Coral Gables Republican Rep. Demi Busatta is bringing back a claims bill seeking to compensate a child who was brutally stabbed by her mother in 2015.
The measure (HB 6503) seeks $28 million in compensation for a child known as “L.P.” after a court found that state authorities ignored several warnings about the mental well-being of her mother, resulting in the attempted murder of the child.[1]
Sarasota Republican Sen. Joe Gruters filed a similar measure (SB 12) in 2025, but the bill died.[2][3]
In June 2015, when L.P. was 6 years old, a family member notified the Sarasota Police Department, requesting a welfare check of her mother after she sent a suicide video to several family members.
Sarasota Police then contacted the Department of Children and Families (DCF) to report possible child abuse. However, DCF caseworkers failed to identify L.P.’s mother, as well as the warnings around her mental health status, and did not implement a safety plan.[4]
L.P. was then left in the care of her biological mother, instead of her grandmother who had gained custody of L.P. and became her adopted mother.
As a result of DCF’s decision, L.P. was stabbed by her mother approximately 14 times, including an attempted disembowelment that required lifesaving surgery and multiple follow-up surgeries and treatments.
Since then, L.P. has suffered significant pain, disability, disfigurement, loss of capacity, psychological anguish and medical costs, and faces future surgeries.
The child’s mother, Ashley Parker, was sentenced to 40 years in prison in 2016 after using insanity as a defense.[5]
In March 2022, a jury verdict found DCF was negligent, and the jury awarded L.P. $28 million in compensation. An appeal to the Second District Court of Appeal further affirmed the findings and judgment of the trial.
Since sustaining her injuries, L.P.’s surgeries and various treatments have incurred a cost of $14 million, and a loss of earning capacity of $1.5 million.
The total costs associated with prosecuting the claims on behalf of L.P. have exceeded $208,000, with more than $8,000 still outstanding. DCF has contributed $200,000 toward the overall claim amount.
The $28 million would be appropriated from the General Revenue Fund to DCF for the relief of L.P.
The Chief Financial Officer would issue a warrant for that amount to a special needs trust established solely for L.P.’s benefit.
The payment, along with the $200,000 previously paid by DCF, would constitute full compensation for all current and future claims related to L.P.’s injuries. Fees for attorneys, lobbyists and related expenses may not exceed 25%.
If passed, the bill would take effect upon becoming law.
References
- ^ HB 6503 (www.flsenate.gov)
- ^ Joe Gruters (floridapolitics.com)
- ^ SB 12 (www.flsenate.gov)
- ^ DCF (www.myflfamilies.com)
- ^ Ashley Parker (www.bradenton.com)