Capital human trafficking; create crime of.

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To: Judiciary, Division B
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026

By: Senator(s) England

SENATE BILL NO. 2804

AN ACT TO REQUIRE A SEPARATE PROCEEDING ON THE ISSUE OF A 1
PENALTY FOR THE CRIME OF CAPITAL HUMAN TRAFFICKING; TO AMEND 2
SECTION 97-3-54.1, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO CREATE THE OFFENSE 3
OF CAPITAL HUMAN TRAFFICKING; TO AUTHORIZE THE DEATH PENALTY; TO 4
PROVIDE THAT IF THE DEATH PENALTY IS NOT IMPOSED UNDER THIS ACT, 5
THEN LIFE IMPRISONMENT WITHOUT PAROLE SHALL BE IMPOSED; TO AMEND 6
SECTION 97-3-54.4, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO DEFINE THE TERM 7
"SEXUAL EXPLOITATION"; TO AMEND SECTION 47-7-3, MISSISSIPPI CODE 8
OF 1972, TO CONFORM; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES. 9
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 10
SECTION 1. (1) Intent. (a) The Legislature finds that a 11
person who commits the offense of initiating, organizing, 12
planning, financing, directing, managing, or supervising an 13
enterprise that has subjected a child younger than twelve (12) 14
years of age, or a person who is mentally defective or mentally 15
incapacitated, to human trafficking for sexual exploitation in 16
violation of Section 97-3-54.1(1)(d) imposes a great risk of death 17
and danger to vulnerable members of this state. Such crimes 18
exploit society's most vulnerable citizens, destroy the innocence 19
of young children, and violate all standards of decency held by 20
civilized society, and persons who commit such acts against such 21
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vulnerable persons may be determined by the trier of fact to have 22
a culpable mental state of reckless indifference or disregard for 23
human life. 24
(b) It is the intent of the Legislature that the 25
procedure in this section shall be followed, and a prosecutor must 26
file notice as provided in Section 97-3-54.1(1)(d) if the 27
prosecutor intends to seek the death penalty. 28
(2) Separate proceedings on issue of penalty. Upon 29
conviction or an adjudication of guilt of a defendant of a capital 30
felony under Section 97-3-54.1(1)(d), the court shall conduct a 31
separate sentencing proceeding to determine whether the defendant 32
should be sentenced to death or life imprisonment as authorized by 33
Section 97-3-54.1(1)(d). The proceeding shall be conducted by the 34
trial judge before the trial jury as soon as practicable. If, 35
through impossibility or inability, the trial jury is unable to 36
reconvene for a hearing on the issue of penalty, having determined 37
the guilt of the accused, the trial judge may summon a special 38
juror or jurors to determine the issue of the imposition of the 39
penalty. If the trial jury has been waived, or if the defendant 40
pleaded guilty, the sentencing proceeding shall be conducted 41
before a jury impaneled for that purpose, unless waived by the 42
defendant. In the proceeding, evidence may be presented as to any 43
matter that the court deems relevant to the nature of the crime 44
and the character of the defendant and shall include matters 45
relating to any of the aggravating factors enumerated in 46
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subsection (7) of this section and for which notice has been 47
provided pursuant to Section 97-3-54.1(1)(d) or mitigating 48
circumstances enumerated in subsection (8) of this section. Any 49
such evidence that the court deems to have probative value may be 50
received, regardless of its admissibility under the exclusionary 51
rules of evidence, provided the defendant is accorded a fair 52
opportunity to rebut any hearsay statements. However, this 53
subsection may not be construed to authorize the introduction of 54
any evidence secured in violation of the United States 55
Constitution or the State Constitution. The state and the 56
defendant or the defendant's counsel shall be permitted to present 57
argument for or against a sentence of death. 58
(3) Findings and recommended sentence by the jury. This 59
subsection applies only if the defendant has not waived his or her 60
right to a sentencing proceeding by a jury. 61
(a) After hearing all of the evidence presented 62
regarding aggravating factors and mitigating circumstances, the 63
jury shall deliberate and determine if the state has proven, 64
beyond a reasonable doubt, the existence of at least two 65
aggravating factors set forth in subsection (7) of this section. 66
(b) The jury shall return findings identifying each 67
aggravating factor found to exist. A finding that at least two 68
(2) aggravating factors exist must be unanimous. If the jury: 69
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(i) Does not unanimously find at least two (2) 70
aggravating factors, the defendant is ineligible for a sentence of 71
death. 72
