Child abuse; require mandatory minimums and arrests for severe child abuse.

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To: Judiciary B
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026

By: Representative Ford (73rd)

HOUSE BILL NO. 1059

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 97-5-39, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO 1
REQUIRE MANDATORY MINIMUM PENALTIES FOR FELONY CHILD ABUSE; TO 2
AMEND SECTION 97-5-42, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO INCREASE 3
PENALTIES FOR FELONY CHILD ABUSE WITH MANDATORY MINIMUMS; TO AMEND 4
SECTION 43-21-353, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REQUIRE AN ARREST 5
OF SUSPECTED CHILD ABUSERS WITHIN A CERTAIN TIME; TO AMEND SECTION 6
47-7-3, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO EXCLUDE FELONY CHILD ABUSE 7
FROM CERTAIN SENTENCE REDUCTIONS; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES. 8
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 9
SECTION 1. Section 97-5-39, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 10
amended as follows: 11
97-5-39. (1) (a) Except as otherwise provided in this 12
section, any parent, guardian or other person who intentionally, 13
knowingly or recklessly commits any act or omits the performance 14
of any duty, which act or omission contributes to or tends to 15
contribute to the neglect or delinquency of any child or which act 16
or omission results in the abuse of any child, as defined in 17
Section 43-21-105(m) of the Youth Court Law, or who knowingly aids 18
any child in escaping or absenting himself from the guardianship 19
or custody of any person, agency or institution, or knowingly 20
harbors or conceals, or aids in harboring or concealing, any child 21
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who has absented himself without permission from the guardianship 22
or custody of any person, agency or institution to which the child 23
shall have been committed by the youth court shall be guilty of a 24
misdemeanor, and upon conviction shall be punished by a fine not 25
to exceed One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00), or by imprisonment not 26
to exceed one (1) year in jail, or by both such fine and 27
imprisonment. 28
(b) For the purpose of this section, a child is a 29
person who has not reached his eighteenth birthday. A child who 30
has not reached his eighteenth birthday and is on active duty for 31
a branch of the armed services, or who is married, is not 32
considered a child for the purposes of this statute. 33
(c) If a child commits one (1) of the proscribed acts 34
in subsection (2)(a), (b) or (c) of this section upon another 35
child, then original jurisdiction of all such offenses shall be in 36
youth court. 37
(d) If the parent has failed to provide the child with 38
food, clothing, or shelter necessary to sustain the life or health 39
of the child, excluding failure caused by financial inability 40
unless relief services have been offered and refused and the child 41
is in imminent risk of harm, or the parent is unwilling to provide 42
reasonably necessary medical care, though that medical care does 43
not include recommended or optional vaccinations against childhood 44
or any other disease, the person may be sentenced to imprisonment 45
in custody of the Department of Corrections for not more than five 46
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(5) years or to payment of a fine of not more than Five Thousand 47
Dollars ($5,000.00), or both. 48
(e) A parent, legal guardian or other person who 49
knowingly permits the continuing physical or sexual abuse of a 50
child is guilty of neglect of a child and * * * shall be sentenced 51
to imprisonment in the custody of the Department of Corrections 52
for not more than ten (10) years or to payment of a fine of not 53
more than Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00), or both. 54
(2) Any person shall be guilty of felonious child abuse in 55
the following circumstances: 56
(a) Whether bodily harm results or not, if the person 57
shall intentionally, knowingly or recklessly: 58
(i) Burn any child; 59
(ii) Torture any child; 60
(iii) Strangle, choke, smother or in any way 61
interfere with any child's breathing; 62
(iv) Poison a child; 63
(v) Starve a child of nourishments needed to 64
sustain life or growth; 65
(vi) Use any type of deadly weapon upon any child; 66
(b) If some bodily harm to any child actually occurs, 67
and if the person shall intentionally, knowingly or recklessly: 68
(i) Throw, kick, bite, or cut any child; 69
(ii) Strike a child under the age of fourteen (14) 70
about the face or head with a closed fist; 71
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(iii) Strike a child under the age of five (5) in 72
the face or head; 73
(iv) Kick, bite, cut or strike a child's genitals; 74
circumcision of a male child is not a violation under this 75
subparagraph (iv); 76
