Amiya Braxton; revise penalties when driver injures child who is exiting a school bus.

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To: Judiciary B
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026

By: Representative Thompson

HOUSE BILL NO. 540

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 63-3-615, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, 1
TO REVISE THE PROVISIONS OF LAW THAT REGULATE AUTOMOBILE DRIVERS 2
WHEN A CHILD IS EXITING OR BOARDING A SCHOOL BUS; TO AMEND SECTION 3
97-3-7, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REVISE THE PENALTIES FOR A 4
PERSON CONVICTED OF INJURING A CHILD WHILE THE CHILD IS EXITING A 5
SCHOOL BUS; TO PROVIDE THAT THE NEW PROVISIONS SHALL BE NAMED THE 6
"AMIYA BRAXTON AMENDMENT"; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES. 7
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 8
SECTION 1. Section 63-3-615, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 9
amended as follows: 10
63-3-615. (1) (a) The driver of a vehicle upon a street or 11
highway upon meeting or overtaking any school bus that has stopped 12
on the street or highway for the purpose of receiving or 13
discharging any school children shall come to a complete stop at 14
least ten (10) feet from the school bus before reaching the school 15
bus when there is in operation on the school bus the flashing red 16
lights provided in Section 63-7-23, or when a retractable, 17
hand-operated stop sign is extended; the driver shall not proceed 18
or deviate from the roadway, street or highway until the children 19
have crossed the street or highway and the school bus has resumed 20
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motion or the flashing red lights are no longer actuated and the 21
hand-operated stop sign is retracted. 22
(b) The driver of a vehicle upon a divided highway that 23
has four (4) lanes or more and permits at least two (2) lanes of 24
traffic to travel in opposite directions need not stop upon 25
meeting or passing a school bus that is stopped in the opposing 26
roadway, or if the school bus is stopped in a loading zone that is 27
a part of or adjacent to the highway and where pedestrians are not 28
permitted to cross the roadway. 29
(2) (a) Except as provided in paragraph (b), any person 30
violating the provisions of subsection (1) of this section shall 31
be guilty of a misdemeanor and upon a first conviction thereof 32
shall be fined not less than Three Hundred Fifty Dollars ($350.00) 33
nor more than Seven Hundred Fifty Dollars ($750.00), or imprisoned 34
for not more than one (1) year, or both. For a second or 35
subsequent offense, the offenses being committed within a period 36
of five (5) years, the person shall be guilty of a misdemeanor 37
and, upon conviction, shall be fined not less than Seven Hundred 38
Fifty Dollars ($750.00) nor more than One Thousand Five Hundred 39
Dollars ($1,500.00), or imprisoned for not more than one (1) year, 40
or both. In addition, the Commissioner of Public Safety or his 41
duly authorized designee, after conviction for a second or 42
subsequent offense and upon receipt of the court abstract, shall 43
suspend the driver's license and driving privileges of the person 44
for a period of ninety (90) days. 45
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(b) A conviction under this section for a violation 46
resulting in any injury or death to a child who is in the process 47
of boarding or exiting a school bus shall be a violation of 48
Section 97-3-7, and a violator shall be punished under subsection 49
(2) of that section. 50
(3) This section shall be applicable only in the event the 51
school bus shall bear upon the front and rear thereon a plainly 52
visible sign containing the words "school bus" in letters not less 53
than four (4) inches in height. 54
(4) If any person witnesses the driver of any vehicle 55
violating the provisions of this section and the identity of the 56
driver of the vehicle is not otherwise apparent, it shall be a 57
rebuttable inference that the person in whose name the vehicle is 58
registered committed the violation. If charges are filed against 59
multiple owners of a motor vehicle, only one (1) of the owners may 60
be convicted and court costs may be assessed against only one (1) 61
of the owners. If the vehicle that is involved in the violation 62
is registered in the name of a rental or leasing company and the 63
vehicle is rented or leased to another person at the time of the 64
violation, the rental or leasing company may rebut the inference 65
of guilt by providing the law enforcement officer or prosecuting 66
authority with a copy of the rental or lease agreement in effect 67
at the time of the violation. 68
SECTION 2. Section 97-3-7, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 69
amended as follows: 70
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97-3-7. (1) (a) A person is guilty of simple assault if he 71
or she (i) attempts to cause or purposely, knowingly or recklessly 72
causes bodily injury to another; (ii) negligently causes bodily 73
injury to another with a deadly weapon or other means likely to 74
produce death or serious bodily harm; or (iii) attempts by 75
physical menace to put another in fear of imminent serious bodily 76
harm; and, upon conviction, he or she shall be punished by a fine 77
of not more than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) or by imprisonment 78
in the county jail for not more than six (6) months, or both. 79
(b) However, a person convicted of simple assault upon 80
any of the persons listed in subsection (14) of this section under 81
the circumstances enumerated in subsection (14) shall be punished 82
by a fine of not more than One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00) or by 83
imprisonment for not more than five (5) years, or both. 84
(2) (a) A person is guilty of aggravated assault if he or 85
she (i) attempts to cause serious bodily injury to another, or 86
causes such injury purposely, knowingly or recklessly under 87
circumstances manifesting extreme indifference to the value of 88
human life; (ii) attempts to cause or purposely or knowingly 89
