The Florida Legislature has passed legislation called “Missy’s Law,” named in honor of a 5-year-old Tallahassee girl whose abuse-related death happened in 2025 while one of her alleged murderers was released on bail.
The Florida Senate on March 4 took up the House version of the bill (HB 445), passing it unanimously. It next heads to Gov. Ron DeSantis, who can sign it into law, veto it or let it become law without his signature.
A request for comment on whether the governor had a position on the bill was pending with his press office as of later on March 4.
The legislation would require judges to remand defendants to custody immediately after their conviction of certain dangerous crimes rather than allow them to remain free pending sentencing, which happened in the case of Melissa “Missy” Mogle.
Missy died May 19 after she lost consciousness at her south Tallahassee home and was taken to the hospital with injuries all over her body, from burns and bruises to cuts and ligature marks.
Her stepfather, Daniel Spencer, 35, and her mother, Chloe Spencer, 24, have been indicted on a number of charges, including first-degree murder and aggravated child abuse.
At the time of her death, Daniel Spencer was free on bond following his conviction in an unrelated underage sex sting.
The legislation was first proposed by Attorney General James Uthmeier just weeks after Missy died.
Melissa “Missy” Mogle, 5, died May 19, 2025, shortly after she was found not breathing and unresponsive at her home in SouthWood. Her mother, Chloe Spencer, and stepfather, Daniel Spencer, were arrested on aggravated child battery and other child abuse charges.
A month before the girl died, her stepfather was convicted in a sex sting and allowed by a judge to remain free on bond while he awaited sentencing. He was arrested in February 2024 after chatting with an undercover officer posing as a 15-year-old girl and driving to meet her at a local gas station.
Leon Circuit Judge Tiffany Baker-Carper, who presided over Daniel Spencer’s sex sting trial, explained in court that she wasn’t going to remand him because he had been out of jail for a year without violations and had no violent criminal history.
There’s no indication from the record that Baker-Carper was aware that the Tallahassee Police Department, in consultation with the State Attorney’s Office and the Department of Children and Families, had investigated an allegation that Daniel Spencer molested Missy less than a year before her death but didn’t pursue charges because of a lack of probable cause.
The Tallahassee Democrat, a USA TODAY Network newspaper, has extensively chronicled the case and posted online a video showing the judge asking the state to “enlighten” her if she missed something.
This story contains previously published reporting by Jeff Burlew. Jim Rosica is a member of the USA TODAY Network’s Florida Capital Bureau. He can be reached at jrosica@tallahassee.com. Follow him on X: @JimRosicaFL.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Florida Legislature passes ‘Missy’s Law’ after girl’s death