(c) If serious bodily harm to any child actually 77
occurs, and if the person shall intentionally, knowingly or 78
recklessly: 79
(i) Strike any child on the face or head; 80
(ii) Disfigure or scar any child; 81
(iii) Whip, strike or otherwise abuse any child; 82
(d) Any person, upon conviction under paragraph (a) or 83
(c) of this subsection, shall be sentenced by the court to 84
imprisonment in the custody of the Department of Corrections for a 85
term of not less than five (5) years and up to life, as determined 86
by the court. Any person, upon conviction under paragraph (b) of 87
this subsection shall be sentenced by the court to imprisonment in 88
the custody of the Department of Corrections for a term of not 89
less than two (2) years nor more than ten (10) years, as 90
determined by the court. For any second or subsequent conviction 91
under this subsection (2), the person shall be sentenced to 92
imprisonment for life. 93
(e) For the purposes of this subsection (2), "bodily 94
harm" means any bodily injury to a child and includes, but is not 95
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limited to, bruising, bleeding, lacerations, soft tissue swelling, 96
and external or internal swelling of any body organ. 97
(f) For the purposes of this subsection (2), "serious 98
bodily harm" means any serious bodily injury to a child and 99
includes, but is not limited to, the fracture of a bone, permanent 100
disfigurement, permanent scarring, or mutilation any internal 101
bleeding or internal trauma to any organ, any brain damage, any 102
injury to the eye or ear of a child or other vital organ, and 103
impairment of any bodily function. 104
(g) For purposes of this subsection (2), "torture" 105
means any act, omission, or intentional neglect committed by an 106
individual upon a child within his custody or physical control, 107
whereby unnecessary or unjustifiable physical or mental pain or 108
suffering is caused or permitted, regardless of whether serious 109
physical injury results. Child torture involves treatment that is 110
intentionally cruel, inhumane, and degrading, including, but not 111
limited to: intentionally starving a child; forcing a child to 112
sit in urine or feces; binding or restraining a child; repeatedly 113
physically injuring a child; exposing the child to extreme 114
temperatures without adequate clothing or shelter; locking a child 115
in closets or other small spaces; and forcing a child into stress 116
positions or exercise resulting in prolonged suffering. 117
(h) Nothing contained in paragraph (c) of this 118
subsection shall preclude a parent or guardian from disciplining a 119
child of that parent or guardian, or shall preclude a person in 120
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loco parentis to a child from disciplining that child, if done in 121
a reasonable manner, and reasonable corporal punishment or 122
reasonable discipline as to that parent or guardian's child or 123
child to whom a person stands in loco parentis shall be a defense 124
to any violation charged under paragraph (c) of this subsection. 125
(i) Reasonable discipline and reasonable corporal 126
punishment shall not be a defense to acts described in paragraphs 127
(a) and (b) of this subsection or if a child suffers serious 128
bodily harm as a result of any act prohibited under paragraph (c) 129
of this subsection. 130
(3) Nothing contained in this section shall prevent 131
proceedings against the parent, guardian or other person under any 132
statute of this state or any municipal ordinance defining any act 133
as a crime or misdemeanor. Nothing in the provisions of this 134
section shall preclude any person from having a right to trial by 135
jury when charged with having violated the provisions of this 136
section. 137
(4) (a) A parent, legal guardian or caretaker who endangers 138
a child's person or health by knowingly causing or permitting the 139
child to be present where any person is selling, manufacturing or 140
possessing immediate precursors or chemical substances with intent 141
to manufacture, sell or possess a controlled substance as 142
prohibited under Section 41-29-139 or 41-29-313, is guilty of 143
child endangerment and may be sentenced to imprisonment for not 144
less than three (3) years nor more than ten (10) years or to 145
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payment of a fine of not more than Ten Thousand Dollars 146
($10,000.00), or both. 147
(b) If the endangerment results in substantial harm to 148
the child's physical, mental or emotional health, the person may 149
be sentenced to imprisonment for not more than twenty (20) years 150
or to payment of a fine of not more than Twenty Thousand Dollars 151
($20,000.00), or both. 152
(5) Nothing contained in this section shall prevent 153
proceedings against the parent, guardian or other person under any 154
statute of this state or any municipal ordinance defining any act 155
