Expungement and criminal liability; amend provisions related to human trafficking.

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To: Judiciary, Division B
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026

By: Senator(s) Sparks

SENATE BILL NO. 2336

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 99-19-71, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, 1
TO PROHIBIT THE EXPUNGEMENT OF THE FELONY CRIMES OF PROMOTING OR 2
PROCURING PROSTITUTION; TO AMEND SECTION 97-3-54.1, MISSISSIPPI 3
CODE OF 1972, TO CLARIFY THAT MINORS ARE NOT LIABLE FOR NONVIOLENT 4
CRIMINAL ACTIVITY THAT TAKES PLACE DURING VICTIMIZATION; TO AMEND 5
SECTION 97-3-54.6, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO PROVIDE THAT 6
VACATUR OF PROSTITUTION CONVICTIONS ALSO APPLIES TO ADJUDICATION 7
OF DELINQUENCY; TO PROVIDE THAT VICTIMS OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING MAY 8
REQUEST THE COURT TO EXPUNGE MISDEMEANOR AND NONVIOLENT 9
CONVICTIONS THAT WERE A DIRECT RESULT OF THEIR VICTIMIZATION; TO 10
PROVIDE AN AFFIRMATIVE DEFENSE TO CERTAIN CRIMINAL CHARGES THAT 11
DIRECTLY RESULT FROM TRAFFICKING A VICTIM; AND FOR RELATED 12
PURPOSES. 13
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 14
SECTION 1. Section 99-19-71, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 15
amended as follows: 16
99-19-71. (1) Any person who has been convicted of a 17
misdemeanor that is not a traffic violation, and who is a first 18
offender, may petition the justice, county, circuit or municipal 19
court in which the conviction was had for an order to expunge any 20
such conviction from all public records. 21
(2) (a) Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, a 22
person who has been convicted of a felony and who has paid all 23
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criminal fines and costs of court imposed in the sentence of 24
conviction may petition the court in which the conviction was had 25
for an order to expunge one (1) conviction from all public records 26
five (5) years after the successful completion of all terms and 27
conditions of the sentence for the conviction upon a hearing as 28
determined in the discretion of the court; however, a person is 29
not eligible to expunge a felony classified as: 30
(i) A crime of violence as provided in Section 31
97-3-2; 32
(ii) Arson, first degree as provided in Sections 33
97-17-1 and 97-17-3; 34
(iii) Trafficking in controlled substances as 35
provided in Section 41-29-139; 36
(iv) A third, fourth or subsequent offense DUI as 37
provided in Section 63-11-30(2)(c) and (2)(d); 38
(v) Felon in possession of a firearm as provided 39
in Section 97-37-5; 40
(vi) Failure to register as a sex offender as 41
provided in Section 45-33-33; 42
(vii) Voyeurism as provided in Section 97-29-61; 43
(viii) Witness intimidation as provided in Section 44
97-9-113; 45
(ix) Abuse, neglect or exploitation of a 46
vulnerable person as provided in Section 43-47-19; * * * 47
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(x) Embezzlement as provided in Sections 97-11-25 48
and 97-23-19 * * *; 49
(xi) Felony procuring prostitution as provided in 50
Section 97-29-51; or 51
(xii) Promoting prostitution as provided in 52
Section 97-29-51. 53
A person is eligible for only one (1) felony expunction under 54
this paragraph (a). For the purposes of this section, the terms 55
"one (1) conviction" and "one (1) felony expunction" mean and 56
include all convictions that arose from a common nucleus of 57
operative facts as determined in the discretion of the court. 58
(b) The petitioner shall give ten (10) days' written 59
notice to the district attorney before any hearing on the 60
petition. In all cases, the court wherein the petition is filed 61
may grant the petition if the court determines, on the record or 62
in writing, that the applicant is rehabilitated from the offense 63
which is the subject of the petition. In those cases where the 64
court denies the petition, the findings of the court in this 65
respect shall be identified specifically and not generally. 66
(3) Upon entering an order of expunction under this section, 67
a nonpublic record thereof shall be retained by the Mississippi 68
Criminal Information Center solely for the purpose of determining 69
whether, in subsequent proceedings, the person is a first 70
offender. The order of expunction shall not preclude a district 71
attorney's office from retaining a nonpublic record thereof for 72
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law enforcement purposes only. The existence of an order of 73
expunction shall not preclude an employer from asking a 74
prospective employee if the employee has had an order of 75
expunction entered on his behalf. The effect of the expunction 76
order shall be to restore the person, in the contemplation of the 77
law, to the status he occupied before any arrest or indictment for 78
which convicted. No person as to whom an expunction order has 79
been entered shall be held thereafter under any provision of law 80