(ii) Unanimously finds at least two (2) 73
aggravating factors, the defendant is eligible for a sentence of 74
death and the jury shall make a recommendation to the court as to 75
whether the defendant shall be sentenced to life imprisonment 76
without the possibility of parole or to death. The recommendation 77
shall be based on a weighing of all of the following: 78
1. Whether sufficient aggravating factors 79
exist. 80
2. Whether aggravating factors exist which 81
outweigh the mitigating circumstances found to exist. 82
3. Based on the considerations in items 1 and 83
2 of this subparagraph (ii), whether the defendant should be 84
sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole 85
or to death. 86
(c) If at least eight (8) jurors determine that the 87
defendant should be sentenced to death, the jury's recommendation 88
to the court shall be a sentence of death. If fewer than eight 89
(8) jurors determine that the defendant should be sentenced to 90
death, the jury's recommendation to the court shall be a sentence 91
of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. 92
(4) Imposition of sentence of life imprisonment or death. 93
(a) If the jury has recommended a sentence of: 94
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(i) Life imprisonment without the possibility of 95
parole, the court shall impose the recommended sentence of life 96
imprisonment without the possibility of parole. 97
(ii) Death, the court, after considering each 98
aggravating factor found by the jury and all mitigating 99
circumstances, may impose a sentence of life imprisonment without 100
the possibility of parole or a sentence of death. The court may 101
consider only an aggravating factor that was unanimously found to 102
exist by the jury. The court may impose a sentence of death only 103
if the jury unanimously found at least two (2) aggravating factors 104
beyond a reasonable doubt. 105
(b) If the defendant waived his or her right to a 106
sentencing proceeding by a jury, the court, after considering all 107
aggravating factors and mitigating circumstances, may impose a 108
sentence of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole or 109
a sentence of death. The court may impose a sentence of death 110
only if the court finds that at least two (2) aggravating factors 111
have been proven to exist beyond a reasonable doubt. 112
(5) Order of the court in support of sentence of life 113
imprisonment or death. In each case in which the court imposes a 114
sentence of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole or 115
a sentence of death, the court shall, considering the records of 116
the trial and the sentencing proceedings, enter a written order 117
addressing the aggravating factors set forth in subsection (7) of 118
this section found to exist, the mitigating circumstances in 119
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subsection (8) of this section reasonably established by the 120
evidence, whether there are sufficient aggravating factors to 121
warrant the death penalty, and whether the aggravating factors 122
outweigh the mitigating circumstances reasonably established by 123
the evidence. The court shall include in its written order the 124
reasons for not accepting the jury's recommended sentence, if 125
applicable. If the court does not issue its order requiring the 126
death sentence within thirty (30) days after the rendition of the 127
judgment and sentence, the court shall impose a sentence of life 128
imprisonment without the possibility of parole in accordance with 129
Section 97-3-54.1(1)(d). 130
(6) Review of judgment and sentence. The judgment of 131
conviction and sentence of death shall be subject to automatic 132
review by the Supreme Court and disposition rendered within two 133
(2) years after the filing of a notice of appeal. Such review by 134
the Supreme Court shall have priority over all other cases and 135
shall be heard in accordance with rules adopted by the Supreme 136
Court. 137
(7) Aggravating factors. Aggravating factors shall be 138
limited to the following: 139
(a) The capital felony was committed by a person 140
previously convicted of a felony violation under the Mississippi 141
Human Trafficking Act and under sentence of imprisonment or placed 142
on community control or on felony probation. 143
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(b) The defendant was previously convicted of another 144
capital felony or of a felony involving the use or threat of 145
violence to the person. 146
(c) The capital felony was committed by a sexual 147
offender who is required to register pursuant Chapter 33, Title 148
45, Mississippi Code of 1972, or a person previously required to 149
register as a sexual offender who had such requirement removed. 150
(d) The defendant knowingly created a great risk of 151
death to one or more persons such that participation in the 152
offense constituted reckless indifference or disregard for human 153
