The above photo of Richard R. McDade, compliments of the Florida Department of Corrections prison system, let's us look into the eyes of a stepfather who is accused of sexually exploiting a stepdaughter, initials B.S., for years since she was ten years old until she was sixteen when she finally found support from a boyfriend to stand up against her stepfather and "record" evidence of her years of sexual battery by the stepfather.

McDade was serving two life sentences and other related sentences in the State of Florida prison system but has now been released from prison to the custody of the County Jail in Lee County, Florida pending a new trial.  McDade is currently being detained in the Lee County Jail without bond.

However, McDade's attorney has filed a Motion to Set Bond with the court on February 27, 2015 which could let McDade back out onto the streets.

The new trial is set for May 19, 2015.

The child's own mother did not believe her and two ministers at her church and a doctor took no action to report the abuse to authorities.

The child's boyfriend believed her and gave her an MP3 tape recorder to record evidence of McDade's own admissions on tape.

The child, now sixteen, in her own home, did indeed record evidence and admissions with McDade against McDade who was later convicted and sentenced based in great part on the recording on various crimes including two life sentences arising from charges of sexual battery on a child victim under the age of twelve (12).

McDade appealed to the Florida Second District Court of Appeal that affirmed the conviction and sentencing.

However, McDade further appealed to the Florida Supreme Court, Case No. SC13-1248.

On December 11, 2014 the Florida Supreme Court absurdly reversed McDade's conviction and sentence giving McDade a new trial and ordering the suppression of the recording as evidence in the new trial.

The reason according to the Supreme Court, McDade did not "consent" to being recorded under the 1974 John Dean Amendment pushed through by former Senator W.D. Childers, now a convicted criminal himself in the wake of the Nixon/Watergate federal White House scandal.

As a result of the Supreme Court's outrageous decision, the child is now exposed to a felony prosecution under the "John Dean Amendment" for recording the conversation without her stepfather's consent.

In addition, get this,  the stepfather can now sue the child for civil monetary damages for "recording" his conversation without his consent under the 1974 John Dean Amendment.

As a "knee-jerk" reaction to the Supreme Court's decision in December, Florida Senator Wilton Simpson and Florida Representative Jared Moskowitz, have filed in later December 2014 companion bills with the Florida Legislature, SB-218 and HB-131.  SB-218 is entitled the "VICTIM EMPOWERMENT ACT OF 2015."

(http://www.flsenate.gov/Media/PressRelease/Show/2155)

While both bills are laudable advocating for a child victim's, B.S's, "right to record" evidence of sexual abuse against them, both bills fall far short of once and for all fixing the bottom line problem of Chapter 934 F.S. which is repealing the unconstitutional 1974 "John Dean Amendment" so that all  victims of crimes can "record" evidence of the crimes against them.

In 1985 the Florida Supreme Court resolved another absurd case in which they upheld the right of a victim of murder to record his own murder in his own business office in State v. Inciarrano,  473 So.2d 1272 (Fla. 1985) and found the recording admissible.

The legislature did not carve out a crime victim exception for murder.  Why not carve out crime victim exceptions for extortion, rape, threatening phone calls, racketeering, public corruption, police abuse, and on and on for all crimes?

The answer is, don't start carving out exceptions but just simply repeal the 1974 John Dean Amendment and return Florida law to be a one party "interception" and recording state like Federal Law, 18 U.S.C. 2510 et seq., after which Florida was patterned returning Florida law to its pre- "John Dean Amendment" status.