as a crime or misdemeanor. Nothing in the provisions of this 156
section shall preclude any person from having a right to trial by 157
jury when charged with having violated the provisions of this 158
section. 159
(6) After consultation with the Department of Child 160
Protection Services, a regional mental health center or an 161
appropriate professional person, a judge may suspend imposition or 162
execution of a sentence provided in subsections (1) and (2) of 163
this section and in lieu thereof require treatment over a 164
specified period of time at any approved public or private 165
treatment facility. A person may be eligible for treatment in 166
lieu of criminal penalties no more than one (1) time. 167
(7) In any proceeding resulting from a report made pursuant 168
to Section 43-21-353 of the Youth Court Law, the testimony of the 169
physician making the report regarding the child's injuries or 170
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condition or cause thereof shall not be excluded on the ground 171
that the physician's testimony violates the physician-patient 172
privilege or similar privilege or rule against disclosure. The 173
physician's report shall not be considered as evidence unless 174
introduced as an exhibit to his testimony. 175
(8) Any criminal prosecution arising from a violation of 176
this section shall be tried in the circuit, county, justice or 177
municipal court having jurisdiction; provided, however, that 178
nothing herein shall abridge or dilute the contempt powers of the 179
youth court. 180
SECTION 2. Section 97-5-42, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 181
amended as follows: 182
97-5-42. (1) (a) For purposes of this section, a 183
conviction of felony parental child sexual abuse shall include any 184
nolo contendere plea, guilty plea or conviction at trial to any 185
offense enumerated in Section 93-15-121(h) or any other statute of 186
the State of Mississippi whereby a parent may be penalized as a 187
felon on account of sexual abuse of his or her own child; and 188
shall include any conviction by plea or trial in any other state 189
of the United States to an offense whereby a parent may be 190
penalized as a felon for sexual abuse of his or her own child 191
under the laws of that state, or which would be so penalized for 192
such conduct had the act or acts been committed in the State of 193
Mississippi. 194
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(b) A certified copy of the court order or judgment 195
evidencing such a conviction shall be accepted by any public 196
office with responsibilities pursuant to this section, and by any 197
court in the State of Mississippi, as conclusive evidence of the 198
conviction. 199
(2) (a) No person who has been convicted of felony parental 200
child sexual abuse shall contact or attempt to contact the victim 201
child without the prior express written permission of the child's 202
then legal custodian, who may be the other parent, a guardian, 203
person in loco parentis or person with legal or physical custody 204
of a child. 205
(b) No person who has been convicted of felony parental 206
child sexual abuse shall harass, threaten, intimidate or by any 207
other means menace the victim child or any legal custodian of the 208
child, who may be the other parent, a guardian, person in loco 209
parentis or person with legal or physical custody of a child. 210
(c) Any person who believes that a person who has been 211
convicted of felony parental child sexual abuse may violate the 212
provisions of paragraph (a) or (b) of this subsection may register 213
with the sheriff and any municipal law enforcement agency of the 214
child's county and municipality of residence, setting forth the 215
factual basis for that belief which shall include a certified copy 216
of the court order or judgment evidencing the conviction of the 217
child sexual abuse felon. The sheriff's office of each county and 218
all municipal law enforcement agencies shall maintain a separate 219
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and distinct register for the purpose of recording the data 220
required herein, and shall advise the reporting party of how 221
emergency contact can be made with that office at any time with 222
respect to a threatened violation of paragraph (a) or (b) of this 223
subsection. Immediate response with police protection shall be 224
provided to any emergency contact made pursuant to this section, 225
which police protection shall be continued in such reasonable 226
manner as to deter future violations and protect the child and any 227
person with legal custody of the child. 228
(d) Any person who has been convicted of felony 229
parental child sexual abuse who violates paragraph (a) of this 230
subsection shall, upon conviction, be punished by imprisonment in 231
the * * * custody of the Department of Corrections for not 232
less * * * than one (1) year nor more than five (5) years. Any 233
