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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- With the parents of a slain police informant looking on, Gov. Charlie Crist signed a law Thursday that will require police departments to adopt policies to protect people like their daughter. The bill signing took place a year after the death of Rachel Hoffman, a 23-year-old Florida State graduate who was helping the Tallahassee police. She was recruited by authorities after being caught with some marijuana and pills not prescribed for her. She was shot to death in a botched drug sting that began May 7, 2008, and two men are now charged in her death. Her parents pushed for the legislation, named "Rachel's Law." "Being a confidential informant is, obviously, a very dangerous, challenging thing to do. It takes courage to do it," Crist said during the bill signing at the state Capitol. The bill "makes it more safe for people to be able to cooperate with law enforcement officials across our state," Crist said. Hoffman's mother, Margie Weiss, told the governor she got goosebumps as he signed the bill, and she said she planned to put the pen he used on Hoffman's grave. Hoffman's father, Irv Hoffman, wiped away tears during the ceremony and said later that he was "honored" the bill passed. "We hope that it will save a lot of other people through the years," he said. The new law will also require police departments to: train officers who recruit confidential informants, tell informants they can't promise a reduced sentences in exchange for their work, and allow informants to consult with a lawyer if they ask. Hoffman's parents had wanted even stronger language in the bill, including barring police departments from using people in substance abuse programs as drug informants and those who are nonviolent in work involving suspects with violent histories. Both provisions would have excluded Hoffman -- a nonviolent offender in treatment -- from the undercover operation she participated in. Police departments opposed those provisions, saying investigators need flexibility to make judgments on a case-by-case basis. Hoffman's parents said they will return to the Legislature to ask for even tougher provisions. "We're grateful, we'll be back next year," Irv Hoffman
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