Title 99, Criminal Procedure

There is hereby created the Capital Defense Counsel Division within the Office of the State Public Defender. This office shall consist of a director, sometimes referred to as Capital Defender, who shall be an attorney qualified to serve as lead counsel in death penalty eligible c…

The Capital Defense Counsel Division is created within the Office of the State Public Defender for the purpose of providing representation to indigent parties under indictment for death penalty eligible offenses and to perform such other duties as set forth by law.

The Capital Defense Counsel Division shall limit its activities to representation of defendants accused of death-eligible offenses and ancillary matters related directly to death-eligible offenses and other activities expressly authorized by statute. Representation by the divisio…

The Capital Defense Director appointed under this chapter shall be compensated at no more than the maximum amount allowed by statute for a district attorney, and other attorneys in the office shall be compensated at no more than the maximum amount allowed by statute for an assist…

No statutory change of any law affecting a crime or its punishment or the collection of a penalty shall affect or defeat the prosecution of any crime committed prior to its enactment, or the collection of any penalty, whether such prosecution be instituted before or after such en…

(1) Upon conviction or adjudication of guilt of a defendant of capital murder or other capital offense, the court shall conduct a separate sentencing proceeding to determine whether the defendant should be sentenced to death, life imprisonment without eligibility for parole, or l…

The statutory instructions as determined by the trial judge to be warranted by the evidence shall be given in the charge and in writing to the jury for its deliberation. The jury, if its verdict be a unanimous recommendation of death, shall designate in writing, signed by the for…

(1) Whenever the death penalty is imposed, and upon the judgment becoming final in the trial court, the sentence shall be reviewed on the record by the Mississippi Supreme Court. The clerk of the trial court, within ten (10) days after receiving the transcript, shall transmit the…

When judgment of death becomes final and a writ of certiorari to the United States Supreme Court has been denied or the time for filing such petition has expired, the court shall set an execution date for a person sentenced to the death penalty. Within sixty (60) days following t…

In the event the death penalty is held to be unconstitutional by the Mississippi Supreme Court or the United States Supreme Court, the court having jurisdiction over a person previously sentenced to death shall cause such person to be brought before the court and the court shall …

(1) Intent. (a) The Legislature finds that a person who commits a sexual battery upon, or in an attempt to commit sexual battery injures the sexual organs of, a person less than twelve (12) years of age carries a great risk of death and danger to vulnerable members of this state.…

If the verdict is informal or defective the court may direct it to be reformed at the bar.

(1) There is created the Mississippi Sentencing Disparity Task Force. The purpose of the task force is to study and report the existence of possible disparity in sentencing for crimes as documented by the Mississippi Department of Corrections in order to promote the interest of u…

When the court shall be satisfied that a person who has been found guilty of a felony not capital is not more than sixteen, the punishment imposed may, in the discretion of the court, be imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding one year, instead of imprisonment in the penite…

Sections 99-19-151 through 99-19-161 shall be known and may be cited as “The Victim Impact Statement Act.”

(1) The Legislature finds and declares that:(a) Protection of the public, restitution to the crime victim and the crime victim’s family and just punishment for the harm inflicted are primary objectives of the sentencing process;(b) The financial, emotional and physical effects of…

(a) For the purposes of Sections 99-19-151 through 99-19-161, the following words shall have the meanings ascribed herein, unless the context otherwise requires:(a) “Victim” means an individual who suffers direct or threatened physical, emotional or financial harm as the result o…

(1) If a court orders the preparation of a presentence evaluation report on a defendant in a felony case, the presentence investigator shall prepare a written victim impact statement for the court which shall be appended to such report. The statement shall include applicable info…

(1) At least forty-eight (48) hours prior to the date of sentencing, the court shall make available copies of the statement to the defendant, defendant’s counsel and the prosecuting attorney. These parties shall return all copies of the statement to the court immediately followin…

The prosecuting attorney shall notify the victim or the victim representative in writing of the date, time and place of any sentencing hearing. If a sentencing hearing is not ordered by the trial judge, the prosecuting attorney shall notify the victim or the victim representative…

When any person is convicted of a felony or felonies in which public funds in the amount of Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00) or more were unlawfully taken, obtained or misappropriated, the sentence imposed by the court shall include a minimum term of imprisonment of one (1) year…

(1) Except as otherwise provided under Section 99-19-20.1, when any court sentences a defendant to pay a fine, the court may order (a) that the fine be paid immediately, or (b) that the fine be paid in installments to the clerk of the court or to the judge, if there be no clerk, …

(a) The following terms shall have the meanings ascribed to them herein unless the context requires otherwise:(a) “AIDS” means acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, AIDS related complex and any similar disease.(b) “HIV” means the human immunodeficiency virus or any other identified…

Any person who is convicted of a sex offense on or after July 1, 1994, and who is sentenced to any state or local correctional facility, placed on probation, given a suspended sentence or other disposition shall be tested for HIV and AIDS by the State Department of Health in conj…