person who has been convicted of felony parental child sexual 234
abuse who violates paragraph (b) of this subsection shall, upon 235
conviction, be punished by imprisonment in the State Penitentiary 236
for not * * * less than five (5) years, no more than seven (7) 237
years. 238
(3) No person who has been convicted of felony parental 239
child sexual abuse shall be entitled to have parental or other 240
visitation rights as to that child who was the victim, unless he 241
or she files a petition in the chancery court of the county in 242
which the child resides, reciting the conviction, and joining as 243
parties defendant any other parent, guardian, person standing in 244
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loco parentis or having legal or physical custody of the child. A 245
guardian ad litem shall be appointed to represent the child at 246
petitioner's expense. The court shall appoint a qualified 247
psychologist or psychiatrist to conduct an independent examination 248
of the petitioner to determine whether contact with that person 249
poses a physical or emotional risk to the child, and report to the 250
court. Such examination shall be at petitioner's expense. The 251
court shall require any such petitioner to deposit with the court 252
sufficient funds to pay expenses chargeable to a petitioner 253
hereunder, the amount of such deposit to be within the discretion 254
of the chancellor. Any defendant and the child through his or her 255
guardian ad litem shall be entitled to a full evidentiary hearing 256
on the petition. In no event shall a child be required to testify 257
in court or by deposition, or be subjected to any psychological 258
examination, without the express consent of the child through his 259
or her guardian ad litem. Such guardian ad litem shall consult 260
with the child's legal guardian or custodians before consenting to 261
such testimony or examination. At any hearing there is a 262
rebuttable presumption that contact with the child poses a 263
physical and emotional risk to the child. That presumption may be 264
rebutted and visitation or contact allowed on such terms and 265
conditions that the chancery court shall set only upon specific 266
written findings by the court that: 267
(a) Contact between the child and the offending parent 268
is appropriate and poses minimal risk to the child; 269
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(b) If the child has received counseling, that the 270
child's counselor believes such contact is in the child's best 271
interest; 272
(c) The offending parent has successfully engaged in 273
treatment for sex offenders or is engaged in such treatment and 274
making progress; and 275
(d) The offending parent's treatment provider believes 276
contact with the child is appropriate and poses minimal risk to 277
the child. If the court, in its discretion, allows visitation or 278
contact it may impose such conditions to the visitation or contact 279
which it finds reasonable, including supervision of contact or 280
visitation by a neutral and independent adult with a detailed plan 281
for supervision of any such contact or visitation. 282
SECTION 3. Section 43-21-353, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 283
amended as follows: 284
43-21-353. (1) Any attorney, physician, dentist, intern, 285
resident, nurse, psychologist, social worker, family protection 286
worker, family protection specialist, child caregiver, minister, 287
law enforcement officer, public or private school employee or any 288
other person having reasonable cause to suspect that a child is a 289
neglected child, an abused child, or a victim of commercial sexual 290
exploitation or human trafficking shall cause an oral report to be 291
made immediately by telephone or otherwise and followed as soon 292
thereafter as possible by a report in writing to the Department of 293
Child Protection Services, and immediately a referral shall be 294
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made by the Department of Child Protection Services to the youth 295
court intake unit, which unit shall promptly comply with Section 296
43-21-357. In the course of an investigation, at the initial time 297
of contact with the individual(s) about whom a report has been 298
made under this Youth Court Act or with the individual(s) 299
responsible for the health or welfare of a child about whom a 300
report has been made under this chapter, the Department of Child 301
Protection Services shall inform the individual of the specific 302
complaints or allegations made against the individual. Consistent 303
with subsection (4), the identity of the person who reported his 304
or her suspicion shall not be disclosed at that point. Where 305
appropriate, the Department of Child Protection Services shall 306
additionally make a referral to the youth court prosecutor. 307
Upon receiving a report that a child has been sexually 308