to be guilty of perjury or to have otherwise given a false 81
statement by reason of his failure to recite or acknowledge such 82
arrest, indictment or conviction in response to any inquiry made 83
of him for any purpose other than the purpose of determining, in 84
any subsequent proceedings under this section, whether the person 85
is a first offender. A person as to whom an order has been 86
entered, upon request, shall be required to advise the court, in 87
camera, of the previous conviction and expunction in any legal 88
proceeding wherein the person has been called as a prospective 89
juror. The court shall thereafter and before the selection of the 90
jury advise the attorneys representing the parties of the previous 91
conviction and expunction. 92
(4) Upon petition therefor, a justice, county, circuit or 93
municipal court shall expunge the record of any case in which an 94
arrest was made, the person arrested was released and the case was 95
dismissed or the charges were dropped or there was no disposition 96
of such case, or the person was found not guilty at trial. 97
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(5) No public official is eligible for expunction under this 98
section for any conviction related to his official duties. 99
SECTION 2. Section 97-3-54.1, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 100
amended as follows: 101
97-3-54.1. (1) (a) A person who coerces, recruits, 102
entices, harbors, transports, provides or obtains by any means, or 103
attempts to coerce, recruit, entice, harbor, transport, provide or 104
obtain by any means, another person, intending or knowing that the 105
person will be subjected to forced labor or services, or who 106
benefits, whether financially or by receiving anything of value 107
from participating in an enterprise that he knows or reasonably 108
should have known has engaged in such acts, shall be guilty of the 109
crime of human trafficking. 110
(b) A person who knowingly purchases the forced labor 111
or services of a trafficked person or who otherwise knowingly 112
subjects, or attempts to subject, another person to forced labor 113
or services or who benefits, whether financially or by receiving 114
anything of value from participating in an enterprise that he 115
knows or reasonably should have known has engaged in such acts, 116
shall be guilty of the crime of procuring involuntary servitude. 117
(c) A person who knowingly subjects, or attempts to 118
subject, or who recruits, entices, harbors, transports, provides 119
or obtains by any means, or attempts to recruit, entice, harbor, 120
transport, provide or obtain by any means, a minor, knowing that 121
the minor will engage in commercial sexual activity, sexually 122
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explicit performance, or the production of sexually oriented 123
material, or causes or attempts to cause a minor to engage in 124
commercial sexual activity, sexually explicit performance, or the 125
production of sexually oriented material, shall be guilty of 126
procuring sexual servitude of a minor and shall be punished by 127
commitment to the custody of the Department of Corrections for not 128
less than twenty (20) years nor more than life in prison, or by a 129
fine of not less than Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000.00) nor more 130
than Five Hundred Thousand Dollars ($500,000.00), or both. It is 131
not a defense in a prosecution under this section that a minor 132
consented to engage in the commercial sexual activity, sexually 133
explicit performance, or the production of sexually oriented 134
material, or that the defendant reasonably believed that the minor 135
was eighteen (18) years of age or older. 136
(2) If the victim is not a minor, a person who is convicted 137
of an offense set forth in subsection (1)(a) or (b) of this 138
section shall be committed to the custody of the Department of 139
Corrections for not less than two (2) years nor more than twenty 140
(20) years, or by a fine of not less than Ten Thousand Dollars 141
($10,000.00) nor more than One Hundred Thousand Dollars 142
($100,000.00), or both. If the victim of the offense is a minor, 143
a person who is convicted of an offense set forth in subsection 144
(1)(a) or (b) of this section shall be committed to the custody of 145
the Department of Corrections for not less than twenty (20) years 146
nor more than life in prison, or by a fine of not less than Twenty 147
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Thousand Dollars ($20,000.00) nor more than One Hundred Thousand 148
Dollars ($100,000.00), or both. 149
(3) An enterprise may be prosecuted for an offense under 150
this chapter if: 151
(a) An agent of the enterprise knowingly engages in 152
conduct that constitutes an offense under this chapter while 153
acting within the scope of employment and for the benefit of the 154
entity. 155
(b) An employee of the enterprise engages in conduct 156
that constitutes an offense under this chapter and the commission 157
