JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Relief for the victims of the Dozier School for Boys, a state-run reform school that operated in Marianna for more than a century, has officially cleared the Florida Legislature.
If signed by the Governor, survivors would get an equal slice of a $20 million pot.
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With most estimates putting the number of survivors around 400, that would equate to about $50,000 each.
It’s hard to say whether its enough, given the horror stories of physical and sexual abuse Dozier victims have reported.
But survivors Action News Jax has spoken with say something is better than the nothing they’ve received up until this point, despite having lived with the trauma of their experiences for decades.
The compensation bill comes seven years after the State of Florida formally apologized for the atrocities committed at the hands of the state at the Dozier School for Boys.
RELATED: ‘It would mean a hell of a lot:’ Dozier compensation bill nearing finish line in Florida legislature
Survivors watched from the Senate gallery Monday morning, as the $20 million compensation bill cleared its final stop on a unanimous vote.
“This is but a small token for a vast ocean of hurt,” said Senate Sponsor Darryl Rouson (D-St. Petersburg).
Here in Jacksonville, Dozier survivor Charles Deas Jr. got news Monday morning the compensation he’d been hoping to see for roughly 60 years might finally come to fruition.
RELATED: ‘A lot of people didn’t make it out:’ Dozier School for Boys memorial set to be unveiled next Friday
“It made me feel real good. Somebody’s listening and, you know, they’re taking action,” said Deas, who attended Dozier in the 1960s.
The bill would create a victim compensation program for Dozier survivors and survivors of the Okeechobee School, another state reform school plagued with similar tales of horror.
The Department of Legal Affairs would be tasked with publishing an application form online for victims to complete and submit to the state.
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Victims will have to provide some form of documentation showing they attended the school between 1940 and 1975 and provide a notarized account of the abuse they endured.
For Deas, it’s another potential roadblock, as he no longer has documentation from his time at Dozier.
“Somebody has those records. It’s got to be with the state,” said Deas.
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Once the bill is signed, the clock will be ticking for Deas and other survivors to get their documentation together, as they’ll only have until December 31st to submit applications.
Deas said it may be difficult, but it’s a problem for tomorrow.
Today, he’s just thankful to have made it out of the school alive, and to have lived to see the day the state finally took action.
RELATED: Florida Senate bill proposes compensation for survivors of Dozier School for Boys
“We could never make sense out of what happened to the rest of the guys. Now we know. Now we know, you know?” said Deas. “We’re just grateful that it wasn’t us, cause it could have been very easily. Could have been me. And I thank God that it wasn’t and I just keep moving one day at a time.”
Once the bill is officially transmitted to the Governor, he’ll have seven days to act.
If approved, the bill is officially set to take effect on July 1.
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