abused, is a victim of commercial sexual exploitation or human 309
trafficking or has been burned, tortured, mutilated or otherwise 310
physically abused in such a manner as to cause serious bodily 311
harm, or upon receiving any report of abuse that would be a felony 312
under state or federal law, the Department of Child Protection 313
Services shall immediately notify the law enforcement agency in 314
whose jurisdiction the abuse occurred. Within forty-eight (48) 315
hours, the department must notify the appropriate prosecutor and 316
the Statewide Human Trafficking Coordinator. If the child has 317
been burned, tortured, mutilated or otherwise physically abused, 318
the law enforcement agency shall arrest and detain the person 319
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suspected of such abuse no more than forty-eight (48) hours from 320
learning about the abuse. The department shall have the duty to 321
provide the law enforcement agency all the names and facts known 322
at the time of the report; this duty shall be of a continuing 323
nature. The law enforcement agency and the department shall begin 324
to investigate the reported abuse immediately but in no less than 325
forty-eight (48) hours and shall file a preliminary report with 326
the appropriate prosecutor's office within twenty-four (24) hours 327
and shall make additional reports as new or additional information 328
or evidence becomes available. The department shall advise the 329
clerk of the youth court and the youth court prosecutor of all 330
cases of abuse reported to the department within seventy-two (72) 331
hours and shall update such report as information becomes 332
available. In addition, if the Department of Child Protection 333
Services determines that a parent or other person responsible for 334
the care or welfare of an abused or neglected child maintains 335
active duty status within the military, the department shall 336
notify the applicable military installation family advocacy 337
program that there is an allegation of abuse or neglect that 338
relates to that child. 339
(2) Any report shall contain the names and addresses of the 340
child and his parents or other persons responsible for his care, 341
if known, the child's age, the nature and extent of the child's 342
injuries, including any evidence of previous injuries, any other 343
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information that might be helpful in establishing the cause of the 344
injury, and the identity of the perpetrator. 345
(3) The Department of Child Protection Services shall 346
maintain a statewide incoming wide-area telephone service or 347
similar service for the purpose of receiving reports of suspected 348
cases of child abuse, commercial sexual exploitation or human 349
trafficking; provided that any attorney, physician, dentist, 350
intern, resident, nurse, psychologist, social worker, family 351
protection worker, family protection specialist, child caregiver, 352
minister, law enforcement officer or public or private school 353
employee who is required to report under subsection (1) of this 354
section shall report in the manner required in subsection (1). 355
(4) Reports of abuse, neglect and commercial sexual 356
exploitation or human trafficking made under this chapter and the 357
identity of the reporter are confidential except when the court in 358
which the investigation report is filed, in its discretion, 359
determines the testimony of the person reporting to be material to 360
a judicial proceeding or when the identity of the reporter is 361
released to law enforcement agencies and the appropriate 362
prosecutor pursuant to subsection (1). Reports made under this 363
section to any law enforcement agency or prosecutorial officer are 364
for the purpose of criminal investigation and prosecution only and 365
no information from these reports may be released to the public 366
except as provided by Section 43-21-261. Disclosure of any 367
information by the prosecutor shall be according to the 368
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Mississippi Uniform Rules of Circuit and County Court Procedure. 369
The identity of the reporting party shall not be disclosed to 370
anyone other than law enforcement officers or prosecutors without 371
an order from the appropriate youth court. Any person disclosing 372
any reports made under this section in a manner not expressly 373
provided for in this section or Section 43-21-261 shall be guilty 374
of a misdemeanor and subject to the penalties prescribed by 375
Section 43-21-267. Notwithstanding the confidentiality of the 376
reporter's identity under this section, the Department of Child 377
Protection Services may disclose a reporter's identity to the 378
appropriate law enforcement agency or prosecutor if the department 379
has reason to suspect the reporter has made a fraudulent report, 380
and the Department of Child Protection Services must provide to 381