life. 154
(e) The defendant used a firearm or knowingly directed, 155
advised, authorized, or assisted another to use a firearm to 156
threaten, intimidate, assault, or injure a person in committing 157
the offense or in furtherance of the offense. 158
(f) The capital felony was especially heinous, 159
atrocious, or cruel. 160
(g) The victim of the capital felony was particularly 161
vulnerable due to age or disability, or because the defendant 162
stood in a position of familial or custodial authority over the 163
victim. 164
(h) The capital felony was committed by a person 165
subject to an injunction issued pursuant to a domestic abuse 166
protection order, or a foreign protection order accorded full 167
faith and credit by this state, and was committed against the 168
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petitioner who obtained the injunction or protection order or any 169
spouse, child, sibling, or parent of the petitioner. 170
(i) The victim of the capital felony sustained serious 171
bodily injury. 172
(8) Mitigating circumstances. Mitigating circumstances 173
shall include the following: 174
(a) The defendant has no significant history of prior 175
criminal activity. 176
(b) The capital felony was committed while the 177
defendant was under the influence of extreme mental or emotional 178
disturbance. 179
(c) The defendant was an accomplice in the capital 180
felony committed by another person, and the defendant's 181
participation was relatively minor. 182
(d) The defendant was under extreme duress or under the 183
substantial domination of another person. 184
(e) The capacity of the defendant to appreciate the 185
criminality of her or his conduct or to conform his or her conduct 186
to the requirements of law was substantially impaired. 187
(f) The age of the defendant at the time of the 188
offense. 189
(g) The defendant could not have reasonably foreseen 190
that his or her conduct in the course of the commission of the 191
offense would cause or would create a grave risk of death to one 192
or more persons. 193
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(h) The existence of any other factors in the 194
defendant's background that would mitigate against imposition of 195
the death penalty. 196
(9) Victim impact evidence. Once the prosecution has 197
provided evidence of the existence of two or more aggravating 198
factors as described in subsection (7) of this section, the 199
prosecution may introduce and subsequently argue victim impact 200
evidence to the jury. Such evidence shall be designed to 201
demonstrate the victim's uniqueness as an individual human being 202
and the physical and psychological harm to the victim. 203
Characterizations and opinions about the crime, the defendant, and 204
the appropriate sentence may not be permitted as a part of victim 205
impact evidence. 206
(10) Constitutionality. A sentence of death shall be 207
imposed under this section notwithstanding existing case law which 208
holds that such a sentence is unconstitutional under the 209
Mississippi Constitution of 1890 and the United States 210
Constitution. In any case for which the Mississippi Supreme Court 211
or the United States Supreme Court reviews a sentence of death 212
imposed pursuant to this section, and in making such a review 213
reconsiders the prior holding in Kennedy v. Louisiana, 554 U.S. 214
407 (2008), and determines that a sentence of death remains 215
unconstitutional, the court having jurisdiction over the person 216
previously sentenced to death shall cause such person to be 217
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brought before the court, and the court shall sentence such person 218
to life imprisonment as provided in Section 99-19-107. 219
(11) Applicability. This section applies to any capital 220
felony under Section 97-3-54.1(1)(d) which is committed on or 221
after the effective date of this act. 222
SECTION 2. Section 97-3-54.1, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 223
amended as follows: 224
97-3-54.1. (1) (a) A person who coerces, recruits, 225
entices, harbors, transports, provides or obtains by any means, or 226
attempts to coerce, recruit, entice, harbor, transport, provide or 227
obtain by any means, another person, intending or knowing that the 228
person will be subjected to forced labor or services, or who 229
benefits, whether financially or by receiving anything of value 230
from participating in an enterprise that he knows or reasonably 231
should have known has engaged in such acts, shall be guilty of the 232
crime of human trafficking. 233
(b) A person who knowingly purchases the forced labor 234
or services of a trafficked person or who otherwise knowingly 235
subjects, or attempts to subject, another person to forced labor 236
or services or who benefits, whether financially or by receiving 237
anything of value from participating in an enterprise that he 238
