Title 97, Crimes

(1) Any sheriff, constable, policeman, or agent of a society for the prevention of cruelty to animals may kill, or cause to be killed, any animal other than a dog or cat found neglected or abandoned, if in the opinion of three (3) respectable citizens it is injured or diseased pa…

If any person shall carry, or cause to be carried by hand or in or upon any vehicle or other conveyance, any creature other than a dog or cat in a cruel or inhuman manner, he shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.

If any person shall confine, or cause to be confined, in any stable, lot, or other place, any living creature other than a dog or cat, without supplying the same during such confinement with a sufficient quantity of good and wholesome food and water, he shall be guilty of a misde…

If any person be the owner or have the custody of any living creature other than a dog or cat and unjustifiably neglect or refuse to furnish it necessary sustenance, food, or drink, he shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.

This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the “Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization Act.”

(1) When any property is seized pursuant to Section 97-43-9, proceedings under this section shall be instituted promptly. (2) (a) A petition for forfeiture shall be filed promptly in the name of the State of Mississippi with the clerk of the circuit court of the county in which t…

(a) The following terms shall have the meanings ascribed to them herein unless the context requires otherwise:(a) “Racketeering activity” means to commit, to attempt to commit, to conspire to commit, or to solicit, coerce or intimidate another person to commit any crime which is …

(1) It shall be unlawful for any person to conduct, organize, supervise or manage, directly or indirectly, an organized theft or fraud enterprise. Organized theft or fraud enterprise applies to conduct proscribed in the following provisions:(a) Section 97-23-93, which relates to …

(1) It is unlawful for any person who has with criminal intent received any proceeds derived, directly or indirectly, from a pattern of racketeering activity or through the collection of an unlawful debt to use or invest, whether directly or indirectly, any part of such proceeds …

(1) Any person convicted of engaging in activity in violation of the provisions of this chapter shall be guilty of a felony and, upon conviction, shall be fined not more than Twenty-five Thousand Dollars ($25,000.00) or imprisoned not more than twenty (20) years, or both. (2) In …

(1) Any circuit court may, after making due provision for the rights of innocent persons, enjoin violations of the provisions of this chapter by issuing appropriate orders and judgments, including, but not limited to:(a) Ordering any defendant to divest himself of any interest in…

This chapter shall be known as the “Mississippi Streetgang Act.”

(1) All streetgangs and streetgang members engaged in a gang-related criminal activity within this state impliedly consent to service of process upon them as set forth in this section, or as may be otherwise authorized by the Rules of Civil Procedure. (2) Service of process upon …

(1) In any action brought under this chapter, and upon the verified application of the district attorney or his designee or the county attorney, the circuit court may at any time enter such restraining orders, injunctions or other prohibitions, or order such other relief as it de…

(1) Every private building or place used by members of a criminal street gang for the commission of illegal activity is a nuisance and may be the subject of an injunction or cause of action for damages or for abatement of the nuisance as provided for in this chapter. (2) Any pers…

(1) Any firearm, ammunition to be used in a firearm, or dangerous weapon in the possession of a member of a criminal street gang may be seized by any law enforcement agency or peace officer when the law enforcement agency or peace officer has probable cause to believe that the fi…

(1) Any person who intentionally directs, participates, conducts, furthers, or assists in the commission of illegal gang activity shall be punished by imprisonment for not less than one (1) year nor more than one-half (½) of the maximum term of imprisonment provided for an underl…

(a) For the purposes of this chapter, the following words and phrases shall have the meanings ascribed herein, unless the context clearly requires otherwise:(a) “Streetgang” or “gang” or “organized gang” or “criminal streetgang” means any combination, confederation, alliance, net…

(1) A civil cause of action is hereby created in favor of any public authority expending money, allocating or reallocating police, firefighting, emergency or other personnel or resources, or otherwise incurring any loss, deprivation or injury, or sustaining any damage, impairment…

(1) An action may be commenced under this chapter by the filing of a complaint as in civil cases. (2) A complaint filed under this chapter, and all other ancillary or collateral matters arising therefrom, including matter relating to discovery, motions, trial and the perfection o…

(1) In an action brought under this chapter, venue shall lie in any county where an act charged in the complaint as part of a gang-related criminal activity was committed. (2) It shall not be necessary for all offenses necessary to establishing a criminal activity to have occurre…

(a) For the purposes of this chapter, the following words shall have the meanings ascribed herein unless the context clearly requires otherwise:(a) “Access” means to program, to execute programs on, to communicate with, store data in, retrieve data from or otherwise make use of a…

(a) For the purposes of venue under the provisions of this chapter, any violation of this chapter shall be considered to have been committed:(a) In any county in which any act was performed in furtherance of any transaction violating this chapter; and(b) In any county from which,…

The criminal offenses created by this chapter shall not be deemed to supersede, or repeal, any other criminal offense.