the subject of the alleged fraudulent report written notification 382
of the disclosure. 383
(5) All final dispositions of law enforcement investigations 384
described in subsection (1) of this section shall be determined 385
only by the appropriate prosecutor or court. All final 386
dispositions of investigations by the Department of Child 387
Protection Services as described in subsection (1) of this section 388
shall be determined only by the youth court. Reports made under 389
subsection (1) of this section by the Department of Child 390
Protection Services to the law enforcement agency and to the 391
district attorney's office shall include the following, if known 392
to the department: 393
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(a) The name and address of the child; 394
(b) The names and addresses of the parents; 395
(c) The name and address of the suspected perpetrator; 396
(d) The names and addresses of all witnesses, including 397
the reporting party if a material witness to the abuse; 398
(e) A brief statement of the facts indicating that the 399
child has been abused, including whether the child experienced 400
commercial sexual exploitation or human trafficking, and any other 401
information from the agency files or known to the family 402
protection worker or family protection specialist making the 403
investigation, including medical records or other records, which 404
may assist law enforcement or the district attorney in 405
investigating and/or prosecuting the case; and 406
(f) What, if any, action is being taken by the 407
Department of Child Protection Services. 408
(6) In any investigation of a report made under this chapter 409
of the abuse or neglect of a child as defined in Section 410
43-21-105(l) or (m), the Department of Child Protection Services 411
may request the appropriate law enforcement officer with 412
jurisdiction to accompany the department in its investigation, and 413
in such cases the law enforcement officer shall comply with such 414
request. 415
(7) Anyone who willfully violates any provision of this 416
section shall be, upon being found guilty, punished by a fine not 417
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to exceed Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00), or by imprisonment in 418
jail not to exceed one (1) year, or both. 419
(8) If a report is made directly to the Department of Child 420
Protection Services that a child has been abused or neglected or 421
experienced commercial sexual exploitation or human trafficking in 422
an out-of-home setting, a referral shall be made immediately to 423
the law enforcement agency in whose jurisdiction the abuse 424
occurred and the department shall notify the district attorney's 425
office and the Statewide Human Trafficking Coordinator within 426
forty-eight (48) hours of such report. The Department of Child 427
Protection Services shall investigate the out-of-home setting 428
report of abuse or neglect to determine whether the child who is 429
the subject of the report, or other children in the same 430
environment, comes within the jurisdiction of the youth court and 431
shall report to the youth court the department's findings and 432
recommendation as to whether the child who is the subject of the 433
report or other children in the same environment require the 434
protection of the youth court. The law enforcement agency shall 435
investigate the reported abuse immediately and shall file a 436
preliminary report with the district attorney's office within 437
forty-eight (48) hours and shall make additional reports as new 438
information or evidence becomes available. If the out-of-home 439
setting is a licensed facility, an additional referral shall be 440
made by the Department of Child Protection Services to the 441
licensing agency. The licensing agency shall investigate the 442
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report and shall provide the department, the law enforcement 443
agency and the district attorney's office with their written 444
findings from such investigation as well as that licensing 445
agency's recommendations and actions taken. 446
(9) If a child protective investigation does not result in 447
an out-of-home placement, a child protective investigator must 448
provide information to the parent or guardians about community 449
service programs that provide respite care, counseling and support 450
for children who have experienced commercial sexual exploitation 451
or human trafficking, voluntary guardianship or other support 452
services for families in crisis. 453
SECTION 4. Section 47-7-3, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 454
amended as follows: 455
47-7-3. (1) Every prisoner who has been convicted of any 456
offense against the State of Mississippi, and is confined in the 457
execution of a judgment of such conviction in the Mississippi 458
Department of Corrections for a definite term or terms of one (1) 459
