Commutation of sentences; require for certain nonviolent offenders.

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To: Corrections; Judiciary B
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026

By: Representative Johnson

HOUSE BILL NO. 111

AN ACT TO PROVIDE THAT ANY PERSON WHO IS CONVICTED OF A DRUG 1
OFFENSE OR A NONVIOLENT CRIME AND IS SENTENCED TO FIVE YEARS OR 2
LESS AND IS HELD IN THE PHYSICAL CUSTODY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF 3
CORRECTIONS SHALL HAVE HIS OR HER SENTENCE COMMUTED TO TIME 4
SERVED; TO BRING FORWARD SECTION 47-7-3, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, 5
FOR PURPOSES OF AMENDMENT; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES. 6
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 7
SECTION 1. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the 8
contrary, any person who is convicted of a drug offense or a 9
nonviolent crime, as defined under Section 47-7-3, and is 10
sentenced to five (5) years or less and is held in the physical 11
custody of the Department of Corrections shall have his or her 12
sentence commuted to time served. 13
SECTION 2. Section 47-7-3, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 14
brought forward as follows: 15
47-7-3. (1) Every prisoner who has been convicted of any 16
offense against the State of Mississippi, and is confined in the 17
execution of a judgment of such conviction in the Mississippi 18
Department of Corrections for a definite term or terms of one (1) 19
year or over, or for the term of his or her natural life, whose 20
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record of conduct shows that such prisoner has observed the rules 21
of the department, and who has served the minimum required time 22
for parole eligibility, may be released on parole as set forth 23
herein: 24
(a) Habitual offenders. Except as provided by Sections 25
99-19-81 through 99-19-87, no person sentenced as a confirmed and 26
habitual criminal shall be eligible for parole; 27
(b) Sex offenders. Any person who has been sentenced 28
for a sex offense as defined in Section 45-33-23(h) shall not be 29
released on parole except for a person under the age of nineteen 30
(19) who has been convicted under Section 97-3-67; 31
(c) Capital offenders. No person sentenced for the 32
following offenses shall be eligible for parole: 33
(i) Capital murder committed on or after July 1, 34
1994, as defined in Section 97-3-19(2); 35
(ii) Any offense to which an offender is sentenced 36
to life imprisonment under the provisions of Section 99-19-101; or 37
(iii) Any offense to which an offender is 38
sentenced to life imprisonment without eligibility for parole 39
under the provisions of Section 99-19-101, whose crime was 40
committed on or after July 1, 1994; 41
(d) Murder. No person sentenced for murder in the 42
first degree, whose crime was committed on or after June 30, 1995, 43
or murder in the second degree, as defined in Section 97-3-19, 44
shall be eligible for parole; 45
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(e) Human trafficking. No person sentenced for human 46
trafficking, as defined in Section 97-3-54.1, whose crime was 47
committed on or after July 1, 2014, shall be eligible for parole; 48
(f) Drug trafficking. No person sentenced for 49
trafficking and aggravated trafficking, as defined in Section 50
41-29-139(f) through (g), shall be eligible for parole; 51
(g) Offenses specifically prohibiting parole release. 52
No person shall be eligible for parole who is convicted of any 53
offense that specifically prohibits parole release; 54
(h) (i) Offenders eligible for parole consideration 55
for offenses committed after June 30, 1995. Except as provided in 56
paragraphs (a) through (g) of this subsection, offenders may be 57
considered eligible for parole release as follows: 58
1. Nonviolent crimes. All persons sentenced 59
for a nonviolent offense shall be eligible for parole only after 60
they have served twenty-five percent (25%) or ten (10) years, 61
whichever is less, of the sentence or sentences imposed by the 62
trial court. For purposes of this paragraph, "nonviolent crime" 63
means a felony not designated as a crime of violence in Section 64
97-3-2. 65
2. Violent crimes. A person who is sentenced 66
for a violent offense as defined in Section 97-3-2, except robbery 67
with a deadly weapon as defined in Section 97-3-79, drive-by 68
shooting as defined in Section 97-3-109, and carjacking as defined 69
in Section 97-3-117, shall be eligible for parole only after 70
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having served fifty percent (50%) or twenty (20) years, whichever 71
is less, of the sentence or sentences imposed by the trial court. 72
Those persons sentenced for robbery with a deadly weapon as 73
defined in Section 97-3-79, drive-by shooting as defined in 74
Section 97-3-109, and carjacking as defined in Section 97-3-117, 75
shall be eligible for parole only after having served sixty 76
percent (60%) or twenty-five (25) years, whichever is less, of the 77
sentence or sentences imposed by the trial court. 78
3. Nonviolent and nonhabitual drug offenses. 79
A person who has been sentenced to a drug offense pursuant to 80
Section 41-29-139(a) through (d), whose crime was committed after 81
June 30, 1995, shall be eligible for parole only after he has 82
served twenty-five percent (25%) or ten (10) years, whichever is 83
less, of the sentence or sentences imposed. 84
(ii) Parole hearing required. All persons 85
eligible for parole under subparagraph (i) of this paragraph (h) 86
who are serving a sentence or sentences for a crime of violence, 87