causes bodily injury to another with a deadly weapon or other 90
means likely to produce death or serious bodily harm; or (iii) 91
causes any injury to a child who is in the process of boarding or 92
exiting a school bus in the course of a violation of Section 93
63-3-615; and, upon conviction, he or she shall be punished by 94
imprisonment in the county jail for not * * * less than * * * five 95
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(5) years or sentenced to the custody of the Department of 96
Corrections for not more than twenty (20) years. The provisions 97
of this subsection shall be known and may be cited as the "Amiya 98
Braxton Amendment". 99
(b) However, a person convicted of aggravated assault 100
upon any of the persons listed in subsection (14) of this section 101
under the circumstances enumerated in subsection (14) shall be 102
punished by a fine of not more than Five Thousand Dollars 103
($5,000.00) or by imprisonment for not more than thirty (30) 104
years, or both. 105
(3) (a) When the offense is committed against a current or 106
former spouse of the defendant or a child of that person, a person 107
living as a spouse or who formerly lived as a spouse with the 108
defendant or a child of that person, a parent, grandparent, child, 109
grandchild or someone similarly situated to the defendant, a 110
person who has a current or former dating relationship with the 111
defendant, or a person with whom the defendant has had a 112
biological or legally adopted child, a person is guilty of simple 113
domestic violence who: 114
(i) Attempts to cause or purposely, knowingly or 115
recklessly causes bodily injury to another; 116
(ii) Negligently causes bodily injury to another 117
with a deadly weapon or other means likely to produce death or 118
serious bodily harm; or 119
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(iii) Attempts by physical menace to put another 120
in fear of imminent serious bodily harm. 121
Upon conviction, the defendant shall be punished by a fine of 122
not more than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) or by imprisonment in 123
the county jail for not more than six (6) months, or both. 124
(b) Simple domestic violence: third. A person is 125
guilty of the felony of simple domestic violence third who commits 126
simple domestic violence as defined in this subsection (3) and 127
who, at the time of the commission of the offense in question, has 128
two (2) prior convictions, whether against the same or another 129
victim, within seven (7) years, for any combination of simple 130
domestic violence under this subsection (3) or aggravated domestic 131
violence as defined in subsection (4) of this section or 132
substantially similar offenses under the law of another state, of 133
the United States, or of a federally recognized Native American 134
tribe. Upon conviction, the defendant shall be sentenced to a 135
term of imprisonment not less than five (5) nor more than ten (10) 136
years. 137
(4) (a) When the offense is committed against a current or 138
former spouse of the defendant or a child of that person, a person 139
living as a spouse or who formerly lived as a spouse with the 140
defendant or a child of that person, a parent, grandparent, child, 141
grandchild or someone similarly situated to the defendant, a 142
person who has a current or former dating relationship with the 143
defendant, or a person with whom the defendant has had a 144
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biological or legally adopted child, a person is guilty of 145
aggravated domestic violence who: 146
(i) Attempts to cause serious bodily injury to 147
another, or causes such an injury purposely, knowingly or 148
recklessly under circumstances manifesting extreme indifference to 149
the value of human life; 150
(ii) Attempts to cause or purposely or knowingly 151
causes bodily injury to another with a deadly weapon or other 152
means likely to produce death or serious bodily harm; or 153
(iii) Strangles, or attempts to strangle another. 154
Upon conviction, the defendant shall be punished by 155
imprisonment in the custody of the Department of Corrections for 156
not less than two (2) nor more than twenty (20) years. 157
(b) Aggravated domestic violence; third. A person is 158
guilty of aggravated domestic violence third who, at the time of 159
the commission of that offense, commits aggravated domestic 160
violence as defined in this subsection (4) and who has two (2) 161
prior convictions within the past seven (7) years, whether against 162
the same or another victim, for any combination of aggravated 163
domestic violence under this subsection (4) or simple domestic 164
violence third as defined in subsection (3) of this section, or 165
substantially similar offenses under the laws of another state, of 166
the United States, or of a federally recognized Native American 167
tribe. Upon conviction for aggravated domestic violence third, 168
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the defendant shall be sentenced to a term of imprisonment of not 169
less than ten (10) nor more than twenty (20) years. 170
(5) Sentencing for fourth or subsequent domestic violence 171
offense. Any person who commits an offense defined in subsection 172
(3) or (4) of this section, and who, at the time of the commission 173
of that offense, has at least three (3) previous convictions, 174
whether against the same or different victims, for any combination 175
of offenses defined in subsections (3) and (4) of this section or 176
substantially similar offenses under the law of another state, of 177
the United States, or of a federally recognized Native American 178
tribe, shall, upon conviction, be sentenced to imprisonment for 179
not less than fifteen (15) years nor more than twenty (20) years. 180
(6) In sentencing under subsections (3), (4) and (5) of this 181
section, the court shall consider as an aggravating factor whether 182
the crime was committed in the physical presence or hearing of a 183
child under sixteen (16) years of age who was, at the time of the 184
offense, living within either the residence of the victim, the 185
