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To: Drug Policy; Judiciary B
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026
By: Representative Waldo
HOUSE BILL NO. 1701
(As Sent to Governor)
AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 47-7-37, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO 1
AUTHORIZE AN INTERVENTION COURT TO IMPOSE UP TO THE REMAINDER OF 2
THE SUSPENDED PORTION OF A SENTENCE WITHOUT THE INDIVIDUAL HAVING 3
A REVOCATION HEARING UPON THE JUDGE'S WRITTEN FINDING OF A CERTAIN 4
NUMBER OF VIOLATIONS OF THE PROCEDURES AND REQUIREMENTS OF THE 5
INTERVENTION COURT; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES. 6
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 7
SECTION 1. Section 47-7-37, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 8
amended as follows: 9
47-7-37. (1) The period of probation shall be fixed by the 10
court, and may at any time be extended or terminated by the court, 11
or judge in vacation. Such period with any extension thereof 12
shall not exceed five (5) years, except that in cases of desertion 13
and/or failure to support minor children, the period of probation 14
may be fixed and/or extended by the court for so long as the duty 15
to support such minor children exists. The time served on 16
probation or post-release supervision may be reduced pursuant to 17
Section 47-7-40. 18
(2) At any time during the period of probation, the court, 19
or judge in vacation, may issue a warrant for violating any of the 20
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conditions of probation or suspension of sentence and cause the 21
probationer to be arrested. Any probation and parole officer may 22
arrest a probationer without a warrant, or may deputize any other 23
officer with power of arrest to do so by giving him a written 24
statement setting forth that the probationer has, in the judgment 25
of the probation and parole officer, violated the conditions of 26
probation. Such written statement delivered with the probationer 27
by the arresting officer to the official in charge of a county 28
jail or other place of detention shall be sufficient warrant for 29
the detention of the probationer. 30
(3) Whenever an offender is arrested on a warrant for an 31
alleged violation of probation as herein provided, the department 32
shall hold an informal preliminary hearing within seventy-two (72) 33
hours of the arrest to determine whether there is reasonable cause 34
to believe the person has violated a condition of probation. A 35
preliminary hearing shall not be required when the offender is not 36
under arrest on a warrant or the offender signed a waiver of a 37
preliminary hearing. The preliminary hearing may be conducted 38
electronically. If reasonable cause is found, the offender may be 39
confined no more than twenty-one (21) days from the admission to 40
detention until a revocation hearing is held. If the revocation 41
hearing is not held within twenty-one (21) days, the probationer 42
shall be released from custody and returned to probation status. 43
(4) If a probationer or offender is subject to registration 44
as a sex offender, the court must make a finding that the 45
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probationer or offender is not a danger to the public prior to 46
release with or without bail. In determining the danger posed by 47
the release of the offender or probationer, the court may consider 48
the nature and circumstances of the violation and any new offenses 49
charged; the offender or probationer's past and present conduct, 50
including convictions of crimes and any record of arrests without 51
conviction for crimes involving violence or sex crimes; any other 52
evidence of allegations of unlawful sexual conduct or the use of 53
violence by the offender or probationer; the offender or 54
probationer's family ties, length of residence in the community, 55
employment history and mental condition; the offender or 56
probationer's history and conduct during the probation or other 57
supervised release and any other previous supervisions, including 58
disciplinary records of previous incarcerations; the likelihood 59
that the offender or probationer will engage again in a criminal 60
course of conduct; the weight of the evidence against the offender 61
or probationer; and any other facts the court considers relevant. 62
(5) (a) (i) The probation and parole officer after making 63
an arrest shall present to the detaining authorities a similar 64
statement of the circumstances of violation. The probation and 65
parole officer shall at once notify the court of the arrest and 66
detention of the probationer and shall submit a report in writing 67
showing in what manner the probationer has violated the conditions 68
of probation. Within twenty-one (21) days of arrest and detention 69
by warrant as herein provided, the court shall cause the 70
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probationer to be brought before it and may continue or revoke all 71
or any part of the probation or the suspension of sentence. If 72
the court revokes probation for one or more technical violations, 73
the court shall impose a period of imprisonment to be served in 74
either a technical violation center or a restitution center not to 75
exceed ninety (90) days for the first revocation and not to exceed 76
one hundred twenty (120) days for the second revocation. For the 77
third revocation, the court may impose a period of imprisonment to 78
be served in either a technical violation center or a restitution 79
center for up to one hundred eighty (180) days or the court may 80
impose the remainder of the suspended portion of the sentence. 81
For the fourth and any subsequent revocation, the court may impose 82
up to the remainder of the suspended portion of the sentence. The 83
period of imprisonment in a technical violation center imposed 84
under this section shall not be reduced in any manner. 85
(ii) For a probationer or a person on post-release 86
supervision who is a participant in an intervention court 87
authorized under Sections 9-23-1 through 9-23-23, the court may 88
impose up to the remainder of the suspended portion of the 89
sentence without such individual having a revocation hearing upon 90
the judge's written finding of at least three (3) violations of 91
the procedures and requirements of the intervention court. 92
(b) If the offender is not detained as a result of the 93
warrant, the court shall cause the probationer to be brought 94
before it within a reasonable time and may continue or revoke all 95
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or any part of the probation or the suspension of sentence, and 96
may cause the sentence imposed to be executed or may impose any 97
part of the sentence which might have been imposed at the time of 98
conviction. If the court revokes probation for one or more 99