(1) When a person is sentenced to imprisonment on two (2) or more convictions, the imprisonment on the second, or each subsequent conviction shall, in the discretion of the court, commence either at the termination of the imprisonment for the preceding conviction or run concurren…

The number of days spent by a prisoner in incarceration in any municipal or county jail while awaiting trial on a criminal charge, or awaiting an appeal to a higher court upon conviction, shall be applied on any sentence rendered by a court of law or on any sentence finally set a…

The circuit courts and the county courts, in misdemeanor cases, are hereby authorized to suspend a sentence and to suspend the execution of a sentence, or any part thereof, on such terms as may be imposed by the judge of the court. Provided, the suspension of imposition or execut…

Every convicted offender of a criminal law who receives a parole or suspended sentence for a definite time, and fails to surrender himself to the proper authority for execution of sentence on expiration of such parole or suspended sentence, shall be regarded and treated as an esc…

Whenever any court granting a suspended sentence, or the governor granting a pardon, based on conditions which the offender has violated or failed to observe, shall be convinced by proper showing, of such violation of sentence or pardon, then the governor or the judge of the cour…

(1) Except as provided in subsection (2) of this section, a person indicted for a criminal offense shall not be convicted thereof, unless by confession of his guilt in open court or by admitting the truth of the charge against him by his plea, or by the verdict of a jury accepted…

(1) The penalty for any felony or misdemeanor shall be subject to enhancement as provided in Sections 99-19-301 through 99-19-307 if the felony or misdemeanor was committed because of the actual or perceived race, color, ancestry, ethnicity, religion, national origin or gender of…

(1) For enhancement of the penalty for a felony offense to apply, the prosecuting attorney if the defendant is charged by information, or grand jury if an indictment is returned, shall provide notice upon the information or indictment that the prosecutor will seek the enhanced pe…

(1) Upon conviction or adjudication of guilt of a defendant where notice has been duly given that an enhanced penalty will be sought as provided in Sections 99-19-301 through 99-19-307, the court shall conduct a separate sentencing proceeding to determine the sentence. The procee…

If it is found beyond a reasonable doubt that the offense was committed by reason of (a) the actual or perceived race, color, ancestry, ethnicity, religion, national origin or gender of the victim, or (b) the victim’s actual or perceived employment as a law enforcement officer, f…

Nothing in Sections 99-19-301 through 99-19-307 shall abridge freedom of speech or the freedom to peaceably assemble as protected in Article III, Sections 11 and 13 of the Mississippi Constitution of 1890 and the First Amendment of the United States Constitution.

Offenses for which a penalty is not provided elsewhere by statute, and offenses indictable at common law, and for which a statutory penalty is not elsewhere prescribed, shall be punished by fine of not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) and imprisonment in the county jail…

(1) Offenses punishable by imprisonment in the State Penitentiary for more than one (1) year and for which no fine is provided elsewhere by statute may be punishable by a fine not in excess of Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00). Such fine, if imposed, may be in addition to impriso…

If any statute shall provide a punishment of the same character, but of milder type, for an offense which was a crime under pre-existing law, then such milder punishment may be imposed by the court but no conviction, otherwise valid, shall be set aside and new trial granted merel…

A person convicted of bribery, burglary, theft, arson, obtaining money or goods under false pretenses, perjury, forgery, embezzlement, or bigamy, shall not be allowed to practice medicine or dentistry, or be appointed to hold or perform the duties of any office of profit, trust, …

The penalty for any felony or misdemeanor which is a crime of violence or the crime of burglary or breaking and entering the dwelling of another shall be subject to enhancement as provided in Sections 99-19-351 through 99-19-357 if the felony or misdemeanor was committed against …

(1) For enhancement of the penalty for a felony offense to apply, the prosecuting attorney, if the defendant is charged by information, or grand jury, if an indictment is returned, shall provide notice upon the information or indictment that the prosecutor will seek the enhanced …

(1) Upon conviction or adjudication of guilt of a defendant where notice has been duly given that an enhanced penalty will be sought as provided in Sections 99-19-351 through 99-19-357, the court shall conduct a separate sentencing proceeding to determine the sentence. The procee…

The penalty for the offense may be enhanced by punishment for a term of imprisonment of up to twice that authorized by law for the offense committed, or a fine of up to twice that authorized by law for the offense committed, or both.

(1) Any person who has lost the right of suffrage by reason of conviction of crime and has not been pardoned therefrom, who thereafter served honorably in any branch of the armed forces of the United States during the periods of World War I or World War II as hereinafter defined …

If the defendant appeal from the conviction and be not removed on appeal, as provided in the next succeeding section, he shall be detained, according to the judgment of the circuit court, until the supreme court shall have decided his case, and the judgment thereof shall have bee…

(1) Every person convicted in this state of any of the offenses listed in subsection (2) of this section may be sentenced to an additional term of up to five (5) years for the offense listed in subsection (2). (2) If the conditions set forth in subsection (3) exist, the following…