Voting rights and expungement; person may have voting rights restored and certain felony records expunged after five years.

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To: Judiciary B;
Constitution
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026

By: Representative Karriem

HOUSE BILL NO. 413

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 23-15-11, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, 1
TO PROVIDE THAT A PERSON WHO IS OTHERWISE A QUALIFIED ELECTOR AND 2
HAS BEEN CONVICTED OF CERTAIN DISENFRANCHISING CRIMES, EXCEPT FOR 3
ARSON, ARMED ROBBERY, CARJACKING, EMBEZZLEMENT, MURDER, RAPE, OR 4
STATUTORY RAPE, SHALL HAVE HIS OR HER RIGHT TO VOTE REVOKED, BUT 5
SHALL HAVE THE RIGHT TO VOTE AUTOMATICALLY RESTORED AFTER HE OR 6
SHE HAS SATISFIED ALL OF THE SENTENCING REQUIREMENTS OF THE 7
CONVICTION; TO AMEND SECTIONS 23-15-19, 23-15-125, 23-15-151, 8
23-15-153 AND 23-15-165, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO CONFORM TO 9
THE PRECEDING SECTION; TO BRING FORWARD SECTIONS 97-39-3 AND 10
99-19-37, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, FOR THE PURPOSE OF POSSIBLE 11
AMENDMENT; TO AMEND SECTION 99-19-71, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO 12
PROVIDE THAT ANY PERSON WHO IS A UNITED STATES CITIZEN, WHO HAS 13
BEEN CONVICTED OF CERTAIN FELONIES SHALL BE ELIGIBLE TO HAVE HIS 14
OR HER RECORD AUTOMATICALLY EXPUNGED FIVE YEARS AFTER COMPLETION 15
OF ALL TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF SUCH CONVICTION; TO AMEND SECTIONS 16
45-27-7, 45-27-21 AND 45-34-3, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO 17
REQUIRE THAT THE CIRCUIT CLERK, UPON THE ENTERING OF AN ORDER OF 18
EXPUNCTION, FORWARD A CERTIFIED COPY OF SUCH ORDER TO THE 19
MISSISSIPPI CRIMINAL INFORMATION CENTER AT THE MISSISSIPPI 20
DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY; TO REQUIRE THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC 21
SAFETY TO REMOVE SUCH PERSON'S CRIMINAL HISTORY RECORD 22
INFORMATION, CONVICTION INFORMATION, AND DISPOSITION FORM FROM THE 23
MISSISSIPPI CENTRAL CRIMINAL DATABASE WITHIN FORTY-FIVE DAYS OF 24
RECEIVING A CERTIFIED COPY OF SUCH ORDER OF EXPUNCTION; TO AMEND 25
SECTION 97-37-5, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO PROVIDE AN EXCEPTION 26
TO THE FIREARMS PROHIBITION FOR PERSONS WHO RECEIVE AN ORDER OF 27
EXPUNCTION; TO BRING FORWARD SECTIONS 45-1-45, 45-27-9, 45-27-11 28
AND 45-34-5, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, FOR PURPOSES OF POSSIBLE 29
AMENDMENT; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES. 30
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 31
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SECTION 1. Section 23-15-11, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 32
amended as follows: 33
23-15-11. (1) Except as otherwise provided in subsection 34
(2) of this section, every inhabitant of this state, except 35
persons adjudicated to be non compos mentis, shall be a qualified 36
elector in and for the county, municipality and voting precinct of 37
his or her residence and shall be entitled to vote at any election 38
upon compliance with Section 23-15-563, if he or she is: 39
(a) * * * A citizen of the United States of 40
America * * *; 41
(b) Eighteen (18) years old and upwards * * *; 42
(c) * * * A resident in this state for thirty (30) days 43
and for thirty (30) days in the county in which he or she seeks to 44
vote, and for thirty (30) days in the incorporated municipality in 45
which he or she seeks to vote * * *; 46
(d) * * * Duly registered as an elector under Section 47
23-15-33 * * *; and 48
(e) * * * Never * * * convicted of arson, armed 49
robbery, carjacking, embezzlement, if the value and/or amount 50
involved is Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00) or more, murder, 51
rape, statutory rape, or vote fraud * * *. 52
If the thirtieth day to register before an election falls on 53
a Sunday or legal holiday, the registration applications submitted 54
on the business day immediately following the Sunday or legal 55
holiday shall be accepted and entered in the Statewide Elections 56
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Management System for the purpose of enabling voters to vote in 57
the next election. 58
(2) A person who is otherwise a qualified elector under the 59
provisions of subsection (1) of this section, and has been 60
convicted of bribery, theft, obtaining money or goods under false 61
pretense, perjury, forgery, bigamy, or any crime interpreted as 62
disenfranchising in later Attorney General opinions, except for 63
arson, armed robbery, carjacking, embezzlement, if the value 64
and/or amount involved is Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00) or 65
more, murder, rape, or statutory rape, shall have his or her right 66
to vote revoked upon conviction, but shall have his or her right 67
to vote automatically restored after he or she has satisfied all 68
of the sentencing requirements of such conviction. 69
(3) Any person who will be eighteen (18) years of age or 70
older on or before the date of the general election and who is 71
duly registered to vote not less than thirty (30) days before the 72
primary election associated with the general election, may vote in 73
the primary election even though the person has not reached his or 74
her eighteenth birthday at the time that the person seeks to vote 75
at the primary election. 76
(4) No others than those specified in this section shall be 77
entitled, or shall be allowed, to vote at any election. 78
SECTION 2. Section 23-15-19, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 79
amended as follows: 80
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23-15-19. Any person who has been convicted of * * * any 81
crime listed in Section 241, Mississippi Constitution of 1890 82
* * *, or any crime interpreted as disenfranchising in later 83
Attorney General opinions, except for arson, armed robbery, 84
carjacking, embezzlement, if the value and/or amount involved is 85
Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00) or more, murder, rape, or 86
statutory rape, shall * * * have his or her right to vote revoked 87
upon conviction, but shall have his or her right to vote 88
automatically restored once he or she has satisfied all of the 89
sentencing requirements of such conviction. Whenever any person 90
shall be convicted in the circuit court of his or her county of a 91
disenfranchising crime, the county registrar shall * * * remove 92
his or her name from the Statewide Elections Management System 93
until the person has satisfied all of the sentencing requirements 94
of such conviction; and whenever any person shall be convicted of 95
a disenfranchising crime in any other court of any county, the 96
presiding judge of the court shall, on demand, certify the fact in 97
writing to the registrar of the county in which the voter resides, 98
who shall * * * remove the name of the person from the Statewide 99
Elections Management System until he or she has satisfied all of 100
the sentencing requirements of such conviction and retain the 101
certificate as a record of his or her office. 102
SECTION 3. Section 23-15-125, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 103
amended as follows: 104
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23-15-125. The pollbook of each voting precinct shall 105
designate the voting precinct for which it is to be used, and 106
shall be ruled in appropriate columns, with printed or written 107
headings, as follows: date of registration; voter registration 108
number; name of electors; date of birth; and a number of blank 109
columns for the dates of elections. All qualified applicants who 110
register with the registrar shall be entered in the Statewide 111
Elections Management System. Only the names of those qualified 112
applicants who register within thirty (30) days before an election 113
shall appear on the pollbooks of the election; however, if the 114
thirtieth day to register before an election falls on a Sunday or 115
legal holiday, the registration applications submitted on the 116
business day immediately following the legal holiday shall be 117
accepted and entered in the Statewide Elections Management System 118
for the purpose of enabling voters to vote in the next election. 119
When county election commissioners determine that any elector is 120
disqualified from voting, by reason of death, conviction of 121
a * * * disenfranchising crime, removal from the jurisdiction, 122
failure to comply with the provisions of Section 23-15-152, or 123
other legal cause, that fact shall be noted in the Statewide 124
Elections Management System and the voter's name shall be purged 125
from the Statewide Elections Management System, the state's voter 126
roll and the county's pollbooks. Nothing in this section shall 127
preclude the use of electronic pollbooks. A person who is 128
otherwise a qualified elector under the provisions of Section 129
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23-15-11 and has been convicted of bribery, theft, obtaining money 130
or goods under false pretense, perjury, forgery, bigamy, or any 131
crime interpreted as disenfranchising in later Attorney General 132
opinions, with the exception of arson, armed robbery, carjacking, 133
embezzlement, if the value and/or amount involved is Five Thousand 134
Dollars ($5,000.00) or more, murder, rape, or statutory rape, 135
shall have his or her right to vote revoked upon conviction, but 136
shall have his or her right to vote automatically restored after 137