knows or reasonably should have known has engaged in such acts, 239
shall be guilty of the crime of procuring involuntary servitude. 240
(c) A person who knowingly subjects, or attempts to 241
subject, or who recruits, entices, harbors, transports, provides 242
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or obtains by any means, or attempts to recruit, entice, harbor, 243
transport, provide or obtain by any means, a minor, knowing that 244
the minor will engage in commercial sexual activity, sexually 245
explicit performance, or the production of sexually oriented 246
material, or causes or attempts to cause a minor to engage in 247
commercial sexual activity, sexually explicit performance, or the 248
production of sexually oriented material, shall be guilty of 249
procuring sexual servitude of a minor and shall be punished by 250
commitment to the custody of the Department of Corrections for not 251
less than twenty (20) years nor more than life in prison, or by a 252
fine of not less than Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000.00) nor more 253
than Five Hundred Thousand Dollars ($500,000.00), or both. It is 254
not a defense in a prosecution under this section that a minor 255
consented to engage in the commercial sexual activity, sexually 256
explicit performance, or the production of sexually oriented 257
material, or that the defendant reasonably believed that the minor 258
was eighteen (18) years of age or older. 259
(d) (i) Any person eighteen (18) years of age or older 260
who knowingly initiates, organizes, plans, finances, directs, 261
manages or supervises an enterprise that has subjected a child 262
younger than twelve (12) years of age, or a person who is mentally 263
defective or mentally incapacitated as those terms are defined in 264
Section 97-3-97, to human trafficking for sexual exploitation 265
commits capital human trafficking of vulnerable persons for sexual 266
exploitation, a capital felony and shall be punished by death if 267
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the proceeding held to determine sentence according to the 268
procedure set forth in Section 1 of this act results in a 269
determination that such person shall be punished by death, 270
otherwise such person shall be punished by life imprisonment and 271
shall be ineligible for parole. 272
(ii) For each instance of human trafficking of any 273
individual under subparagraph (i) of this paragraph, a separate 274
crime is committed and a separate punishment is authorized. 275
(iii) In all capital cases under this paragraph, 276
the procedure in Section 1 of this act shall be followed to 277
determine a sentence of death or life imprisonment. 278
(iv) If the prosecutor intends to seek the death 279
penalty, the prosecutor must give notice to the defendant and file 280
the notice with the court within forty-five (45) days after 281
arraignment. The notice must contain a list of the aggravating 282
factors the state intends to prove and has reason to believe it 283
can prove beyond a reasonable doubt. The court may allow the 284
prosecutor to amend the notice upon a showing of good cause. 285
(2) If the victim is not a minor, a person who is convicted 286
of an offense set forth in subsection (1)(a) or (b) of this 287
section shall be committed to the custody of the Department of 288
Corrections for not less than two (2) years nor more than twenty 289
(20) years, or by a fine of not less than Ten Thousand Dollars 290
($10,000.00) nor more than One Hundred Thousand Dollars 291
($100,000.00), or both. If the victim of the offense is a minor, 292
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a person who is convicted of an offense set forth in subsection 293
(1)(a) or (b) of this section shall be committed to the custody of 294
the Department of Corrections for not less than twenty (20) years 295
nor more than life in prison, or by a fine of not less than Twenty 296
Thousand Dollars ($20,000.00) nor more than One Hundred Thousand 297
Dollars ($100,000.00), or both. 298
(3) An enterprise may be prosecuted for an offense under 299
this chapter if: 300
(a) An agent of the enterprise knowingly engages in 301
conduct that constitutes an offense under this chapter while 302
acting within the scope of employment and for the benefit of the 303
entity. 304
(b) An employee of the enterprise engages in conduct 305
that constitutes an offense under this chapter and the commission 306
of the offense was part of a pattern of illegal activity for the 307
benefit of the enterprise, which an agent of the enterprise either 308
knew was occurring or recklessly disregarded, and the agent failed 309
to take effective action to stop the illegal activity. 310
(c) It is an affirmative defense to a prosecution of an 311
enterprise that the enterprise had in place adequate procedures, 312
including an effective complaint procedure, designed to prevent 313
persons associated with the enterprise from engaging in the 314