of the offense was part of a pattern of illegal activity for the 158
benefit of the enterprise, which an agent of the enterprise either 159
knew was occurring or recklessly disregarded, and the agent failed 160
to take effective action to stop the illegal activity. 161
(c) It is an affirmative defense to a prosecution of an 162
enterprise that the enterprise had in place adequate procedures, 163
including an effective complaint procedure, designed to prevent 164
persons associated with the enterprise from engaging in the 165
unlawful conduct and to promptly correct any violations of this 166
chapter. 167
(d) The court may consider the severity of the 168
enterprise's offense and order penalties, including: (i) a fine 169
of not more than One Million Dollars ($1,000,000.00); (ii) 170
disgorgement of profit; and (iii) debarment from government 171
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contracts. Additionally, the court may order any of the relief 172
provided in Section 97-3-54.7. 173
(4) In addition to the mandatory reporting provisions 174
contained in Sections 43-21-353 and 97-5-51, any person who has 175
reasonable cause to suspect that a minor under the age of eighteen 176
(18) is a trafficked person shall immediately make a report of the 177
suspected child abuse or neglect to the Department of Child 178
Protection Services and to the Statewide Human Trafficking 179
Coordinator. The Department of Child Protection Services or the 180
Statewide Human Trafficking Coordinator, whichever is applicable, 181
shall then immediately notify the law enforcement agency in the 182
jurisdiction where the suspected child abuse, neglect or 183
trafficking occurred as required in Section 43-21-353, and the 184
department that received the report shall also commence an initial 185
investigation into the suspected abuse or neglect as required in 186
Section 43-21-353. The department that received such report shall 187
provide an annual report to the Speaker of the Mississippi House 188
of Representatives, the Lieutenant Governor, the Chairpersons of 189
the House and Senate Judiciary Committees that includes the number 190
of reports received, the number of cases screened in or out, the 191
number of cases in which care and services were provided as a 192
result of the report, and the type of care and services that were 193
provided. A minor who has been identified as a victim of 194
trafficking shall not be criminally liable for criminal activity 195
in violation of this section, a misdemeanor or a felony offense 196
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(except a violation of Section 63-11-30) not classified as a crime 197
of violence under Section 97-3-2 if the offense: 198
(a) Occurred during the time period in which the victim 199
was being trafficked; and 200
(b) Occurred as a direct result of the victim's 201
trafficking. 202
(5) It is an affirmative defense in a prosecution under this 203
act that the defendant: 204
(a) Is a victim; and 205
(b) Committed the offense under a reasonable 206
apprehension created by a person that, if the defendant did not 207
commit the act, the person would inflict serious harm on the 208
defendant, a member of the defendant's family, or a close 209
associate. 210
SECTION 3. Section 97-3-54.6, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 211
amended as follows: 212
97-3-54.6. (1) Any circuit court may, after making due 213
provision for the rights of trafficked persons, enjoin violations 214
of the provisions of this act by issuing appropriate orders and 215
judgments, including, but not limited to: 216
(a) Ordering any defendant to divest himself of any 217
interest in any enterprise, including real property. 218
(b) Imposing reasonable restrictions upon the future 219
activities or investments of any defendant, including, but not 220
limited to, prohibiting any defendant from engaging in the same 221
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type of endeavor as the enterprise in which he was engaged in 222
violation of the provisions of this act. 223
(c) Ordering the dissolution or reorganization of any 224
enterprise. 225
(d) Ordering the suspension or revocation of a license 226
or permit granted to any enterprise by any agency of the state. 227
(e) Ordering the forfeiture of the charter of a 228
corporation organized under the laws of the state, or the 229
revocation of a certificate authorizing a foreign corporation to 230
conduct business within the state, upon finding that the board of 231
directors or a managerial agent acting on behalf of the 232
corporation in conducting the affairs of the corporation, has 233
authorized or engaged in conduct in violation of this chapter and 234
that, for the prevention of future criminal activity, the public 235
interest requires the charter of the corporation forfeited and the 236
corporation dissolved or the certificate revoked. 237
(2) Notwithstanding any provisions to the contrary in 238
Section 99-37-1 et seq., the court shall order restitution to the 239