he or she has satisfied all of the sentencing requirements of such 138
conviction. After the person has satisfied all of the sentencing 139
requirements of the conviction, the voter's name shall be 140
automatically restored into the Statewide Elections Management 141
System, the state's voter roll and the county's pollbooks. 142
SECTION 4. Section 23-15-151, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 143
amended as follows: 144
23-15-151. The circuit clerk of each county is authorized 145
and directed to prepare and keep in his or her office a full and 146
complete list, in alphabetical order, of persons convicted of 147
voter fraud or of any crime listed in Section 241, Mississippi 148
Constitution of 1890, or any crime interpreted as disenfranchising 149
in later Attorney General opinions, whose right to vote has been 150
revoked upon his or her conviction. A certified copy of any 151
enrollment by one (1) clerk to another will be sufficient 152
authority for the enrollment of the name, or names, in another 153
county. A list of persons convicted of voter fraud, any crime 154
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listed in Section 241, Mississippi Constitution of 1890, or any 155
crime interpreted as disenfranchising in later Attorney General 156
opinions, shall also be entered into the Statewide Elections 157
Management System on a quarterly basis. * * * A person who is 158
otherwise a qualified elector under the provisions of Section 159
23-15-11 and has been convicted of voter fraud, any crime listed 160
in Section 241, Mississippi Constitution of 1890, or any crime 161
interpreted as disenfranchising in later Attorney General 162
opinions, with the exception of arson, armed robbery, carjacking, 163
embezzlement, if the value and/or amount involved is Five Thousand 164
Dollars ($5,000.00) or more, murder, rape, or statutory rape, 165
shall have his or her right to vote revoked upon conviction, but 166
shall have his or her right to vote automatically restored after 167
he or she has satisfied all of the sentencing requirements of the 168
conviction. After the person has satisfied all of the sentencing 169
requirements of the conviction, the voter's name shall be 170
automatically restored into the Statewide Elections Management 171
System, the state's voter roll and the county's pollbooks. 172
SECTION 5. Section 23-15-153, Mississippi Code of 1972, 173
is amended as follows: 174
23-15-153. (1) At least during the following times, the 175
election commissioners shall meet at the office of the registrar 176
or the office of the election commissioners to carefully revise 177
the county voter roll as electronically maintained by the 178
Statewide Elections Management System and remove from the roll the 179
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names of all voters who have requested to be purged from the voter 180
roll, died, received an adjudication of non compos mentis, been 181
convicted of a disenfranchising crime and had his or her right to 182
vote revoked because of such conviction, failed to comply with the 183
provisions of Section 23-15-152, or otherwise become disqualified 184
as electors for any cause, and shall register the names of all 185
persons who have duly applied to be registered but have been 186
illegally denied registration: 187
(a) On the Tuesday after the second Monday in January 188
1987 and every following year; 189
(b) On the first Tuesday in the month immediately 190
preceding the first primary election for members of Congress in 191
the years when members of Congress are elected; 192
(c) On the first Monday in the month immediately 193
preceding the first primary election for state, state district 194
legislative, county and county district offices in the years in 195
which those offices are elected; and 196
(d) On the second Monday of September preceding the 197
general election or regular special election day in years in which 198
a general election is not conducted. 199
Except for the names of those voters who are duly qualified 200
to vote in the election, no name shall be permitted to remain in 201
the Statewide Elections Management System; however, no name shall 202
be purged from the Statewide Elections Management System based on 203
a change in the residence of an elector except in accordance with 204
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procedures provided for by the National Voter Registration Act of 205
1993 and as provided in Section 23-15-152. Except as otherwise 206
provided by Section 23-15-573, no person shall vote at any 207
election whose name is not in the county voter roll electronically 208
maintained by the Statewide Elections Management System. 209
(2) Except as provided in this section, and subject to the 210
following annual limitations, the election commissioners shall be 211
entitled to receive a per diem in the amount of One Hundred Ten 212
Dollars ($110.00), to be paid from the county general fund, for 213
every day or period of no less than five (5) hours accumulated 214
over two (2) or more days actually employed in the performance of 215
their duties in the conduct of an election or actually employed in 216
the performance of their duties for the necessary time spent in 217
the revision of the county voter roll as electronically maintained 218
by the Statewide Elections Management System as required in 219
subsection (1) of this section: 220
(a) In counties having less than fifteen thousand 221
(15,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial 222
census, not more than fifty (50) days per year, with no more than 223
fifteen (15) additional days allowed for the conduct of each 224
election in excess of one (1) occurring in any calendar year; 225
(b) In counties having fifteen thousand (15,000) 226
residents according to the latest federal decennial census but 227
less than thirty thousand (30,000) residents according to the 228
latest federal decennial census, not more than seventy-five (75) 229
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days per year, with no more than twenty-five (25) additional days 230
allowed for the conduct of each election in excess of one (1) 231
occurring in any calendar year; 232
(c) In counties having thirty thousand (30,000) 233
residents according to the latest federal decennial census but 234
less than seventy thousand (70,000) residents according to the 235
latest federal decennial census, not more than one hundred (100) 236
days per year, with no more than thirty-five (35) additional days 237
allowed for the conduct of each election in excess of one (l) 238
occurring in any calendar year; 239
(d) In counties having seventy thousand (70,000) 240
residents according to the latest federal decennial census but 241
less than ninety thousand (90,000) residents according to the 242
latest federal decennial census, not more than one hundred 243
twenty-five (125) days per year, with no more than forty-five (45) 244
additional days allowed for the conduct of each election in excess 245
of one (1) occurring in any calendar year; 246
(e) In counties having ninety thousand (90,000) 247
residents according to the latest federal decennial census but 248
less than one hundred seventy thousand (170,000) residents 249
according to the latest federal decennial census, not more than 250
one hundred fifty (150) days per year, with no more than 251
fifty-five (55) additional days allowed for the conduct of each 252
election in excess of one (1) occurring in any calendar year; 253
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(f) In counties having one hundred seventy thousand 254
(170,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial 255
census but less than two hundred thousand (200,000) residents 256
according to the latest federal decennial census, not more than 257
one hundred seventy-five (175) days per year, with no more than 258
sixty-five (65) additional days allowed for the conduct of each 259
election in excess of one (1) occurring in any calendar year; 260
(g) In counties having two hundred thousand (200,000) 261
residents according to the latest federal decennial census but 262
less than two hundred twenty-five thousand (225,000) residents 263
according to the latest federal decennial census, not more than 264
one hundred ninety (190) days per year, with no more than 265
seventy-five (75) additional days allowed for the conduct of each 266
election in excess of one (l) occurring in any calendar year; 267
(h) In counties having two hundred twenty-five thousand 268
(225,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial 269
census but less than two hundred fifty thousand (250,000) 270
residents according to the latest federal decennial census, not 271
more than two hundred fifteen (215) days per year, with no more 272
than eighty-five (85) additional days allowed for the conduct of 273
each election in excess of one (1) occurring in any calendar year; 274
(i) In counties having two hundred fifty thousand 275
(250,000) residents according to the latest federal decennial 276
census but less than two hundred seventy-five thousand (275,000) 277
residents according to the latest federal decennial census, not 278
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more than two hundred thirty (230) days per year, with no more 279
than ninety-five (95) additional days allowed for the conduct of 280
each election in excess of one (1) occurring in any calendar year; 281
(j) In counties having two hundred seventy-five 282
thousand (275,000) residents according to the latest federal 283