year or over, or for the term of his or her natural life, whose 460
record of conduct shows that such prisoner has observed the rules 461
of the department, and who has served the minimum required time 462
for parole eligibility, may be released on parole as set forth 463
herein: 464
(a) Habitual offenders. Except as provided by Sections 465
99-19-81 through 99-19-87, no person sentenced as a confirmed and 466
habitual criminal shall be eligible for parole; 467
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(b) Sex offenders. Any person who has been sentenced 468
for a sex offense as defined in Section 45-33-23(h) shall not be 469
released on parole except for a person under the age of nineteen 470
(19) who has been convicted under Section 97-3-67; 471
(c) Capital offenders. No person sentenced for the 472
following offenses shall be eligible for parole: 473
(i) Capital murder committed on or after July 1, 474
1994, as defined in Section 97-3-19(2); 475
(ii) Any offense to which an offender is sentenced 476
to life imprisonment under the provisions of Section 99-19-101; or 477
(iii) Any offense to which an offender is 478
sentenced to life imprisonment without eligibility for parole 479
under the provisions of Section 99-19-101, whose crime was 480
committed on or after July 1, 1994; 481
(d) Murder. No person sentenced for murder in the 482
first degree, whose crime was committed on or after June 30, 1995, 483
or murder in the second degree, as defined in Section 97-3-19, 484
shall be eligible for parole; 485
(e) Human trafficking. No person sentenced for human 486
trafficking, as defined in Section 97-3-54.1, whose crime was 487
committed on or after July 1, 2014, shall be eligible for parole; 488
(f) Drug trafficking. No person sentenced for 489
trafficking and aggravated trafficking, as defined in Section 490
41-29-139(f) through (g), shall be eligible for parole; 491
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(g) Offenses specifically prohibiting parole release. 492
No person shall be eligible for parole who is convicted of any 493
offense that specifically prohibits parole release; 494
(h) (i) Offenders eligible for parole consideration 495
for offenses committed after June 30, 1995. Except as provided in 496
paragraphs (a) through (g) of this subsection, offenders may be 497
considered eligible for parole release as follows: 498
1. Nonviolent crimes. All persons sentenced 499
for a nonviolent offense shall be eligible for parole only after 500
they have served twenty-five percent (25%) or ten (10) years, 501
whichever is less, of the sentence or sentences imposed by the 502
trial court, except for felony child abuse. For purposes of this 503
paragraph, "nonviolent crime" means a felony not designated as a 504
crime of violence in Section 97-3-2. 505
2. Violent crimes. A person who is sentenced 506
for a violent offense as defined in Section 97-3-2, except robbery 507
with a deadly weapon as defined in Section 97-3-79, drive-by 508
shooting as defined in Section 97-3-109, and carjacking as defined 509
in Section 97-3-117, shall be eligible for parole only after 510
having served fifty percent (50%) or twenty (20) years, whichever 511
is less, of the sentence or sentences imposed by the trial court. 512
Those persons sentenced for robbery with a deadly weapon as 513
defined in Section 97-3-79, drive-by shooting as defined in 514
Section 97-3-109, and carjacking as defined in Section 97-3-117, 515
shall be eligible for parole only after having served sixty 516
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percent (60%) or twenty-five (25) years, whichever is less, of the 517
sentence or sentences imposed by the trial court. 518
3. Nonviolent and nonhabitual drug offenses. 519
A person who has been sentenced to a drug offense pursuant to 520
Section 41-29-139(a) through (d), whose crime was committed after 521
June 30, 1995, shall be eligible for parole only after he has 522
served twenty-five percent (25%) or ten (10) years, whichever is 523
less, of the sentence or sentences imposed. 524
(ii) Parole hearing required. All persons 525
eligible for parole under subparagraph (i) of this paragraph (h) 526
who are serving a sentence or sentences for a crime of violence, 527
as defined in Section 97-3-2, shall be required to have a parole 528
hearing before the Parole Board pursuant to Section 47-7-17, prior 529
to parole release. 530
(iii) Geriatric parole. Notwithstanding the 531
provisions in subparagraph (i) of this paragraph (h), a person 532
serving a sentence who has reached the age of sixty (60) or older 533
and who has served no less than ten (10) years of the sentence or 534
sentences imposed by the trial court shall be eligible for parole. 535
Any person eligible for parole under this subparagraph (iii) shall 536
be required to have a parole hearing before the board prior to 537
parole release. No inmate shall be eligible for parole under this 538
subparagraph (iii) of this paragraph (h) if: 539