unlawful conduct and to promptly correct any violations of this 315
chapter. 316
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(d) The court may consider the severity of the 317
enterprise's offense and order penalties, including: (i) a fine 318
of not more than One Million Dollars ($1,000,000.00); (ii) 319
disgorgement of profit; and (iii) debarment from government 320
contracts. Additionally, the court may order any of the relief 321
provided in Section 97-3-54.7. 322
(4) In addition to the mandatory reporting provisions 323
contained in Sections 43-21-353 and 97-5-51, any person who has 324
reasonable cause to suspect that a minor under the age of eighteen 325
(18) is a trafficked person shall immediately make a report of the 326
suspected child abuse or neglect to the Department of Child 327
Protection Services and to the Statewide Human Trafficking 328
Coordinator. The Department of Child Protection Services or the 329
Statewide Human Trafficking Coordinator, whichever is applicable, 330
shall then immediately notify the law enforcement agency in the 331
jurisdiction where the suspected child abuse, neglect or 332
trafficking occurred as required in Section 43-21-353, and the 333
department that received the report shall also commence an initial 334
investigation into the suspected abuse or neglect as required in 335
Section 43-21-353. The department that received such report shall 336
provide an annual report to the Speaker of the Mississippi House 337
of Representatives, the Lieutenant Governor, the Chairpersons of 338
the House and Senate Judiciary Committees that includes the number 339
of reports received, the number of cases screened in or out, the 340
number of cases in which care and services were provided as a 341
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result of the report, and the type of care and services that were 342
provided. A minor who has been identified as a victim of 343
trafficking shall not be liable for criminal activity in violation 344
of this section. 345
(5) It is an affirmative defense in a prosecution under this 346
act that the defendant: 347
(a) Is a victim; and 348
(b) Committed the offense under a reasonable 349
apprehension created by a person that, if the defendant did not 350
commit the act, the person would inflict serious harm on the 351
defendant, a member of the defendant's family, or a close 352
associate. 353
SECTION 3. Section 97-3-54.4, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 354
amended as follows: 355
97-3-54.4. For the purposes of the Mississippi Human 356
Trafficking Act the following words and phrases shall have the 357
meanings ascribed herein unless the context clearly requires 358
otherwise: 359
(a) "Act" or "this act" means the Mississippi Human 360
Trafficking Act. 361
(b) "Actor" means a person who violates any of the 362
provisions of Sections 97-3-54 through 97-3-54.4. 363
(c) "Blackmail" means obtaining property or things of 364
value of another by threatening to (i) inflict bodily injury on 365
anyone; or (ii) commit any other criminal offense. 366
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(d) "Coerce" or "coercion" means: 367
(i) Causing or threatening to cause bodily harm to 368
any person, physically restraining or confining any person, or 369
threatening to physically restrain or confine any person; 370
(ii) Exposing or threatening to expose any fact or 371
information or disseminating or threatening to disseminate any 372
fact or information that would tend to subject a person to 373
criminal or immigration proceedings, hatred, contempt or ridicule; 374
(iii) Destroying, concealing, removing, 375
confiscating or possessing any actual or purported passport or 376
other immigration document, or any other actual or purported 377
government identification document of any person; 378
(iv) Providing a controlled substance to a person 379
for the purpose of compelling the person to engage in labor or 380
sexual servitude against the person's will; 381
(v) Causing or threatening to cause financial harm 382
to any person or using financial control over any person; 383
(vi) Abusing or threatening to abuse a position of 384
power, the law, or legal process; 385
(vii) Using blackmail; 386
(viii) Using an individual's personal services as 387
payment or satisfaction of a real or purported debt when: 1. the 388
reasonable value of the services is not applied toward the 389
liquidation of the debt; 2. the length of the services is not 390
limited and the nature of the services is not defined; 3. the 391
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principal amount of the debt does not reasonably reflect the value 392
of the items or services for which the debt is incurred; or 4. the 393
individual is prevented from acquiring accurate and timely 394
information about the disposition of the debt; or 395
(ix) Using any scheme, plan or pattern of conduct 396