decennial census or more, not more than two hundred forty (240) 284
days per year, with no more than one hundred five (105) additional 285
days allowed for the conduct of each election in excess of one (l) 286
occurring in any calendar year. 287
(3) In addition to the number of days authorized in 288
subsection (2) of this section, the board of supervisors of a 289
county may authorize, in its discretion, the election 290
commissioners to receive a per diem in the amount provided for in 291
subsection (2) of this section, to be paid from the county general 292
fund, for every day or period of no less than five (5) hours 293
accumulated over two (2) or more days actually employed in the 294
performance of their duties in the conduct of an election or 295
actually employed in the performance of their duties for the 296
necessary time spent in the revision of the county voter roll as 297
electronically maintained by the Statewide Elections Management 298
System as required in subsection (1) of this section, not to 299
exceed five (5) days. 300
(4) (a) The election commissioners shall be entitled to 301
receive a per diem in the amount of One Hundred Ten Dollars 302
($110.00), to be paid from the county general fund, not to exceed 303
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ten (10) days for every day or period of no less than five (5) 304
hours accumulated over two (2) or more days actually employed in 305
the performance of their duties for the necessary time spent in 306
the revision of the county voter roll as electronically maintained 307
by the Statewide Elections Management System before any special 308
election. For purposes of this paragraph, the regular special 309
election day shall not be considered a special election. The 310
annual limitations set forth in subsection (2) of this section 311
shall not apply to this paragraph. 312
(b) The election commissioners shall be entitled to 313
receive a per diem in the amount of One Hundred Sixty-five Dollars 314
($165.00), to be paid from the county general fund, for the 315
performance of their duties on the day of any primary, runoff, 316
general or special election; however, the board of supervisors 317
may, in its discretion, pay the election commissioners an 318
additional amount not to exceed Thirty-five Dollars ($35.00) per 319
election. The annual limitations set forth in subsection (2) of 320
this section shall apply to this paragraph. 321
(5) The election commissioners shall be entitled to receive 322
a per diem in the amount of One Hundred Ten Dollars ($110.00), to 323
be paid from the county general fund, not to exceed fourteen (14) 324
days for every day or period of no less than five (5) hours 325
accumulated over two (2) or more days actually employed in the 326
performance of their duties for the necessary time spent in the 327
revision of the county voter roll as electronically maintained by 328
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the Statewide Elections Management System and in the conduct of a 329
runoff election following either a general or special election. 330
(6) The election commissioners shall be entitled to receive 331
only one (1) per diem payment for those days when the election 332
commissioners discharge more than one (1) duty or responsibility 333
on the same day. 334
(7) The election commissioners shall be entitled to receive 335
a per diem in the amount of One Hundred Ten Dollars ($110.00), to 336
be paid from the county general fund, not to exceed five (5) days 337
for every day or period of no less than five (5) hours accumulated 338
over two (2) or more days for those days when the election 339
commissioners shall be required to conduct an audit of an election 340
as provided in Section 23-15-615. 341
(8) In preparation for a municipal primary, runoff, general 342
or special election, the county registrar shall generate and 343
distribute the master voter roll and pollbooks from the Statewide 344
Elections Management System for the municipality located within 345
the county. The municipality shall pay the county registrar for 346
the actual cost of preparing and printing the municipal master 347
voter roll pollbooks. A municipality may secure "read only" 348
access to the Statewide Elections Management System and print its 349
own pollbooks using this information. 350
(9) County election commissioners who perform the duties of 351
an executive committee with regard to the conduct of a primary 352
election under a written agreement authorized by law to be entered 353
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into with an executive committee shall receive per diem as 354
provided for in subsection (2) of this section. The days that 355
county election commissioners are employed in the conduct of a 356
primary election shall be treated the same as days county election 357
commissioners are employed in the conduct of other elections. 358
(10) In addition to any per diem authorized by this section, 359
any election commissioner shall be entitled to the mileage 360
reimbursement rate allowable to federal employees for the use of a 361
privately owned vehicle while on official travel on election day. 362
(11) Every election commissioner shall sign personally a 363
certification setting forth the number of hours actually worked in 364
the performance of the commissioner's official duties and for 365
which the commissioner seeks compensation. The certification must 366
be on a form as prescribed in this subsection. The commissioner's 367
signature is, as a matter of law, made under the commissioner's 368
oath of office and under penalties of perjury. 369
The certification form shall be as follows: 370
COUNTY ELECTION COMMISSIONER 371
PER DIEM CLAIM FORM 372
NAME: ____________________________ COUNTY: _______________ 373
ADDRESS: _________________________ DISTRICT: _____________ 374
CITY: ______________ ZIP: ________ 375
PURPOSE APPLICABLE ACTUAL PER DIEM 376
DATE BEGINNING ENDING OF MS CODE HOURS DAYS 377
WORKED TIME TIME WORK SECTION WORKED EARNED 378
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________________________________________________________________ 379
________________________________________________________________ 380
________________________________________________________________ 381
TOTAL NUMBER OF PER DIEM DAYS EARNED 382
EXCLUDING ELECTION DAYS ________ 383
PER DIEM RATE PER DAY EARNED X $110.00 384
TOTAL NUMBER PER DIEM DAYS EARNED 385
FOR ELECTION DAYS ________ 386
PER DIEM RATE PER DAY EARNED X $165.00 387
BOARD OF SUPERVISORS ELECTION DAY 388
DISCRETIONARY ADDITION(S) 389
TO PER DIEM RATE PER DAY EARNED X $35.00 390
TOTAL AMOUNT OF PER DIEM CLAIMED $_______ 391
I understand that I am signing this document under my oath as 392
an election commissioner and under penalties of perjury. 393
I understand that I am requesting payment from taxpayer funds 394
and that I have an obligation to be specific and truthful as to 395
the amount of hours worked and the compensation I am requesting. 396
Signed this the _____ day of ______________, ____. 397
________________________ 398
Commissioner's Signature 399
When properly completed and signed, the certification must be 400
filed with the clerk of the county board of supervisors before any 401
payment may be made. The certification will be a public record 402
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available for inspection and reproduction immediately upon the 403
oral or written request of any person. 404
Any person may contest the accuracy of the certification in 405
any respect by notifying the chair of the commission, any member 406
of the board of supervisors or the clerk of the board of 407
supervisors of the contest at any time before or after payment is 408
made. If the contest is made before payment is made, no payment 409
shall be made as to the contested certificate until the contest is 410
finally disposed of. The person filing the contest shall be 411
entitled to a full hearing, and the clerk of the board of 412
supervisors shall issue subpoenas upon request of the contestor 413
compelling the attendance of witnesses and production of documents 414
and things. The contestor shall have the right to appeal de novo 415
to the circuit court of the involved county, which appeal must be 416
perfected within thirty (30) days from a final decision of the 417
commission, the clerk of the board of supervisors or the board of 418
supervisors, as the case may be. 419
Any contestor who successfully contests any certification 420
will be awarded all expenses incident to his or her contest, 421
together with reasonable attorney's fees, which will be awarded 422
upon petition to the chancery court of the involved county upon 423
final disposition of the contest before the election commission, 424
board of supervisors, clerk of the board of supervisors, or, in 425
case of an appeal, final disposition by the court. The 426
commissioner against whom the contest is decided shall be liable 427
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for the payment of the expenses and attorney's fees, and the 428
county shall be jointly and severally liable for same. 429
(12) Any election commissioner who has not received a 430
certificate issued by the Secretary of State pursuant to Section 431
23-15-211 indicating that the election commissioner has received 432
the required elections seminar instruction and that the election 433
commissioner is fully qualified to conduct an election, shall not 434
receive any compensation authorized by this section or Section 435
23-15-239. 436
