A lawmaker has refiled a bill seeking nearly $15 million in compensation for a child abuse victim whom the state failed to protect, leaving her with lifelong disabilities.

Vero Beach Republican Rep. Robbie Brackett filed the measure ( HB 6505 ), detailing how the Department of Children and Families ( DCF ) failed to protect an 18-month-old child from severe physical abuse and neglect at the hands of her mother and stepfather in 2017.

In a 2023 verdict, a jury found that DCF’s negligence in conducting its child protection investigations led to the child’s injuries.

DCF has received multiple reports to Florida’s child abuse hotline. This included reports to the hotline right up until the day the child, known as “H.H.,” was admitted to the hospital with severe, life-threa

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