residence of the perpetrator, or the residence where the offense 186
occurred. 187
(7) Reasonable discipline of a child, such as spanking, is 188
not an offense under subsections (3) and (4) of this section. 189
(8) A person convicted under subsection (4) or (5) of this 190
section shall not be eligible for parole under the provisions of 191
Section 47-7-3(1)(c) until he or she shall have served one (1) 192
year of his or her sentence. 193
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(9) For the purposes of this section: 194
(a) "Strangle" means to restrict the flow of oxygen or 195
blood by intentionally applying pressure on the neck, throat or 196
chest of another person by any means or to intentionally block the 197
nose or mouth of another person by any means. 198
(b) "Dating relationship" means a social relationship 199
as defined in Section 93-21-3. 200
(10) Every conviction under subsection (3), (4) or (5) of 201
this section may require as a condition of any suspended sentence 202
that the defendant participate in counseling or treatment to bring 203
about the cessation of domestic abuse. The defendant may be 204
required to pay all or part of the cost of the counseling or 205
treatment, in the discretion of the court. 206
(11) (a) Upon conviction under subsection (3), (4) or (5) 207
of this section, the court shall be empowered to issue a criminal 208
protection order prohibiting the defendant from any contact with 209
the victim. The court may include in a criminal protection order 210
any other condition available under Section 93-21-15. The 211
duration of a criminal protection order shall be based upon the 212
seriousness of the facts before the court, the probability of 213
future violations, and the continued safety of the victim or 214
another person. However, municipal and justice courts may issue 215
criminal protection orders for a maximum period of time not to 216
exceed one (1) year. Circuit and county courts may issue a 217
criminal protection order for any period of time deemed necessary. 218
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Upon issuance of a criminal protection order, the clerk of the 219
issuing court shall enter the order in the Mississippi Protection 220
Order Registry within twenty-four (24) hours of issuance with no 221
exceptions for weekends or holidays, pursuant to Section 93-21-25. 222
(b) A criminal protection order shall not be issued 223
against the defendant if the victim of the offense, or the 224
victim's lawful representative where the victim is a minor or 225
incompetent person, objects to its issuance, except in 226
circumstances where the court, in its discretion, finds that a 227
criminal protection order is necessary for the safety and 228
well-being of a victim who is a minor child or incompetent adult. 229
(c) Criminal protection orders shall be issued on the 230
standardized form developed by the Office of the Attorney General 231
and a copy provided to both the victim and the defendant. 232
(d) It shall be a misdemeanor to knowingly violate any 233
condition of a criminal protection order. Upon conviction for a 234
violation, the defendant shall be punished by a fine of not more 235
than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) or by imprisonment in the 236
county jail for not more than six (6) months, or both. 237
(12) When investigating allegations of a violation of 238
subsection (3), (4), (5) or (11) of this section, whether or not 239
an arrest results, law enforcement officers shall utilize the form 240
prescribed for such purposes by the Office of the Attorney General 241
in consultation with the sheriff's and police chief's 242
associations. However, failure of law enforcement to utilize the 243
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uniform offense report shall not be a defense to a crime charged 244
under this section. The uniform offense report shall not be 245
required if, upon investigation, the offense does not involve 246
persons in the relationships specified in subsections (3) and (4) 247
of this section. 248
(13) In any conviction under subsection (3), (4), (5) or 249
(11) of this section, the sentencing order shall include the 250
designation "domestic violence." The court clerk shall enter the 251
disposition of the matter into the corresponding uniform offense 252
report. 253
(14) Assault upon any of the following listed persons is an 254
aggravating circumstance for charging under subsections (1)(b) and 255
(2)(b) of this section: 256
(a) When acting within the scope of his or her duty, 257
office or employment at the time of the assault: a statewide 258
elected official; law enforcement officer; fireman; emergency 259
medical personnel; health care provider; employees of a health 260
care provider or health care facility; social worker, family 261
protection specialist or family protection worker employed by the 262
Department of Human Services or another agency; Division of Youth 263
Services personnel; any county or municipal jail officer; 264
superintendent, principal, teacher or other instructional 265
personnel, school attendance officer or school bus driver; any 266
member of the Mississippi National Guard or United States Armed 267
Forces; a judge of a circuit, chancery, county, justice, municipal 268
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ST: Amiya Braxton; revise penalties when driver
injures child who is exiting a school bus.
or youth court or a judge of the Court of Appeals or a justice of 269
the Supreme Court; district attorney or legal assistant to a 270
district attorney; county prosecutor or municipal prosecutor; 271
court reporter employed by a court, court administrator, clerk or 272
deputy clerk of the court; public defender; or utility worker; 273
(b) A legislator while the Legislature is in regular or 274
extraordinary session or while otherwise acting within the scope 275
of his or her duty, office or employment; or 276
(c) A person who is sixty-five (65) years of age or 277
older or a person who is a vulnerable person, as defined in 278
Section 43-47-5. 279
SECTION 3. This act shall take effect and be in force from 280
and after July 1, 2026. 281