1. The inmate is sentenced as a habitual 540
offender under Sections 99-19-81 through 99-19-87; 541
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2. The inmate is sentenced for a crime of 542
violence under Section 97-3-2; 543
3. The inmate is sentenced for an offense 544
that specifically prohibits parole release; 545
4. The inmate is sentenced for trafficking in 546
controlled substances under Section 41-29-139(f); 547
5. The inmate is sentenced for a sex crime; 548
or 549
6. The inmate has not served one-fourth (1/4) 550
of the sentence imposed by the court. 551
(iv) Parole consideration as authorized by the 552
trial court. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (a) of 553
this subsection, any offender who has not committed a crime of 554
violence under Section 97-3-2 and has served twenty-five percent 555
(25%) or more of his sentence may be paroled by the State Parole 556
Board if, after the sentencing judge or if the sentencing judge is 557
retired, disabled or incapacitated, the senior circuit judge 558
authorizes the offender to be eligible for parole consideration; 559
or if the senior circuit judge must be recused, another circuit 560
judge of the same district or a senior status judge may hear and 561
decide the matter. A petition for parole eligibility 562
consideration pursuant to this subparagraph (iv) shall be filed in 563
the original criminal cause or causes, and the offender shall 564
serve an executed copy of the petition on the District Attorney. 565
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The court may, in its discretion, require the District Attorney to 566
respond to the petition. 567
(2) The State Parole Board shall, by rules and regulations, 568
establish a method of determining a tentative parole hearing date 569
for each eligible offender taken into the custody of the 570
Department of Corrections. The tentative parole hearing date 571
shall be determined within ninety (90) days after the department 572
has assumed custody of the offender. Except as provided in 573
Section 47-7-18, the parole hearing date shall occur when the 574
offender is within thirty (30) days of the month of his parole 575
eligibility date. Any parole eligibility date shall not be 576
earlier than as required in this section. 577
(3) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an inmate 578
shall not be eligible to receive earned time, good time or any 579
other administrative reduction of time which shall reduce the time 580
necessary to be served for parole eligibility as provided in 581
subsection (1) of this section. 582
(4) Any inmate within forty-eight (48) months of his parole 583
eligibility date and who meets the criteria established by the 584
classification board shall receive priority for placement in any 585
educational development and job-training programs that are part of 586
his or her parole case plan. Any inmate refusing to participate 587
in an educational development or job-training program, including, 588
but not limited to, programs required as part of the case plan, 589
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shall be in jeopardy of noncompliance with the case plan and may 590
be denied parole. 591
(5) In addition to other requirements, if an offender is 592
convicted of a drug or driving under the influence felony, the 593
offender must complete a drug and alcohol rehabilitation program 594
prior to parole, or the offender shall be required to complete a 595
postrelease drug and alcohol program as a condition of parole. 596
(6) Except as provided in subsection (1)(a) through (h) of 597
this section, all other persons shall be eligible for parole after 598
serving twenty-five percent (25%) of the sentence or sentences 599
imposed by the trial court, or, if sentenced to thirty (30) years 600
or more, after serving ten (10) years of the sentence or sentences 601
imposed by the trial court. 602
(7) The Corrections and Criminal Justice Oversight Task 603
Force established in Section 47-5-6 shall develop and submit 604
recommendations to the Governor and to the Legislature annually on 605
or before December 1st concerning issues relating to juvenile and 606
habitual offender parole reform and to review and monitor the 607
implementation of Chapter 479, Laws of 2021. 608
(8) The amendments contained in Chapter 479, Laws of 2021, 609
shall apply retroactively from and after July 1, 1995. 610
(9) Notwithstanding provisions to the contrary in this 611
section, a person who was sentenced before July 1, 2021, may be 612
considered for parole if the person's sentence would have been 613
parole eligible before July 1, 2021. 614
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ST: Child abuse; require mandatory minimums and
arrests for severe child abuse.
(10) This section shall stand repealed on July 1, * * * 615
2029. 616
SECTION 5. This act shall take effect and be in force from 617
and after July 1, 2026. 618