technical violations, the court shall impose a period of 100
imprisonment to be served in either a technical violation center 101
or a restitution center not to exceed ninety (90) days for the 102
first revocation and not to exceed one hundred twenty (120) days 103
for the second revocation. For the third revocation, the court 104
may impose a period of imprisonment to be served in either a 105
technical violation center or a restitution center for up to one 106
hundred eighty (180) days or the court may impose the remainder of 107
the suspended portion of the sentence. For the fourth and any 108
subsequent revocation, the court may impose up to the remainder of 109
the suspended portion of the sentence. The period of imprisonment 110
in a technical violation center imposed under this section shall 111
not be reduced in any manner. 112
(c) If the court does not hold a hearing or does not 113
take action on the violation within the twenty-one-day period, the 114
offender shall be released from detention and shall return to 115
probation status. The court may subsequently hold a hearing and 116
may revoke probation or may continue probation and modify the 117
terms and conditions of probation. If the court revokes probation 118
for one or more technical violations, the court shall impose a 119
period of imprisonment to be served in either a technical 120
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violation center operated by the department or a restitution 121
center not to exceed ninety (90) days for the first revocation and 122
not to exceed one hundred twenty (120) days for the second 123
revocation. For the third revocation, the court may impose a 124
period of imprisonment to be served in either a technical 125
violation center or a restitution center for up to one hundred 126
eighty (180) days or the court may impose the remainder of the 127
suspended portion of the sentence. For the fourth and any 128
subsequent revocation, the court may impose up to the remainder of 129
the suspended portion of the sentence. The period of imprisonment 130
in a technical violation center imposed under this section shall 131
not be reduced in any manner. 132
(d) For an offender charged with a technical violation 133
who has not been detained awaiting the revocation hearing, the 134
court may hold a hearing within a reasonable time. The court may 135
revoke probation or may continue probation and modify the terms 136
and conditions of probation. If the court revokes probation for 137
one or more technical violations the court shall impose a period 138
of imprisonment to be served in either a technical violation 139
center operated by the department or a restitution center not to 140
exceed ninety (90) days for the first revocation and not to exceed 141
one hundred twenty (120) days for the second revocation. For the 142
third revocation, the court may impose a period of imprisonment to 143
be served in either a technical violation center or a restitution 144
center for up to one hundred eighty (180) days or the court may 145
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impose the remainder of the suspended portion of the sentence. 146
For the fourth and any subsequent revocation, the court may impose 147
up to the remainder of the suspended portion of the sentence. The 148
period of imprisonment in a technical violation center imposed 149
under this section shall not be reduced in any manner. 150
(6) If the probationer is arrested in a circuit court 151
district in the State of Mississippi other than that in which he 152
was convicted, the probation and parole officer, upon the written 153
request of the sentencing judge, shall furnish to the circuit 154
court or the county court of the county in which the arrest is 155
made, or to the judge of such court, a report concerning the 156
probationer, and such court or the judge in vacation shall have 157
authority, after a hearing, to continue or revoke all or any part 158
of probation or all or any part of the suspension of sentence, and 159
may in case of revocation proceed to deal with the case as if 160
there had been no probation. In such case, the clerk of the court 161
in which the order of revocation is issued shall forward a 162
transcript of such order to the clerk of the court of original 163
jurisdiction, and the clerk of that court shall proceed as if the 164
order of revocation had been issued by the court of original 165
jurisdiction. Upon the revocation of probation or suspension of 166
sentence of any offender, such offender shall be placed in the 167
legal custody of the State Department of Corrections and shall be 168
subject to the requirements thereof. 169
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(7) Any probationer who removes himself from the State of 170
Mississippi without permission of the court placing him on 171
probation, or the court to which jurisdiction has been 172
transferred, shall be deemed and considered a fugitive from 173
justice and shall be subject to extradition as now provided by 174
law. No part of the time that one is on probation shall be 175
considered as any part of the time that he shall be sentenced to 176
serve. 177
(8) The arresting officer, except when a probation and 178
parole officer, shall be allowed the same fees as now provided by 179
law for arrest on warrant, and such fees shall be taxed against 180
the probationer and paid as now provided by law. 181
(9) The arrest, revocation and recommitment procedures of 182
this section also apply to persons who are serving a period of 183
post-release supervision imposed by the court. 184
(10) Unless good cause for the delay is established in the 185
record of the proceeding, the probation revocation charge shall be 186
dismissed if the revocation hearing is not held within thirty (30) 187
days of the warrant being issued. 188
(11) The Department of Corrections shall provide 189
semiannually to the Oversight Task Force the number of warrants 190
issued for an alleged violation of probation or post-release 191
supervision, the average time between detention on a warrant and 192
preliminary hearing, the average time between detention on a 193
warrant and revocation hearing, the number of ninety-day sentences 194
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ST: Technical violations; clarify that certain
sentencing limits shall not apply to
intervention or drug court participants
regarding.
in a technical violation center issued by the court, the number of 195
one-hundred-twenty-day sentences in a technical violation center 196
issued by the court, the number of one-hundred-eighty-day 197
sentences issued by the court, and the number and average length 198
of the suspended sentences imposed by the court in response to a 199
violation. 200
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from 201
and after July 1, 2026. 202