SECTION 6. Section 23-15-165, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 437
amended as follows: 438
23-15-165. (1) The Office of the Secretary of State, in 439
cooperation with the county registrars and election commissioners, 440
shall procure, implement and maintain an electronic information 441
processing system and programs capable of maintaining a 442
centralized database of all registered voters in the state. The 443
system shall encompass software and hardware, at both the state 444
and county level, software development training, conversion and 445
support and maintenance for the system. The Secretary of State 446
shall equip the Statewide Elections Management System with 447
appropriate security measures to protect private information of 448
the registered voter and the integrity of Mississippi elections. 449
This system shall be known as the "Statewide Elections Management 450
System" and shall constitute the official record of registered 451
voters in every county of the state. 452
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(2) The Office of the Secretary of State shall develop and 453
implement the Statewide Elections Management System so that the 454
registrar and election commissioners of each county shall: 455
(a) Verify that an applicant that is registering to 456
vote in that county is not registered to vote in another county; 457
(b) Be notified automatically that a registered voter 458
in its county has registered to vote in another county; 459
(c) Receive regular reports of death, changes of 460
address and convictions for * * * disenfranchising crimes, which 461
cause a voter to have his or her right to vote revoked, that apply 462
to voters registered in the county; 463
(d) Receive regular reports of voters who were not 464
convicted of arson, armed robbery, carjacking, embezzlement, if 465
the value and/or amount involved is Five Thousand Dollars 466
($5,000.00) or more, murder, rape, or statutory rape, and have 467
satisfied all of the sentencing requirements of his or her felony 468
conviction described in paragraph (c) of this subsection and 469
automatically restore the voter's name into the Statewide 470
Elections Management System, the state's voter roll and the 471
county's pollbooks; 472
( * * *e) Retain all present functionality related to, 473
but not limited to, the use of voter roll data and to implement 474
such other functionality as the law requires to enhance the 475
maintenance of accurate county voter records and related jury 476
selection and redistricting programs; and 477
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( * * *f) When evidence exists that a registered voter 478
may not be a citizen of the United States as provided in Section 479
23-15-15, send notification to the registrar of the location where 480
the person is registered to vote. 481
(3) As a part of the procurement and implementation of the 482
system, the Office of the Secretary of State shall, with the 483
assistance of the advisory committee, procure services necessary 484
to convert current voter registration records in the counties into 485
a standard, industry accepted file format that can be used on the 486
Statewide Elections Management System. Thereafter, all official 487
voter information shall be maintained on the Statewide Elections 488
Management System. The standard industry accepted format of data 489
was reviewed and approved by a majority of the advisory committee 490
created in subsection (5) of this section after consultation with 491
the Circuit Clerks Association and the format may not be changed 492
without consulting the Circuit Clerks Association. 493
(4) The Secretary of State may, with the assistance of the 494
advisory committee, adopt rules and regulations necessary to 495
administer the Statewide Elections Management System. The rules 496
and regulations shall at least: 497
(a) Provide for the establishment and maintenance of a 498
centralized database for all voter registration information in the 499
state; 500
(b) Provide procedures for integrating data into the 501
centralized database; 502
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(c) Provide security to ensure that only the registrar, 503
or his or her designee or other appropriate official, as the law 504
may require, can add information to, delete information from and 505
modify information in the system; 506
(d) Provide the registrar or his or her designee or 507
other appropriate official, as the law may require, access to the 508
system at all times, including the ability to download copies of 509
the industry standard file, for all purposes related to their 510
official duties, including, but not limited to, exclusive access 511
for the purpose of printing all local pollbooks; 512
(e) Provide security and protection of all information 513
in the system and monitor the system to ensure that unauthorized 514
access is not allowed; 515
(f) Provide a procedure that will allow the registrar, 516
or his or her designee or other appropriate official, as the law 517
may require, to identify the precinct to which a voter should be 518
assigned; and 519
(g) Provide a procedure for phasing in or converting 520
existing manual and computerized voter registration systems in 521
counties to the Statewide Elections Management System. 522
(5) The Secretary of State established an advisory committee 523
to assist in developing system specifications, procurement, 524
implementation and maintenance of the Statewide Elections 525
Management System. The committee included two (2) representatives 526
from the Circuit Clerks Association, appointed by the association; 527
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two (2) representatives from the Election Commissioners 528
Association of Mississippi, appointed by the association; one (1) 529
member of the Mississippi Association of Supervisors, or its 530
staff, appointed by the association; the Director of the Stennis 531
Institute of Government at Mississippi State University, or his or 532
her designee; the Executive Director of the Department of 533
Information Technology Services, or his or her designee; two (2) 534
persons knowledgeable about elections and information technology 535
appointed by the Secretary of State; and the Secretary of State, 536
who shall serve as the chair of the advisory committee. 537
(6) (a) Social security numbers, telephone numbers, email 538
addresses, and date of birth and age information in statewide, 539
district, county and municipal voter registration files shall be 540
exempt from and shall not be subject to inspection, examination, 541
copying or reproduction under the Mississippi Public Records Act 542
of 1983. 543
(b) Copies of statewide, district, county or municipal 544
voter registration files, excluding social security numbers, 545
telephone numbers, email addresses, and date of birth and age 546
information, shall be provided to any person in accordance with 547
the Mississippi Public Records Act of 1983 at a cost not to exceed 548
the actual cost of production. 549
SECTION 7. Section 97-39-3, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 550
brought forward as follows: 551
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97-39-3. If any person shall fight a duel, or give or accept 552
a challenge to fight a duel, or knowingly carry or deliver such 553
challenge or the acceptance thereof, or be second to either party 554
to any duel, whether such act be done in the state or out of it, 555
or who shall go out of the state to fight a duel, or to assist in 556
the same as second, or to send, accept, or carry a challenge, 557
shall be disqualified from holding any office, be disenfranchised, 558
and incapable of holding or being elected to any post of honor, 559
profit or emolument, civil or military, under the constitution and 560
laws of this state; and the appointment of any such person to 561
office, as also all votes given to any such person, are illegal, 562
and none of the votes given to such person for any office shall be 563
taken or counted. 564
SECTION 8. Section 99-19-37, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 565
brought forward as follows: 566
99-19-37. (1) Any person who has lost the right of suffrage 567
by reason of conviction of crime and has not been pardoned 568
therefrom, who thereafter served honorably in any branch of the 569
Armed Forces of the United States during the periods of World War 570
I or World War II as hereinafter defined and shall have received 571
an honorable discharge, or release therefrom, shall by reason of 572
such honorable service, have the full right of suffrage restored, 573
provided, however, this does not apply to any one having an 574
unfinished or suspended sentence. 575
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(2) For the purposes of this section the period of World War 576
I shall be from April 6, 1917 to December 1, 1918, and the period 577
of World War II shall be from December 7, 1941 to December 31, 578
1946. 579
(3) In order to have restored, and to exercise, the right of 580
franchise under the provisions of this section a person affected 581
hereby shall have his discharge, or release, from the Armed Forces 582
of the United States recorded in the office of the chancery clerk 583
of the county in which such person desires to exercise the right 584
of franchise and if such discharge, or release, appears to be an 585
honorable discharge, or release, and shows such person to have 586
served honorably during either of the periods stated in subsection 587
(2) of this section such person shall have the full right of 588