(1) It is unlawful for a person to:(a) Use in electronic mail or electronic communication any words or language threatening to inflict bodily harm to any person or to that person’s child, sibling, spouse or dependent, or physical injury to the property of any person, or for the p…

(1) A person shall not post a message for the purpose of causing injury to any person through the use of any medium of communication, including the Internet or a computer, computer program, computer system or computer network, or other electronic medium of communication without t…

(1) A person shall not obtain or attempt to obtain personal identity information of another person with the intent to unlawfully use that information for any of the following purposes without that person’s authorization:(a) To obtain financial credit.(b) To purchase or otherwise …

(1) For the purposes of this chapter, “identity theft” includes crimes chargeable under the following provisions of law:(a) Section 97-9-79, which relates to false information.(b) Section 97-19-83, which relates to fraud by mail or other means of communication.(c) Section 97-19-8…

(1) For purposes of bringing a criminal action under this chapter, a person who causes, by any means, the access of a computer, computer system or computer network in one jurisdiction from another jurisdiction is deemed to have personally accessed the computer, computer system or…

Prosecutions for violations under Title 97, Chapter 45, or Section 97-5-33, may be instituted by the Attorney General, his designee or the district attorney of the district in which the violation occurred, and shall be conducted in the name of the State of Mississippi. In the pro…

(1) In a proceeding for violations under Title 97, Chapter 45, Section 97-5-33 or Section 97-19-85, the court, in addition to the criminal penalties imposed under this chapter, shall assess against the defendant convicted of such violation double those reasonable costs that are e…

Any person whose name or other identification has been used without his consent or authorization by another person, with the use resulting in charges, an arrest record, or a conviction putatively on the record of the person whose name or other identification was appropriated, the…

(1) A person who has petitioned the court pursuant to Section 97-45-27 to expunge any charges, arrest record or conviction falsely entered against the person as a result of the appropriation of his name or other identifying information may submit to the Attorney General a certifi…

(1) Computer fraud is the accessing or causing to be accessed of any computer, computer system, computer network or any part thereof with the intent to:(a) Defraud;(b) Obtain money, property or services by means of false or fraudulent conduct, practices or representations; or thr…

(1) For the purposes of this section, the following terms shall have the meanings ascribed to them unless the context clearly requires otherwise:(a) “Cardholder” means any person:(i) Named on the face of a credit card to whom or for whose benefit the credit card is issued by an i…

(1) Nothwithstanding any other provision of law, any person who knowingly and without consent impersonates another actual person through or on an Internet website or by other electronic means for purposes of harming, intimidating, threatening or defrauding another person is guilt…

(1) An offense against computer users is the intentional:(a) Denial to an authorized user, without consent, of the full and effective use of or access to a computer, a computer system, a computer network or computer services; or(b) Use or disclosure to another, without consent, o…

(1) An offense against computer equipment or supplies is the intentional modification or destruction, without consent, of computer equipment or supplies used or intended to be used in a computer, computer system or computer network. (2) Whoever commits an offense against computer…

(1) An offense against intellectual property is the intentional:(a) Destruction, insertion or modification, without consent, of intellectual property; or(b) Disclosure, use, copying, taking or accessing, without consent, of intellectual property. (a) Destruction, insertion or mod…

This chapter shall be known and referred to as the “Mississippi Unmanned Aircraft Systems Protection Act of 2021.”

(a) For the purposes of this chapter, unless otherwise specified, the following terms shall have the following meanings:(a) “Correctional facility” means any:(i) Confinement facility operated or contracted by the Mississippi Department of Corrections;(ii) Confinement facility ope…

(a) A person commits the offense of unlawful use of an unmanned aircraft system if he or she knowingly:(a) Uses an unmanned aircraft system to conduct surveillance of, collect information or data, or photographically or electronically record a critical infrastructure or correctio…

(1) Nothing in this chapter shall be deemed to prohibit the operation of an unmanned aircraft system by a law enforcement agency for any lawful purpose in this state. (2) A public agency or a public contractor, other than a law enforcement agency or contractor, may operate an unm…

(1) Any person who is convicted under Section 97-47-5(a) shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable up to one (1) year in prison or a fine not to exceed One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00) for the first offense or both. (2) Any person convicted under Section 97-47-5(b) shall be gu…

(1) As used in this section, the term:(a) “Mail” means any letter, postal card, parcel, envelope, package, bag or other material, or any other sealed article addressed to another, along with its contents.(b) “Mail depository” means a mail box, letter box or mail receptacle of a p…

(1) As used in this section, the term:(a) “Mail” means any letter, postal card, parcel, envelope, package, bag or any other sealed article addressed to another, along with its contents.(b) “Mail depository” means a mail box, letter box or mail receptacle of a postal service, post…