Florida statute
Fla. Stat. § 856.04 — Desertion; withholding support; proviso
Current through 2025 Florida Statutes
Part of Chapter 856: Drunkenness; Open House Parties; Loitering; Prowling; Desertion, Florida Statutes.
Criminal charges under this statute
Full text of Fla. Stat. § 856.04
Statutory text current through the 2025 Florida Statutes. This publication reproduces the official statutory text; it is not the official statutes of the State of Florida.
(1) Any man who shall in this state desert his wife and children, or either of them, or his wife where there are no children or child, or who shall willfully withhold from them or either of them, the means of support, or any mother, who shall desert her child or children, or who shall willfully withhold from them the means of support, shall be guilty of a felony of the third degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084. However, no husband shall be prosecuted under this section for the desertion of his wife, or for withholding from his wife the means of supporting her where there is existing, at the time of such desertion or withholding, such cause or causes as are recognized as ground or grounds for dissolution of marriage, by statute, in this state, if such person shall have provided for the support of his children, if there be any.
(2) For the purposes of subsection (1), a child born out of wedlock shall be deemed to be the child of a man who has been adjudged or decreed to be the father of such child by a court of competent jurisdiction of this state or of any other jurisdiction.
Official sources
Legal terms used in this section
Questions this section answers
Is desertion; withholding support; proviso a felony or a misdemeanor in Florida?
Desertion; withholding support; proviso is a Felony of the Third Degree in Florida under Fla. Stat. § 856.04.
Which Florida statute covers desertion; withholding support; proviso?
Desertion; withholding support; proviso is governed by Fla. Stat. § 856.04 (Desertion; withholding support; proviso).
This reference is informational and is not legal advice.