Supreme Court of Florida
In Re: Standard Jury Instructions in Criminal Cases - Report 2016-10
April 13, 2017214 So. 3d 1290
Summary
The court authorized publication and use of amended standard criminal jury instructions 19.1 through 19.7 concerning bribery, unlawful compensation or rewards, and official misconduct. The amendments principally implemented statutory revisions changing the applicable mens rea from acting "corruptly" to acting "knowingly and intentionally" and adding definitions related to governmental entities and public contractors. The court expressly stated that authorization did not resolve the instructions’ legal correctness or prevent parties from requesting alternative instructions or challenging them.