Custodial Interrogations Act; create and authorize electronic recording of.

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To: Judiciary B
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026

By: Representative Osborne

HOUSE BILL NO. 373

AN ACT TO CREATE THE "ELECTRONIC RECORDING OF CUSTODIAL 1
INTERROGATIONS ACT"; TO PROVIDE THE FINDINGS AND PURPOSE OF THE 2
LEGISLATURE; TO CREATE DEFINITIONS FOR THE ACT; TO PROVIDE JURY 3
INSTRUCTIONS IF THE ACT IS VIOLATED; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES. 4
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 5
SECTION 1. Short title. This act shall be called the 6
"Electronic Recording of Custodial Interrogations Act." 7
SECTION 2. Findings and purpose. (1) The Legislature finds 8
that: 9
(a) Every year, innocent people are jailed because of 10
false confessions during custodial interrogations. 11
(b) Electronic recordings of interrogations help to 12
protect the innocent and convict the guilty. 13
(c) Law enforcement agencies that use electronic 14
recordings have proven its value. 15
(2) The purpose of this law is to eliminate disputes about 16
interrogations, thereby improving prosecution of the guilty while 17
affording protection to the innocent. 18
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SECTION 3. Definitions. The following words shall have the 19
meanings described in this section, unless the context indicates 20
otherwise: 21
(a) "Custodial interrogation" means an interview 22
conducted by a law enforcement officer for the purpose of 23
investigating violations of law, of a person who is being held in 24
custody in a place of detention, when the interview is reasonably 25
likely to elicit responses that may incriminate the person in 26
connection with a felony under the laws of this state. 27
(b) "Electronic recording" or "Electronically recorded" 28
means an audio, video and/or digital electronic recording of a 29
custodial interview. 30
(c) "Place of detention" means a jail, police or 31
sheriff's station, holding cell, correctional or detention 32
facility, office, or other structure located in this state, where 33
persons are held in connection with juvenile or criminal charges. 34
(d) "Statement" means an oral, written, sign language, 35
or other nonverbal communication. 36
SECTION 4. Electronic recording of interrogations required. 37
(1) (a) Except as provided in subsection (3) of this 38
section, all custodial interviews conducted by a law enforcement 39
officer in a place of detention shall be electronically recorded. 40
(b) The recording shall be an authentic, accurate, 41
uninterrupted, and unaltered record of the interview, beginning 42
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with the law enforcement officer's advice of the person's rights, 43
and ending when the interview has completely finished. 44
(c) If a visual recording is made, the camera or 45
cameras shall be simultaneously focused on both the law 46
enforcement interviewer and the suspect at all times during the 47
recording of the interview. 48
(2) An interview may only be excluded from the requirements 49
of this act if the court finds: 50
(a) The interview was a part of a routine processing or 51
"booking" of the person, or routine border inquiries; 52
(b) The interview occurred before a grand jury or 53
court; 54
(c) Before or during the interview, the person agreed 55
to respond to the law enforcement officer's questions only if his 56
or her statements were not electronically recorded, and if 57
feasible the person's agreement was electronically recorded before 58
the interview began; 59
(d) After having consulted with his or her lawyer, the 60
person agreed to participate in the interview without an 61
electronic recording being made, and if feasible the person's 62
agreement was electronically recorded before the interview began; 63
(e) The law enforcement officer in good faith failed to 64
make an electronic recording of the interview because he or she 65
inadvertently failed to operate the recording equipment properly, 66
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or without his or her knowledge the recording equipment 67
malfunctioned or stopped operating; 68
(f) The interview was conducted outside this state by 69
officials of another state, country, or jurisdiction in compliance 70
with the law of that place, without involvement of or connection 71
to a law enforcement officer of this state; 72
(g) The law enforcement officer who conducted the 73
interview, or his superior, reasonably believed that the making of 74
an electronic recording would jeopardize his safety or the safety 75
of the person to be interviewed, or another person, or the 76
identity of a confidential informant, and if feasible an 77
explanation of the basis for that belief was electronically 78
recorded before the interview began; 79
(h) The interviewing law enforcement officer reasonably 80
believed that the crime for which the person was taken into 81
custody and being investigated or questioned was not a crime 82
referred to in the definition of "custodial interrogation"; 83
(i) Exigent circumstances existed which prevented the 84
law enforcement officer from making, or rendered it not feasible 85
to make, an electronic recording of the interview, and if feasible 86
an explanation of the circumstances was electronically recorded 87
before the interview began; or 88
(j) The statement is offered as evidence solely to 89
impeach or rebut the person's prior testimony, and not as 90
substantive evidence. 91
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(3) If the prosecution attempts to offer an unrecorded 92
interview into evidence that was required to be electronically 93
recorded by the provisions of this act, and the court finds the 94
prosecutor has not established by a preponderance of the evidence 95
that a listed exception is applicable, the trial judge shall, upon 96
request of the defendant, provide the jury with the following 97
cautionary instructions, with changes that are necessary for 98
consistency with the evidence: 99
"The law of this state required that the interview of the 100
defendant by law enforcement officers which took place on [insert 101
date] at [insert place] was to be electronically recorded, from 102
beginning to end. The purpose of this requirement is to ensure 103
that you, the jurors, will have before you a complete, unaltered, 104
and precise record of the circumstances under which the interview 105
was conducted, and what was said and done by each of the persons 106
present. 107
In this case, the interviewing law enforcement agents failed 108
to comply with the law. They did not make an electronic recording 109
of the interview of the defendant. No justification for their 110
failure to do so has been presented to the court. Instead of an 111
electronic recording, you have been presented with testimony as to 112
what took place, based upon the recollections of law enforcement 113
personnel [and the defendant]. 114
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Accordingly, I must give you the following special 115
instructions about your consideration of the evidence concerning 116
that interview. 117
Because the interview was not electronically recorded as 118
required by our law, you have not been provided the most reliable 119
evidence as to what was said and done by the participants. You 120
cannot hear the exact words used by the participants, or the tone 121
or inflection of their voices. 122
Accordingly, as you go about determining what occurred during 123
the interview, you should give special attention to whether you 124
are satisfied that what was said and done has been accurately 125
reported by the participants, including testimony as to statements 126
attributed by law enforcement witnesses to the defendant." 127
(4) Each law enforcement agency shall preserve each 128
electronic recording: 129
(a) In a manner that clearly identifies the date, time 130
and names and badge numbers of the interviewing officers, and 131
catalogues the recording by date or by alphabet; 132
(b) Until all appeals, post-conviction, and habeas 133
corpus proceedings are final and concluded, or until all 134
applicable federal and state statutes of limitations bar 135
prosecution of the person, whichever is later, if the electronic 136
recording is used in any proceeding in which criminal charges may 137
be filed; or 138
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ST: Custodial Interrogations Act; create and
authorize electronic recording of.
(c) Until all applicable federal and state statutes of 139
limitations bar prosecution of the person, if it is not used in 140
any proceeding in which criminal charges may be filed. 141
SECTION 5. Grants for electronic recording equipment. From 142
appropriations made for that purpose, the Department of Public 143
Safety shall make grants to local law enforcement agencies for the 144
purchase of equipment for electronic recording of interrogations. 145
The department shall promulgate rules to implement this paragraph. 146
SECTION 6. Training of law enforcement officers. From 147
appropriations made for that purpose, the Department of Public 148
Safety shall initiate, administer and conduct training programs 149
for law enforcement officers and recruits on the methods and 150
technical aspects of the electronic recording of interrogations. 151
SECTION 7. This act shall take effect and be in force from 152
and after July 1, 2026. 153