suffrage restored as though an act had been passed by the 589
Legislature in accordance with Section 253 of the Constitution of 590
the State of Mississippi restoring the right of suffrage to such 591
person. 592
SECTION 9. Section 99-19-71, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 593
amended as follows: 594
99-19-71. (1) Any person, who is a United States citizen, 595
who has been convicted of a misdemeanor that is not a traffic 596
violation, and who is a first offender, may petition the justice, 597
county, circuit or municipal court in which the conviction was had 598
for an order to expunge any such conviction from all public 599
records. 600
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For an expunction as provided in this subsection (1), the 601
petitioner shall give ten (10) days' written notice to the 602
district attorney before any hearing on the petition. In all 603
cases, the court wherein the petition is filed may grant the 604
petition if the court determines, on the record or in writing, 605
that the applicant is rehabilitated from the offense which is the 606
subject of the petition. In those cases where the court denies 607
the petition, the findings of the court in this respect shall be 608
identified specifically and not generally. 609
(2) (a) Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, a 610
person, who is a United States citizen, who has been convicted of 611
a felony and who has paid all criminal fines and costs of court 612
imposed in the sentence of conviction * * * shall automatically 613
have his or her record of such conviction expunged from the court 614
in which the conviction was had * * *, and from all public 615
records, five (5) years after the successful completion of all 616
terms and conditions of the sentence for the conviction * * *; 617
however, a person is not eligible to expunge a felony classified 618
as: 619
(i) A crime of violence as provided in Section 620
97-3-2; 621
(ii) Arson, first degree as provided in Sections 622
97-17-1 and 97-17-3; 623
(iii) Trafficking in controlled substances as 624
provided in Section 41-29-139; 625
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(iv) A third, fourth or subsequent offense DUI as 626
provided in Section 63-11-30(2)(c) and (2)(d); 627
(v) Felon in possession of a firearm as provided 628
in Section 97-37-5; 629
(vi) Failure to register as a sex offender as 630
provided in Section 45-33-33; 631
(vii) Voyeurism as provided in Section 97-29-61; 632
(viii) Witness intimidation as provided in Section 633
97-9-113; 634
(ix) Abuse, neglect or exploitation of a 635
vulnerable person as provided in Section 43-47-19; or 636
(x) Embezzlement, as provided in Sections 97-11-25 637
and 97-23-19, if the value and/or amount involved is Five Thousand 638
Dollars ($5,000.00) or more. 639
(b) For purposes of this act, the term "automatically" 640
means initiated by the court in which the conviction was had, and 641
without requiring a petition by the person who was convicted. 642
(c) A person is eligible for only one (1) felony 643
expunction under this paragraph. For the purposes of this 644
section, the terms "one (1) conviction" and "one (1) felony 645
expunction" mean and include all convictions that arose from a 646
common nucleus of operative facts as determined in the discretion 647
of the court. 648
* * * 649
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(3) Upon entering an order of expunction under this section, 650
a nonpublic record thereof shall be retained by the Mississippi 651
Criminal Information Center solely for the purpose of determining 652
whether, in subsequent proceedings, the person is a first 653
offender. The order of expunction shall not preclude a district 654
attorney's office from retaining a nonpublic record thereof for 655
law enforcement purposes only. The existence of an order of 656
expunction shall not preclude an employer from asking a 657
prospective employee if the employee has had an order of 658
expunction entered on his or her behalf. The effect of the 659
expunction order shall be to restore the person, in the 660
contemplation of the law, to the status he or she occupied before 661
any arrest or indictment for which convicted. No person as to 662
whom an expunction order has been entered shall be held thereafter 663
under any provision of law to be guilty of perjury or to have 664
otherwise given a false statement by reason of his or her failure 665
to recite or acknowledge such arrest, indictment or conviction in 666
response to any inquiry made of him or her for any purpose other 667
than the purpose of determining, in any subsequent proceedings 668
under this section, whether the person is a first offender. A 669
person as to whom an order has been entered, upon request, shall 670
be required to advise the court, in camera, of the previous 671
conviction and expunction in any legal proceeding wherein the 672
person has been called as a prospective juror. The court shall 673
thereafter and before the selection of the jury advise the 674
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attorneys representing the parties of the previous conviction and 675
expunction. 676
(4) Upon petition therefor, a justice, county, circuit or 677
municipal court shall expunge the record of any case in which an 678
arrest was made, the person arrested was released and the case was 679
dismissed or the charges were dropped or there was no disposition 680
of such case, or the person was found not guilty at trial. 681
(5) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (2)(a) of 682
this section, no public official is eligible for expunction under 683
this section for any conviction related to his or her official 684
duties. 685
(6) Upon the entering of an order of expunction under this 686
section, the circuit clerk shall forward a certified copy of such 687
order to the Mississippi Criminal Information Center at the 688
Mississippi Department of Public Safety. Within forty-five (45) 689
days of receiving a certified copy of an order of expunction as 690
provided in this section, the department shall remove such 691
individual's criminal history record information, conviction 692
information, and disposition form from the Mississippi central 693
criminal database which is comprised of prior offenses and 694
convictions. 695
SECTION 10. Section 45-27-7, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 696
amended as follows: 697
45-27-7. (1) The Mississippi Justice Information Center 698
shall: 699
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(a) Develop, operate and maintain an information system 700
which will support the collection, storage, retrieval and 701
dissemination of all data described in this chapter, consistent 702
with those principles of scope, security and responsiveness 703
prescribed by this chapter. 704
(b) Cooperate with all criminal justice agencies within 705
the state in providing those forms, procedures, standards and 706
related training assistance necessary for the uniform operation of 707
the statewide center. 708
(c) Offer assistance and, when practicable, instruction 709
to all local law enforcement agencies in establishing efficient 710
local records systems. 711
(d) Make available, upon request, to all local and 712
state criminal justice agencies, to all federal criminal justice 713
agencies and to criminal justice agencies in other states any 714
information in the files of the center which will aid such 715
agencies in the performance of their official duties. For this 716
purpose the center shall operate on a twenty-four-hour basis, 717
seven (7) days a week. Such information, when authorized by the 718
director of the center, may also be made available to any other 719
agency of this state or any political subdivision thereof and to 720
any federal agency, upon assurance by the agency concerned that 721
the information is to be used for official purposes only in the 722
prevention or detection of crime or the apprehension of criminal 723
offenders. 724
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(e) Cooperate with other agencies of this state, the 725
crime information agencies of other states, and the national crime 726
information center systems of the Federal Bureau of Investigation 727
in developing and conducting an interstate, national and 728
international system of criminal identification and records. 729
(f) Make available, upon request, to nongovernmental 730
entities or employers certain information for noncriminal justice 731
purposes as specified in Section 45-27-12. 732
(g) Institute necessary measures in the design, 733
implementation and continued operation of the justice information 734
system to ensure the privacy and security of the system. Such 735
measures shall include establishing complete control over use of 736
and access to the system and restricting its integral resources 737
and facilities and those either possessed or procured and 738
controlled by criminal justice agencies. Such security measures 739
must meet standards developed by the center as well as those set 740
by the nationally operated systems for interstate sharing of 741
information. 742
(h) Provide data processing for files listing motor 743
vehicle drivers' license numbers, motor vehicle registration 744
numbers, wanted and stolen motor vehicles, outstanding warrants, 745
identifiable stolen property and such other files as may be of 746
general assistance to law enforcement agencies; provided, however, 747
that the purchase, lease, rental or acquisition in any manner of 748
