues are detained for most non-violent offenses. The bill is the direct result of the 2023 CBS News Miami documentary "Warehoused: The Life and Death of Tristin Murphy." Senate President Ben Albritton said this bill will have a profound effect across South Florida. "Humanity gets the credit for this one, not any particular individual, because this bill will save lives. It's going to change the trajectory for people in Florida who don't even know it yet. It's going to make our system stronger, it's going to make our system more focused on outcomes. This is a big deal y'all," he said. Murphy, 37, who suffered from schizophrenia and paranoia, was sent to prison on a loitering charge. On Sept. 16, 2021, Murphy, who had attempted suicide in the past, killed himself with a chainsaw while on a work detail at a state prison just west of Miami. A two year investigation by CBS News Miami into the events that led to his death revealed how police, prosecutors, judges, jailers, and prison officials moved Tristin through the criminal justice system without ever truly addressing his underlying mental problems. Murphy's mother Cindy has been advocating for changes to prevent similar tragedies from happening again. As a result, State Sen. Jennifer Bradley (R- 6th District) introduced Senate Bill 168 — the " Tristin Murphy Act " — to provide treatment instead of prison for mentally ill individuals. "Facing South Florida" spoke with Bradley about the details of the bill and what she is hoping to accomplish with this legislation. The bill aims to offer diversion plans, better training and community resources, similar to Miami-Dade County Judge Steve Liefman's successful program in Miami. It will create a model diversion plan for misdemeanors and felonies, linking mental health treatment to probation and ensuring follow-through. The bill also addresses the shortage of forensic beds and provides grant money for training without requiring a match from fiscally constrained counties. Jim DeFede contributed to this report.
CBS News
09-03-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
The Tristin Murphy Act
THE TRISTIN MURPHY ACT This week Florida legislators convened their annual 60-day session and one of the very first bills they took up was Senate Bill 168 – the Tristin Murphy Act. It is a major development in the aftermath of our CBS News Miami documentary "Warehoused: The Life and Death of Tristin Murphy." The President of the Florida Senate is making passage of the bill a priority. It is designed to reform how mentally ill people like Tristin are treated in the state's criminal justice system by offering them treatment rather than prison. Tristin killed himself violently, during a prison work detail. Jim takes us inside the bill's first hearing in front of the Senate Criminal Justice Committee, where a variety of law enforcement officials and state politicians testified. Tristin's mother Cindee, who has been fighting tirelessly to get the bill before legislators, was also at the hearing. She was accompanied by her grandson and Tristin's son Cody. Cindee left the room speechless when she read a letter that Cody had written.
CBS News
27-02-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
Tristin Murphy Act introduced, designed to fix problems exposed in CBS Miami documentary
The Florida Legislature is considering wide-ranging changes to how the criminal justice system deals with the mentally ill, improving diversion programs that will stress treatment over imprisonment. The legislation, Senate Bill 168, also known as the Tristin Murphy Act, was named after the 37-year-old father of two who killed himself in prison with a chainsaw. Murphy, who was incarcerated on a littering charge, had a well-documented history of schizophrenia and had been deemed incompetent to stand trial on several occasions. Murphy's case was chronicled in the 2023 CBS Miami documentary, "Warehoused: The Life and Death of Tristin Murphy." Senate President Ben Albritton credited the documentary and his subsequent meetings with Tristin's parents, Cindee and Dennis, for making this legislation one of his highest priorities. "Tristin was a young father with supportive, loving parents and a bright future ahead of him. He was not a hardened criminal. He was sick and needed help to address serious mental health challenges," Albritton said. "Tristin's parents have been so brave to tell his story and advocate for improvements to the way offenders with a mental health challenge are treated within the criminal justice system. Learning about Tristin's story and spending time with his parents, Cindee and Dennis, had a tremendous impact on me. We are proud to move this bill forward with their support." The bill is sponsored by State Senator Jennifer Bradley, who held a special hearing during last year's legislative session to explore what happened to Tristin and the larger problem of mentally ill individuals being held – warehoused – in local jails without treatment. In Tristin's case, he was held in an isolation cell in the Charlotte County Jail for more than 570 days because the state did not have the facilities to treat his schizophrenia. "We know certain defendants who have a mental illness, intellectual disability or autism would be better served through community services rather than jail time," Bradley said in a statement. "There is more we can do to support law enforcement agencies who offer crisis intervention training and diversion for offenders with a mental health challenge. If someone commits a serious, violent crime, they need to be incarcerated for public safety. This bill provides a different path for less serious crimes where the defendant, their family, and the community would be better served by allowing the defendant to receive the necessary mental health treatment." Cindee Murphy told CBS Miami she was glad legislators were working to try and prevent what happened to her son doesn't happen again. The bill addresses several problems exposed in the CBS documentary. In Tristin's case, he would be restored to competency and released on probation. But while the terms of his probation prevented him from drinking, it did not require him to continue counseling or staying on his medications. The bill requires a defendant who was found incompetent and later regains competency to have a mental health evaluation and follow recommendations if they are sentenced to probation. In Tristin's case, when he arrived at the state prison in Miami, he never received the proper evaluation, treatment, or medication for his schizophrenia from the prison's medical staff. Instead, he was cleared for a working detail on the ground's crew, where he was given the chainsaw he used to take his own life. The bill requires the Department of Corrections to evaluate the physical and mental health of each inmate eligible for work assignments or a correctional work program. One of the biggest failings in Tristin's case was the failure to divert him out of the criminal justice system and instead send him to a mental health court, where he could have received treatment. The bill would expand several pilot programs—including the one in Miami Dade County—to other parts of the state. The bill also gives prosecutors greater leeway in diverting mentally ill individuals. In an interview with CBS Miami, Senator Bradley said she believes this bill will have the support of her colleagues. "I'm hoping it brings some comfort to families who have loved ones with mental illness, who worry every day that their loved one is going to have an interaction with the criminal justice system that brings them into the deep end of the system," she said. "What this bill does is it provides some off ramps. It provides treatment. It provides better training and funding in communities through the state. And the hope is that we provide some options and alternatives in the system to avoid the tragedy that Tristin Murphy experienced from happening to other families."