intended to cause any person to believe that, if the person did 397
not perform the labor or services, that the person or another 398
person would suffer serious harm or physical restraint. 399
(e) "Commercial sexual activity" means any sex act on 400
account of which anything of value is given to, promised to, or 401
received by any person. 402
(f) "Enterprise" means any individual, sole 403
proprietorship, partnership, corporation, union or other legal 404
entity, or any association or group of individuals associated in 405
fact regardless of whether a legal entity has been formed pursuant 406
to any state, federal or territorial law. It includes illicit as 407
well as licit enterprises and governmental as well as other 408
entities. 409
(g) "Financial harm" includes, but is not limited to, 410
extortion as defined by Section 97-3-82, Mississippi Code of 1972, 411
or violation of the usury law as defined by Chapter 17, Title 412
75, * * * Mississippi Code of 1972. 413
(h) "Forced labor or services" means labor or services 414
that are performed or provided by another person and are obtained 415
or maintained through coercion. 416
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(i) "Labor" means work of economic or financial value. 417
(j) "Maintain" means, in relation to labor or services, 418
to secure continued performance thereof, regardless of any initial 419
agreement on the part of the trafficked person to perform such 420
labor or service. 421
(k) "Minor" means a person under the age of eighteen 422
(18) years. 423
(l) "Obtain" means, in relation to labor or services, 424
to secure performance thereof. 425
(m) "Pecuniary damages" means any of the following: 426
(i) The greater of the gross income or value to 427
the defendant of the victim's labor or services, including sexual 428
services, not reduced by the expense the defendant incurred as a 429
result of maintaining the victim, or the value of the victim's 430
labor or services calculated under the minimum wage and overtime 431
provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act, 29 USCS Section 201 et 432
seq., whichever is higher; 433
(ii) If it is not possible or in the best interest 434
of the victim to compute a value under subparagraph (i) of this 435
paragraph (m), the equivalent of the value of the victim's labor 436
or services if the victim had provided labor or services that were 437
subject to the minimum wage and overtime provisions of the Fair 438
Labor Standards Act, 29 USCS 201 et seq.; 439
(iii) Costs and expenses incurred by the victim as 440
a result of the offense for: 441
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1. Medical services; 442
2. Therapy or psychological counseling; 443
3. Temporary housing; 444
4. Transportation; 445
5. Childcare; 446
6. Physical and occupational therapy or 447
rehabilitation; 448
7. Funeral, interment, and burial services; 449
reasonable attorney's fees and other legal costs; and 450
8. Other expenses incurred by the victim. 451
(n) "Serious harm" means harm, whether physical or 452
nonphysical, including psychological, economic or reputational, to 453
an individual that would compel a reasonable person in similar 454
circumstances as the individual to perform or continue to perform 455
labor or services to avoid incurring the harm. 456
(o) "Services" means an ongoing relationship between a 457
person and the actor in which the person performs activities under 458
the supervision of or for the benefit of the actor or a third 459
party and includes, without limitation, commercial sexual 460
activity, sexually explicit performances, or the production of 461
sexually explicit materials. 462
(p) "Sexual exploitation" means any violation of 463
Section 97-3-95, excluding a violation pursuant to Section 464
97-3-95(1)(c). 465
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( * * *q) "Sexually explicit performance" means a live 466
or public act or show intended to arouse or satisfy the sexual 467
desires or appeal to the prurient interests of patrons. 468
( * * *r) "Trafficked person" means a person subjected 469
to the practices prohibited by this act regardless of whether a 470
perpetrator is identified, apprehended, prosecuted or convicted, 471
and is a term used interchangeably with the terms "victim," 472
"victim of trafficking" and "trafficking victim." 473
( * * *s) "Venture" means any group of two (2) or more 474
individuals associated in fact, whether or not a legal entity. 475
( * * *t) "Sexually oriented material" shall have the 476
meaning ascribed in Section 97-5-27, Mississippi Code of 1972. 477
SECTION 4. Section 47-7-3, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 478
amended as follows: 479
47-7-3. (1) Every prisoner who has been convicted of any 480
offense against the State of Mississippi, and is confined in the 481
execution of a judgment of such conviction in the Mississippi 482
Department of Corrections for a definite term or terms of one (1) 483