"computer equipment or services," as defined in Section 25-53-3, 749
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Mississippi Code of 1972, shall be subject to the approval of the 750
Mississippi Information Technology Services. 751
(i) Maintain a field coordination and support unit 752
which shall have all the power conferred by law upon any peace 753
officer of this state. 754
(j) Within forty-five (45) days after receipt by the 755
department of a certified copy of an order of expunction as 756
provided in Section 99-19-71, remove an individual's criminal 757
history record information, conviction information, and 758
disposition form from the Mississippi central criminal database 759
which is comprised of prior offenses and convictions. 760
(2) The department, including the investigative division or 761
the center, may: 762
(a) Obtain and store fingerprints, descriptions, 763
photographs and any other pertinent identifying data from crime 764
scenes and on persons who: 765
(i) Have been or are hereafter arrested or taken 766
into custody in this state: 767
1. For an offense which is a felony; 768
2. For an offense which is a misdemeanor; 769
3. As a fugitive from justice; or 770
(ii) Are or become habitual offenders; or 771
(iii) Are currently or become confined to any 772
prison, penitentiary or other penal institution; or 773
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(iv) Are unidentified human corpses found in the 774
state; or 775
(v) Have submitted fingerprints for conducting 776
criminal history record checks. 777
(b) Compare all fingerprint and other identifying data 778
received with that already on file and determine whether or not a 779
criminal record is found for such person, and at once inform the 780
requesting agency or arresting officer of those facts that may be 781
disseminated consistent with applicable security and privacy laws 782
and regulations. A record shall be maintained for a minimum of 783
one (1) year of the dissemination of each individual criminal 784
history, including at least the date and recipient of such 785
information. 786
(c) Establish procedures to respond to those 787
individuals who file requests to review their own records, 788
pursuant to Sections 45-27-11 and 45-27-12, and to cooperate in 789
the correction of the central center records and those of 790
contributing agencies when their accuracy has been successfully 791
challenged either through the related contributing agencies or by 792
court order issued on behalf of an individual. 793
(d) Retain in the system the fingerprints of all law 794
enforcement officers and part-time law enforcement officers, as 795
those terms are defined in Section 45-6-3, any fingerprints sent 796
by the Mississippi State Department of Health, and of all 797
applicants to law enforcement agencies. 798
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(3) There shall be a presumption that a copy of any document 799
submitted to the center in accordance with the provisions of 800
Section 45-27-9 that has been processed as set forth in this 801
chapter and subsequently certified and provided by the center to a 802
law enforcement agency or a court shall be admissible in any 803
proceeding without further authentication unless a person 804
objecting to that admissibility has successfully challenged the 805
document under the provisions of Section 45-27-11. 806
SECTION 11. Section 45-27-21, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 807
amended as follows: 808
45-27-21. (1) (a) A certified copy of every expunction and 809
nonadjudication order shall be sent by the circuit clerk to the 810
Mississippi Criminal Information Center where it shall be 811
maintained in a separate confidential database accessible only 812
upon written request by a district attorney, a county prosecuting 813
attorney, a municipal court prosecuting attorney, the Attorney 814
General of Mississippi and the Mississippi Law Enforcement 815
Standards and Training Board. 816
(b) Within forty-five (45) days of receiving a 817
certified copy of an order of expunction as provided in Section 818
99-19-71, the department shall remove such individual's criminal 819
history record information, conviction information, and 820
disposition form from the Mississippi central criminal database 821
which is comprised of prior offenses and convictions. 822
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(2) Any criminal conviction which has been expunged or 823
nonadjudicated may be used for the purpose of determining habitual 824
offender status and for the use of the Mississippi Law Enforcement 825
Standards and Training Board in giving or retaining law 826
enforcement certification, and to ensure that a person is only 827
eligible for first-offender status one (1) time. 828
SECTION 12. Section 45-34-3, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 829
amended as follows: 830
45-34-3. (1) The department shall post a publicly 831
accessible registry online of all offenders by July 1, 2024. 832
(2) (a) The list must include the offender's full legal 833
name, any aliases by which the offender is or has been known, 834
including any online or internet identifiers and the offender's 835
date of birth. 836
(b) The list shall not include the offender's social 837
security number, driver's license number, any other state or 838
federal identification number, physical address or telephone 839
numbers. 840
(3) (a) Except as otherwise provided in this section, no 841
offender shall be removed from the registry unless and until all 842
fines, penalties and restitution resulting from conviction have 843
been paid and proof of same provided to the department. 844
(b) If the offender is not convicted of another 845
registrable offense while listed and if all fines, penalties and 846
restitution have been paid, the department shall remove the 847
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offender's information from the list after either five (5) years 848
from the date of the offender's conviction or five (5) years from 849
the date of an offender's release from physical incarceration, 850
whichever is later. 851
(c) Notwithstanding paragraphs (a) and (b) of this 852
subsection, a person who has served any sentence imposed and paid 853
all fines, penalties and any restitution ordered may petition the 854
department to be removed from the list after the satisfaction of 855
the conditions of this paragraph (c). Upon receipt and 856
confirmation of a true and correct petition, the department shall 857
remove the offender from the registry. 858
(d) Within forty-five (45) days of receiving a 859
certified copy of an order of expunction as provided in Section 860
99-19-71, the department shall remove such individual from the 861
registry, and remove his or her criminal history record 862
information, conviction information, and disposition form from the 863
Mississippi central criminal database which is comprised of prior 864
offenses and convictions. 865
SECTION 13. Section 97-37-5, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 866
amended as follows: 867
97-37-5. (1) It shall be unlawful for any person who has 868
been convicted of a felony under the laws of this state, any other 869
state, or of the United States to possess any firearm or any bowie 870
knife, dirk knife, butcher knife, switchblade knife, metallic 871
knuckles, blackjack, or any muffler or silencer for any firearm 872
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unless such person has received a pardon for such felony, has 873
received an order of expunction for such conviction as provided 874
under Section 99-19-71, has received a relief from disability 875
pursuant to Section 925(c) of Title 18 of the United States Code, 876
or has received a certificate of rehabilitation pursuant to 877
subsection (3) of this section. 878
(2) Any person violating this section shall be guilty of a 879
felony and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not more than 880
Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00), or committed to the custody of 881
the State Department of Corrections for not less than one (1) year 882
nor more than ten (10) years, or both. 883
(3) A person who has been convicted of a felony under the 884
laws of this state, under the laws of another state, under federal 885
law or in state military court may apply for a certificate of 886
rehabilitation as provided in this section. If the person was 887
convicted of a felony under the laws of this state, he or she may 888
apply to the court in which he was convicted for a certificate of 889
rehabilitation. If the person was convicted of a felony under the 890
laws of another state, under federal law or in state military 891
court, he or she may apply to the court in the person's county of 892
residence for a certificate of rehabilitation. A person convicted 893
of a felony under the laws of another state, under federal law or 894
in state military court shall attach a certified copy of his or 895
her judgment and a certified copy of his or her completion of 896
sentence to the petition for a certificate of rehabilitation. The 897
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court may grant such certificate in its discretion upon a showing 898
to the satisfaction of the court that the applicant has been 899
rehabilitated and has led a useful, productive and law-abiding 900
life since the completion of his or her sentence and upon the 901
finding of the court that he or she will not be likely to act in a 902
manner dangerous to public safety. 903
