FL S1382

Courts must pay reasonable fees to examining committee members and court-appointed experts for evaluations and testimony, rather than payment coming from county general revenue funds.

Courts may initially appoint one expert pending competency determination, and can take less restrictive action than commitment based on one expert's finding; defendants must be evaluated by at least two experts before commitment unless parties stipulate to one expert's findings.

Courts shall pay for up to two additional experts when a defendant is found incompetent and parties do not stipulate; parties disputing a competence determination may request additional experts at their own expense.

Defendants with private counsel retaining experts for insanity or pregnancy defenses must pay for those experts at defendant's expense rather than county expense.

For intellectual disability or autism evaluations, the Agency for Persons with Disabilities selects the expert; similar expert appointment and payment provisions apply to juvenile delinquency and capital cases involving intellectual disability claims.