year or over, or for the term of his or her natural life, whose 484
record of conduct shows that such prisoner has observed the rules 485
of the department, and who has served the minimum required time 486
for parole eligibility, may be released on parole as set forth 487
herein: 488
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(a) Habitual offenders. Except as provided by Sections 489
99-19-81 through 99-19-87, no person sentenced as a confirmed and 490
habitual criminal shall be eligible for parole; 491
(b) Sex offenders. Any person who has been sentenced 492
for a sex offense as defined in Section 45-33-23(h) shall not be 493
released on parole except for a person under the age of nineteen 494
(19) who has been convicted under Section 97-3-67; 495
(c) Capital offenders. No person sentenced for the 496
following offenses shall be eligible for parole: 497
(i) Capital murder committed on or after July 1, 498
1994, as defined in Section 97-3-19(2); 499
(ii) Any offense to which an offender is sentenced 500
to life imprisonment under the provisions of Section 99-19-101 or 501
Section 1 of this act; or 502
(iii) Any offense to which an offender is 503
sentenced to life imprisonment without eligibility for parole 504
under the provisions of Section 99-19-101, whose crime was 505
committed on or after July 1, 1994; 506
(d) Murder. No person sentenced for murder in the 507
first degree, whose crime was committed on or after June 30, 1995, 508
or murder in the second degree, as defined in Section 97-3-19, 509
shall be eligible for parole; 510
(e) Human trafficking. No person sentenced for human 511
trafficking, as defined in Section 97-3-54.1, whose crime was 512
committed on or after July 1, 2014, shall be eligible for parole; 513
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(f) Drug trafficking. No person sentenced for 514
trafficking and aggravated trafficking, as defined in Section 515
41-29-139(f) through (g), shall be eligible for parole; 516
(g) Offenses specifically prohibiting parole release. 517
No person shall be eligible for parole who is convicted of any 518
offense that specifically prohibits parole release; 519
(h) (i) Offenders eligible for parole consideration 520
for offenses committed after June 30, 1995. Except as provided in 521
paragraphs (a) through (g) of this subsection, offenders may be 522
considered eligible for parole release as follows: 523
1. Nonviolent crimes. All persons sentenced 524
for a nonviolent offense shall be eligible for parole only after 525
they have served twenty-five percent (25%) or ten (10) years, 526
whichever is less, of the sentence or sentences imposed by the 527
trial court. For purposes of this paragraph, "nonviolent crime" 528
means a felony not designated as a crime of violence in Section 529
97-3-2. 530
2. Violent crimes. A person who is sentenced 531
for a violent offense as defined in Section 97-3-2, except robbery 532
with a deadly weapon as defined in Section 97-3-79, drive-by 533
shooting as defined in Section 97-3-109, and carjacking as defined 534
in Section 97-3-117, shall be eligible for parole only after 535
having served fifty percent (50%) or twenty (20) years, whichever 536
is less, of the sentence or sentences imposed by the trial court. 537
Those persons sentenced for robbery with a deadly weapon as 538
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defined in Section 97-3-79, drive-by shooting as defined in 539
Section 97-3-109, and carjacking as defined in Section 97-3-117, 540
shall be eligible for parole only after having served sixty 541
percent (60%) or twenty-five (25) years, whichever is less, of the 542
sentence or sentences imposed by the trial court. 543
3. Nonviolent and nonhabitual drug offenses. 544
A person who has been sentenced to a drug offense pursuant to 545
Section 41-29-139(a) through (d), whose crime was committed after 546
June 30, 1995, shall be eligible for parole only after he has 547
served twenty-five percent (25%) or ten (10) years, whichever is 548
less, of the sentence or sentences imposed. 549
(ii) Parole hearing required. All persons 550
eligible for parole under subparagraph (i) of this paragraph (h) 551
who are serving a sentence or sentences for a crime of violence, 552
as defined in Section 97-3-2, shall be required to have a parole 553
hearing before the Parole Board pursuant to Section 47-7-17, prior 554
to parole release. 555
(iii) Geriatric parole. Notwithstanding the 556
provisions in subparagraph (i) of this paragraph (h), a person 557
serving a sentence who has reached the age of sixty (60) or older 558
and who has served no less than ten (10) years of the sentence or 559
sentences imposed by the trial court shall be eligible for parole. 560
Any person eligible for parole under this subparagraph (iii) shall 561
be required to have a parole hearing before the board prior to 562
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parole release. No inmate shall be eligible for parole under this 563