(4) (a) A person who is discharged from court-ordered 904
mental health treatment may petition the court which entered the 905
commitment order for an order stating that the person qualifies 906
for relief from a firearms disability. 907
(b) In determining whether to grant relief, the court 908
must hear and consider evidence about: 909
(i) The circumstances that led to imposition of 910
the firearms disability under 18 USCS, Section 922(d)(4); 911
(ii) The person's mental history; 912
(iii) The person's criminal history; and 913
(iv) The person's reputation. 914
(c) A court may not grant relief unless it makes and 915
enters in the record the following affirmative findings: 916
(i) That the person is no longer likely to act in 917
a manner dangerous to public safety; and 918
(ii) Removing the person's disability to purchase 919
a firearm is not against the public interest. 920
SECTION 14. Section 45-1-45, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 921
brought forward as follows: 922
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45-1-45. (1) The Department of Public Safety shall 923
implement an Internet-based data and information sharing network 924
that will allow state and local law enforcement, court personnel, 925
prosecutors and other agencies to exchange and view felony and 926
misdemeanor information on current and former criminal offenders 927
through a currently available, near real-time, updated hourly, 928
nationwide jail database which represents fifty percent (50%) or 929
more of all incarcerated persons in the country. 930
(2) There is created in the State Treasury a special fund to 931
be known as the Information Exchange Network Fund. The purpose of 932
the fund shall be to provide funding for the Web-based information 933
sharing network required by subsection (1) of this section. 934
Monies from the funds derived from assessments under Section 935
99-19-73 shall be distributed by the State Treasurer upon warrants 936
issued by the Department of Public Safety. The fund shall be a 937
continuing fund, not subject to fiscal-year limitations, and shall 938
consist of: 939
(a) Monies appropriated by the Legislature; 940
(b) The interest accruing to the fund; 941
(c) Monies received under the provisions of Section 942
99-19-73; 943
(d) Monies received from the federal government; 944
(e) Donations; and 945
(f) Monies received from such other sources as may be 946
provided by law. 947
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SECTION 15. Section 45-27-9, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 948
brought forward as follows: 949
45-27-9. (1) All criminal justice agencies within the state 950
shall submit to the center an arrest card that will transmit 951
fingerprints, descriptions, photographs (when specifically 952
requested), and other identifying data on persons who have been 953
lawfully arrested or taken into custody in this state for all 954
felonies and misdemeanors as described in Section 45-27-7(2)(a). 955
It shall be the duty of all chiefs of police, sheriffs, district 956
attorneys, courts, court clerks, judges, parole and probation 957
officers, wardens or other persons in charge of correctional 958
institutions in this state to furnish the center with all data 959
required by the rules duly promulgated under the Administrative 960
Procedures Act to carry out its responsibilities under this 961
chapter, and the duty of courts and court clerks to submit a 962
disposition form for every disposition. It shall be the duty of 963
all criminal justice agencies within the state to supply the 964
prosecutor and the proper court with the disposition form that is 965
attached to the physical arrest card if fingerprints were taken 966
manually or, if fingerprints were captured digitally, the 967
disposition form generated by the electronic fingerprint device at 968
the time of the arrest. The PEER committee may conduct random 969
review of the records of any agency or clerks referenced in this 970
subsection (1) to determine whether the duties of such agencies 971
and clerks are being fulfilled in a timely manner. The PEER 972
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committee, based on its findings, if any, shall recommend measures 973
to ensure that the duties are more effectively carried out in a 974
timely manner. 975
(2) (a) All persons in charge of law enforcement agencies 976
shall obtain, or cause to be obtained, fingerprints according to 977
the fingerprint system of identification established by the 978
Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, full face and 979
profile photographs (if equipment is available) and other 980
available identifying data, of each person arrested or taken into 981
custody for an offense of a type designated in subsection (1) of 982
this section, of all persons arrested or taken into custody as 983
fugitives from justice and of all unidentified human corpses in 984
their jurisdictions, but photographs need not be taken if it is 985
known that photographs of the type listed, taken within the 986
previous year, are on file. Any record taken in connection with 987
any person arrested or taken into custody and subsequently 988
released without charge or cleared of the offense through court 989
proceedings shall be purged from the files of the center and 990
destroyed upon receipt by the center of a lawful expunction order. 991
All persons in charge of law enforcement agencies shall submit to 992
the center detailed descriptions of arrests or takings into 993
custody which result in release without charge or subsequent 994
exoneration from criminal liability within twenty-four (24) hours 995
of the release or exoneration. 996
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(b) The center will work to secure grant funds to 997
purchase live scan equipment to be utilized throughout the state. 998
All law enforcement agencies shall utilize any live scan equipment 999
provided by the center to ensure the most accurate collection of 1000
fingerprints. The center shall coordinate the use of the 1001
equipment with federal, state, county and municipal law 1002
enforcement agencies. 1003
(3) Fingerprints and other identifying data required to be 1004
taken under subsection (2) shall be forwarded within twenty-four 1005
(24) hours after taking for filing and classification, but the 1006
period of twenty-four (24) hours may be extended to cover any 1007
intervening holiday or weekend. Photographs taken shall be 1008
forwarded at the discretion of the agency concerned, but, if not 1009
forwarded, the fingerprint record shall be marked "Photo 1010
Available" and the photographs shall be forwarded subsequently if 1011
the center so requests. 1012
(4) All persons in charge of law enforcement agencies shall 1013
submit to the center detailed descriptions of arrest warrants and 1014
related identifying data immediately upon determination of the 1015
fact that the warrant cannot be served for the reasons stated. If 1016
the warrant is subsequently served or withdrawn, the law 1017
enforcement agency concerned must immediately notify the center of 1018
the service or withdrawal. Also, the agency concerned must 1019
annually, no later than January 31 of each year and at other times 1020
if requested by the center, confirm all arrest warrants which 1021
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continue to be outstanding. Upon receipt of a lawful expunction 1022
order, the center shall purge and destroy files of all data 1023
relating to an offense when an individual is subsequently 1024
exonerated from criminal liability of that offense. The center 1025
shall not be liable for the failure to purge, destroy or expunge 1026
any records if an agency or court fails to forward to the center 1027
proper documentation ordering the action. 1028
(5) All persons in charge of state correctional institutions 1029
shall obtain fingerprints, according to the fingerprint system of 1030
identification established by the Director of the Federal Bureau 1031
of Investigation or as otherwise directed by the center, and full 1032
face and profile photographs of all persons received on commitment 1033
to the institutions. The prints so taken shall be forwarded to 1034
the center, together with any other identifying data requested, 1035
within ten (10) days after the arrival at the institution of the 1036
person committed. At the time of release, the institution will 1037
again obtain fingerprints, as before, and forward them to the 1038
center within ten (10) days, along with any other related 1039
information requested by the center. The institution shall notify 1040
the center immediately upon the release of the person. 1041
(6) All persons in charge of law enforcement agencies, all 1042
court clerks, all municipal justices where they have no clerks, 1043
all justice court judges and all persons in charge of state and 1044
county probation and parole offices, shall supply the center with 1045
the information described in subsections (4) and (10) of this 1046
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section on the basis of the forms and instructions for the 1047
disposition form to be supplied by the center. 1048
(7) All persons in charge of law enforcement agencies in 1049
this state shall furnish the center with any other identifying 1050
data required in accordance with guidelines established by the 1051
center. All law enforcement agencies and correctional 1052
institutions in this state having criminal identification files 1053
shall cooperate in providing the center with copies of the items 1054