victim for any offense under this chapter. The order of 240
restitution under this section shall direct the defendant to pay 241
the victim, through the appropriate court mechanism, the full 242
amount of the victim's pecuniary damages. For the purposes of 243
determining restitution, the term "victim" means the individual 244
harmed as a result of a crime under this chapter, including, in 245
the case of a victim who is under eighteen (18) years of age, 246
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incompetent, incapacitated, or deceased, the legal guardian of the 247
victim or a representative of the victim's estate, or another 248
family member, or any other person appointed as suitable by the 249
court, but in no event shall the defendant be named as such a 250
representative or guardian. The court may order restitution even 251
if the victim is absent from the jurisdiction or unavailable. 252
(3) Any person who is injured by reason of any violation of 253
the provisions of this chapter shall have a cause of action 254
against any person or enterprise convicted of engaging in activity 255
in violation of this chapter for threefold the actual damages 256
sustained and, when appropriate, punitive damages. The person 257
shall also recover attorney's fees in the trial and appellate 258
courts and reasonable costs of investigation and litigation. 259
(4) The application of one (1) civil remedy under any 260
provision of this act shall not preclude the application of any 261
other remedy, civil or criminal, under this act or any other 262
provision of law. Civil remedies under this act are supplemental. 263
(5) At any time after a conviction or adjudication of 264
delinquency under this act, the court in which the conviction or 265
adjudication of delinquency was entered may, upon appropriate 266
motion, vacate the conviction or adjudication of delinquency if 267
the court finds the defendant's participation in the offense was 268
the result of being a victim. Official documentation from a 269
federal, state or local government agency as to the defendant's 270
status as a victim at the time of the offense creates a 271
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presumption that the defendant's participation in the offense was 272
a result of being a victim, but official documentation is not 273
required to grant a motion under this subsection. 274
(6) At any time after a conviction or adjudication of 275
delinquency of a misdemeanor or a felony offense not classified as 276
a crime of violence under Section 97-3-2, the court in which the 277
conviction or adjudication of delinquency was entered may, upon 278
appropriate motion, expunge the conviction or adjudication of 279
delinquency if the court finds by a preponderance of the evidence 280
that the defendant's participation in the offense occurred during 281
the time period in which the victim was being trafficked and was 282
the direct result of the victim's trafficking. Official 283
documentation from a federal, state or local government agency as 284
to the defendant's status as a victim at the time of the offense 285
creates a presumption that the defendant's participation in the 286
offense was a result of being a victim, but official documentation 287
is not required to grant a motion under this subsection. 288
(7) (a) Notwithstanding Section 97-3-54.1(5), it is an 289
affirmative defense to a prosecution for any misdemeanor and 290
felony offense (except a violation of Section 63-11-30) not 291
classified as a crime of violence in Section 97-3-2 if at the time 292
a person engaged in the conduct charged to constitute the offense 293
the person: 294
(i) Was a trafficked person as defined in Section 295
97-3-54.4(q); and 296
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ST: Expungement and criminal liability; amend
provisions related to human trafficking.
(ii) Engaged in the offense as a direct result of 297
his or her status as a victim. 298
(b) Neither the failure to raise this affirmative 299
defense nor the court's finding on the affirmative defense shall 300
have any effect on the petitioner's ability to file for an 301
expungement under subsection (6) of this section. 302
( * * *8) In a prosecution or civil action for damages for 303
an offense under this act in which there is evidence that the 304
alleged victim was subjected to sexual servitude, reputation or 305
opinion evidence of past sexual behavior of the alleged victim is 306
not admissible, unless admitted in accordance with the Mississippi 307
Rules of Evidence. 308
( * * *9) In any investigation or prosecution for an offense 309
under this act, the responsible law enforcement agency or 310
prosecutor's office are required to take all reasonable efforts to 311
keep the identity of the victim and the victim's family 312
confidential by ensuring that the names and identifying 313
information of those individuals are not disclosed to the public. 314
SECTION 4. This act shall take effect and be in force from 315
and after July 1, 2026. 316