subparagraph (iii) of this paragraph (h) if: 564
1. The inmate is sentenced as a habitual 565
offender under Sections 99-19-81 through 99-19-87; 566
2. The inmate is sentenced for a crime of 567
violence under Section 97-3-2; 568
3. The inmate is sentenced for an offense 569
that specifically prohibits parole release; 570
4. The inmate is sentenced for trafficking in 571
controlled substances under Section 41-29-139(f); 572
5. The inmate is sentenced for a sex crime; 573
or 574
6. The inmate has not served one-fourth (1/4) 575
of the sentence imposed by the court. 576
(iv) Parole consideration as authorized by the 577
trial court. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (a) of 578
this subsection, any offender who has not committed a crime of 579
violence under Section 97-3-2 and has served twenty-five percent 580
(25%) or more of his sentence may be paroled by the State Parole 581
Board if, after the sentencing judge or if the sentencing judge is 582
retired, disabled or incapacitated, the senior circuit judge 583
authorizes the offender to be eligible for parole consideration; 584
or if the senior circuit judge must be recused, another circuit 585
judge of the same district or a senior status judge may hear and 586
decide the matter. A petition for parole eligibility 587
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consideration pursuant to this subparagraph (iv) shall be filed in 588
the original criminal cause or causes, and the offender shall 589
serve an executed copy of the petition on the District Attorney. 590
The court may, in its discretion, require the District Attorney to 591
respond to the petition. 592
(2) The State Parole Board shall, by rules and regulations, 593
establish a method of determining a tentative parole hearing date 594
for each eligible offender taken into the custody of the 595
Department of Corrections. The tentative parole hearing date 596
shall be determined within ninety (90) days after the department 597
has assumed custody of the offender. Except as provided in 598
Section 47-7-18, the parole hearing date shall occur when the 599
offender is within thirty (30) days of the month of his parole 600
eligibility date. Any parole eligibility date shall not be 601
earlier than as required in this section. 602
(3) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an inmate 603
shall not be eligible to receive earned time, good time or any 604
other administrative reduction of time which shall reduce the time 605
necessary to be served for parole eligibility as provided in 606
subsection (1) of this section. 607
(4) Any inmate within forty-eight (48) months of his parole 608
eligibility date and who meets the criteria established by the 609
classification board shall receive priority for placement in any 610
educational development and job-training programs that are part of 611
his or her parole case plan. Any inmate refusing to participate 612
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in an educational development or job-training program, including, 613
but not limited to, programs required as part of the case plan, 614
shall be in jeopardy of noncompliance with the case plan and may 615
be denied parole. 616
(5) In addition to other requirements, if an offender is 617
convicted of a drug or driving under the influence felony, the 618
offender must complete a drug and alcohol rehabilitation program 619
prior to parole, or the offender shall be required to complete a 620
postrelease drug and alcohol program as a condition of parole. 621
(6) Except as provided in subsection (1)(a) through (h) of 622
this section, all other persons shall be eligible for parole after 623
serving twenty-five percent (25%) of the sentence or sentences 624
imposed by the trial court, or, if sentenced to thirty (30) years 625
or more, after serving ten (10) years of the sentence or sentences 626
imposed by the trial court. 627
(7) The Corrections and Criminal Justice Oversight Task 628
Force established in Section 47-5-6 shall develop and submit 629
recommendations to the Governor and to the Legislature annually on 630
or before December 1st concerning issues relating to juvenile and 631
habitual offender parole reform and to review and monitor the 632
implementation of Chapter 479, Laws of 2021. 633
(8) The amendments contained in Chapter 479, Laws of 2021, 634
shall apply retroactively from and after July 1, 1995. 635
(9) Notwithstanding provisions to the contrary in this 636
section, a person who was sentenced before July 1, 2021, may be 637
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ST: Capital human trafficking; create crime of.
considered for parole if the person's sentence would have been 638
parole eligible before July 1, 2021. 639
(10) This section shall stand repealed on July 1, 2027. 640
SECTION 5. This act shall take effect and be in force from 641
and after its passage. 642