in the files which will aid in establishing the nucleus of the 1055
state criminal identification file. 1056
(8) All law enforcement agencies within the state shall 1057
report to the center, in a manner prescribed by the center, all 1058
persons wanted by and all vehicles and identifiable property 1059
stolen from their jurisdictions. The report shall be made as soon 1060
as is practical after the investigating department or agency 1061
either ascertains that a vehicle or identifiable property has been 1062
stolen or obtains a warrant for an individual's arrest or 1063
determines that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the 1064
individual has committed a crime. The report shall be made within 1065
a reasonable time period following the reporting department's or 1066
agency's determination that it has grounds to believe that a 1067
vehicle or property was stolen or that the wanted person should be 1068
arrested. 1069
(9) All law enforcement agencies in the state shall 1070
immediately notify the center if at any time after making a report 1071
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as required by subsection (8) of this section it is determined by 1072
the reporting department or agency that a person is no longer 1073
wanted or that a vehicle or property stolen has been recovered. 1074
Furthermore, if the agency making the apprehension or recovery is 1075
not the one which made the original report, then it shall 1076
immediately notify the originating agency of the full particulars 1077
relating to the apprehension or recovery using methods prescribed 1078
by the center. 1079
(10) All law enforcement agencies in the state and clerks of 1080
the various courts shall promptly report to the center all 1081
instances where records of convictions of criminals are ordered 1082
expunged by courts of this state as now provided by law. The 1083
center shall promptly expunge from the files of the center and 1084
destroy all records pertaining to any convictions that are ordered 1085
expunged by the courts of this state as provided by law. 1086
(11) The center shall not be held liable for the failure to 1087
purge, destroy or expunge records if an agency or court fails to 1088
forward to the center proper documentation ordering the action. 1089
(12) Any criminal justice department or agency making an 1090
expenditure in excess of Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00) in any 1091
calendar year on software or programming upgrades concerning a 1092
computerized records management system or jail management system 1093
shall ensure that the new or upgraded system is formatted to 1094
Department of Justice approved XML format and that no impediments 1095
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to data sharing with other agencies or departments exist in the 1096
software programming. 1097
(13) (a) All law enforcement agencies within the state 1098
shall: 1099
(i) Implement an incident-based reporting system 1100
within the agency or department that meets the reporting 1101
requirements of the National Incident-Based Reporting System 1102
(NIBRS) of the Uniform Crime Reporting Program of the Federal 1103
Bureau of Investigation; 1104
(ii) Use the system described by subparagraph (i) 1105
to submit to the center information and statistics concerning 1106
criminal offenses committed in the jurisdiction of the local law 1107
enforcement agency, in a manner prescribed by the center; and 1108
(iii) Report the information as soon as is 1109
practicable after the investigating agency or department 1110
ascertains that a qualifying crime has been committed in its 1111
jurisdiction, once the state-level NIBRS Repository is available. 1112
(b) No later than December 31, 2025, state and local 1113
law enforcement agencies shall be compliant with all regulations 1114
promulgated by the Department of Public Safety's Criminal 1115
Information Center (CIC), with consultation with the President of 1116
the Sheriffs Association and Mississippi Association of Chiefs of 1117
Police with regard to the National Incident-Based Reporting System 1118
(NIBRS) of the Uniform Crime Reporting Program of the Federal 1119
Bureau of Investigation. 1120
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SECTION 16. Section 45-27-11, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 1121
brought forward as follows: 1122
45-27-11. The center shall make a person's criminal records 1123
available for inspection by him or his attorney upon written 1124
request. Prior to inspection, the person must submit a set of 1125
fingerprints, sign a written authorization for the records check, 1126
and provide any other identifying information required by the 1127
center. Should such person or his attorney contest the accuracy 1128
of any portion of such records, the center shall make available to 1129
such person or his attorney a copy of the contested record upon 1130
written application identifying the portion of the record 1131
contested and showing the reason for the contest of accuracy. 1132
Forms, procedures, fees, identification and other related aspects 1133
pertinent to such access may be prescribed by the center in making 1134
access available. 1135
If an individual believes such information to be inaccurate 1136
or incomplete, he may request the original agency having custody 1137
or control of the records to purge, modify or supplement them and 1138
to so notify the center of such changes. Should the agency 1139
decline to so act or should the individual believe the agency's 1140
decision to be otherwise unsatisfactory, the individual or his 1141
attorney may within thirty (30) days of such decision enter an 1142
appeal to the county or circuit court of the county of his 1143
residence or to such court in the county where such agency exists. 1144
The court in each such case shall conduct a de novo hearing and 1145
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may order such relief as it finds to be required by law. Such 1146
appeals shall be entered in the same manner as other appeals are 1147
entered. 1148
Should the record in question be found to be inaccurate or 1149
incomplete, the court shall order it to be appropriately expunged, 1150
modified or supplemented by an explanatory notation. Each agency 1151
or individual in the state with custody, possession or control of 1152
any such record shall promptly cause each and every copy thereof 1153
in his custody, possession or control to be altered in accordance 1154
with the court's order. Notification of each such deletion, 1155
amendment and supplementary notation shall be promptly 1156
disseminated to any individuals or agencies to which the records 1157
in question have been communicated as well as to the individual 1158
whose records have been ordered so altered. The center shall not 1159
be held liable for the failure to modify, supplement, destroy or 1160
expunge records if an agency or court fails to forward to the 1161
center proper documentation ordering such action. 1162
Agencies, including the center, at which criminal offender 1163
records are sought to be inspected may prescribe reasonable hours 1164
and places of inspection and may impose such additional 1165
procedures, fees or restrictions, including fingerprinting, as are 1166
reasonably necessary both to assure the record's security, to 1167
verify the identities of those who seek to inspect them and to 1168
maintain an orderly and efficient mechanism for such access. 1169
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SECTION 17. Section 45-34-5, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 1170
brought forward as follows: 1171
45-34-5. (1) The department shall maintain the registry on 1172
the Internet, which shall contain a disclaimer informing the 1173
public that: 1174
(a) The information contained on the website is 1175
obtained from public records, and the department does not 1176
guarantee the website's accuracy or completeness; 1177
(b) The list only includes persons convicted in 1178
Mississippi state courts of a limited list of crimes. Persons who 1179
are convicted in any federal court, or who are convicted of a 1180
crime other than a registrable offense will not appear on the 1181
registry. 1182
(2) The department and any individual or entity acting at 1183
the request or upon the direction of the department are immune 1184
from civil liability for damages arising from reporting 1185
information under this chapter and will be presumed to have acted 1186
in good faith in performing its duties under this chapter. 1187
SECTION 18. If any section, paragraph, sentence, clause, 1188
phrase or any part of any act passed hereafter is declared to be 1189
unconstitutional or void, or if for any reason is declared to be 1190
invalid or of no effect, the remaining sections, paragraphs, 1191
sentences, clauses, phrases or parts thereof shall be in no manner 1192
affected thereby but shall remain in full force and effect. 1193
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ST: Voting rights and expungement; person may
have voting rights restored and certain felony
records expunged after five years.
Unless the contrary intent shall clearly appear in the 1194
particular act in question, each and every act passed hereafter 1195
shall be read and construed as though the provisions of the first 1196
paragraph of this section form an integral part thereof, whether 1197
expressly set out therein or not. 1198
SECTION 19. This act shall take effect and be in force from 1199
and after July 1, 2026. 1200