as defined in Section 97-3-2, shall be required to have a parole 88
hearing before the Parole Board pursuant to Section 47-7-17, prior 89
to parole release. 90
(iii) Geriatric parole. Notwithstanding the 91
provisions in subparagraph (i) of this paragraph (h), a person 92
serving a sentence who has reached the age of sixty (60) or older 93
and who has served no less than ten (10) years of the sentence or 94
sentences imposed by the trial court shall be eligible for parole. 95
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Any person eligible for parole under this subparagraph (iii) shall 96
be required to have a parole hearing before the board prior to 97
parole release. No inmate shall be eligible for parole under this 98
subparagraph (iii) of this paragraph (h) if: 99
1. The inmate is sentenced as a habitual 100
offender under Sections 99-19-81 through 99-19-87; 101
2. The inmate is sentenced for a crime of 102
violence under Section 97-3-2; 103
3. The inmate is sentenced for an offense 104
that specifically prohibits parole release; 105
4. The inmate is sentenced for trafficking in 106
controlled substances under Section 41-29-139(f); 107
5. The inmate is sentenced for a sex crime; 108
or 109
6. The inmate has not served one-fourth (1/4) 110
of the sentence imposed by the court. 111
(iv) Parole consideration as authorized by the 112
trial court. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (a) of 113
this subsection, any offender who has not committed a crime of 114
violence under Section 97-3-2 and has served twenty-five percent 115
(25%) or more of his sentence may be paroled by the State Parole 116
Board if, after the sentencing judge or if the sentencing judge is 117
retired, disabled or incapacitated, the senior circuit judge 118
authorizes the offender to be eligible for parole consideration; 119
or if the senior circuit judge must be recused, another circuit 120
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judge of the same district or a senior status judge may hear and 121
decide the matter. A petition for parole eligibility 122
consideration pursuant to this subparagraph (iv) shall be filed in 123
the original criminal cause or causes, and the offender shall 124
serve an executed copy of the petition on the District Attorney. 125
The court may, in its discretion, require the District Attorney to 126
respond to the petition. 127
(2) The State Parole Board shall, by rules and regulations, 128
establish a method of determining a tentative parole hearing date 129
for each eligible offender taken into the custody of the 130
Department of Corrections. The tentative parole hearing date 131
shall be determined within ninety (90) days after the department 132
has assumed custody of the offender. Except as provided in 133
Section 47-7-18, the parole hearing date shall occur when the 134
offender is within thirty (30) days of the month of his parole 135
eligibility date. Any parole eligibility date shall not be 136
earlier than as required in this section. 137
(3) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an inmate 138
shall not be eligible to receive earned time, good time or any 139
other administrative reduction of time which shall reduce the time 140
necessary to be served for parole eligibility as provided in 141
subsection (1) of this section. 142
(4) Any inmate within forty-eight (48) months of his parole 143
eligibility date and who meets the criteria established by the 144
classification board shall receive priority for placement in any 145
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educational development and job-training programs that are part of 146
his or her parole case plan. Any inmate refusing to participate 147
in an educational development or job-training program, including, 148
but not limited to, programs required as part of the case plan, 149
shall be in jeopardy of noncompliance with the case plan and may 150
be denied parole. 151
(5) In addition to other requirements, if an offender is 152
convicted of a drug or driving under the influence felony, the 153
offender must complete a drug and alcohol rehabilitation program 154
prior to parole, or the offender shall be required to complete a 155
postrelease drug and alcohol program as a condition of parole. 156
(6) Except as provided in subsection (1)(a) through (h) of 157
this section, all other persons shall be eligible for parole after 158
serving twenty-five percent (25%) of the sentence or sentences 159
imposed by the trial court, or, if sentenced to thirty (30) years 160
or more, after serving ten (10) years of the sentence or sentences 161
imposed by the trial court. 162
(7) The Corrections and Criminal Justice Oversight Task 163
Force established in Section 47-5-6 shall develop and submit 164
recommendations to the Governor and to the Legislature annually on 165
or before December 1st concerning issues relating to juvenile and 166
habitual offender parole reform and to review and monitor the 167
implementation of Chapter 479, Laws of 2021. 168
(8) The amendments contained in Chapter 479, Laws of 2021, 169
shall apply retroactively from and after July 1, 1995. 170
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ST: Commutation of sentences; require for
certain nonviolent offenders.
(9) Notwithstanding provisions to the contrary in this 171
section, a person who was sentenced before July 1, 2021, may be 172
considered for parole if the person's sentence would have been 173
parole eligible before July 1, 2021. 174
(10) This section shall stand repealed on July 1, 2027. 175
SECTION 3. This act shall take effect and be in force from 176
and after July 1, 2026. 177