Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-5 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 7-5
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-5
Status: repealed

(1) Effective January 1, 2028, the State Parole Board, created under former Section 47-7-5, is hereby created, continued and reconstituted and shall be composed of five (5) members, one (1) appointed from each Mississippi Supreme Court District and two (2) from the state at large. The Governor shall appoint the members to serve at the will and pleasure of the Governor, with the advice and consent of the Senate, not less than every four (4) years, provided that three (3) members shall be appointed in 2028 to a term ending December 31, 2031, and two (2) members shall be appointed in 2030 to a term ending December 31, 2033. Appointments made at the beginning of the four-year cycle shall be made to fill any member's term which actually expires that year and any member's term which expires next until the majority of the membership of the board or commission is reached. Appointments made at the beginning of the third year of the four-year cycle shall be made for the remainder of the membership positions irrespective of the time of their prior appointment. Any question regarding the order of appointments shall be determined by the Secretary of State in accordance with the specific statute. All appointment procedures, vacancy provisions, interim appointment provisions and removal provisions specifically provided for in Section 7-1-35, Mississippi Code of 1972 , shall be fully applicable to appointments to the State Parole Board. Any vacancy shall be filled by the Governor, with the advice and consent of the Senate. The Governor shall appoint a chairman of the board.

(2) Any person who is appointed to serve on the board shall possess at least a bachelor's degree or a high school diploma and four (4) years' work experience. Each member shall devote his full time to the duties of his office and shall not engage in any other business or profession or hold any other public office. A member shall receive compensation or per diem in addition to his or her salary. Each member shall keep such hours and workdays as required of full-time state employees under Section 25-1-98 . Individuals shall be appointed to serve on the board without reference to their political affiliations. Each board member, including the chairman, may be reimbursed for actual and necessary expenses as authorized by Section 25-3-41 . Each member of the board shall complete annual training developed based on guidance from the National Institute of Corrections, the Association of Paroling Authorities International, or the American Probation and Parole Association. Each first-time appointee of the board shall, within sixty (60) days of appointment, or as soon as practical, complete training for first-time Parole Board members developed in consideration of information from the National Institute of Corrections, the Association of Paroling Authorities International, or the American Probation and Parole Association.

(3) The board shall have exclusive responsibility for the granting of parole as provided by Sections 47-7-3 and 47-7-17 and shall have exclusive authority for revocation of the same. The board shall have exclusive responsibility for investigating clemency recommendations upon request of the Governor.

(4) The board, its members and staff, shall be immune from civil liability for any official acts taken in good faith and in exercise of the board's legitimate governmental authority.

(5) The budget of the board shall be funded through a separate line item within the general appropriation bill for the support and maintenance of the department. Employees of the department which are employed by or assigned to the board shall work under the guidance and supervision of the board. There shall be an executive secretary to the board who shall be responsible for all administrative and general accounting duties related to the board. The executive secretary shall keep and preserve all records and papers pertaining to the board.

(6) The board shall have no authority or responsibility for supervision of offenders granted a release for any reason, including, but not limited to, probation, parole or executive clemency or other offenders requiring the same through interstate compact agreements. The supervision shall be provided exclusively by the staff of the Division of Community Corrections of the department.

(7)(a) The Parole Board is authorized to select and place offenders in an electronic monitoring program under the conditions and criteria imposed by the Parole Board. The conditions, restrictions and requirements of Section 47-7-17 and Sections 47-5-1001 through 47-5-1015 shall apply to the Parole Board and any offender placed in an electronic monitoring program by the Parole Board.

(b) Any offender placed in an electronic monitoring program under this subsection shall pay the program fee provided in Section 47-5-1013 . The program fees shall be deposited in the special fund created in Section 47-5-1007 .

(c) The department shall have absolute immunity from liability for any injury resulting from a determination by the Parole Board that an offender be placed in an electronic monitoring program.

(8)(a) The Parole Board shall maintain a central registry of paroled inmates. The Parole Board shall place the following information on the registry: name, address, photograph, crime for which paroled, the date of the end of parole or flat-time date and other information deemed necessary. The Parole Board shall immediately remove information on a parolee at the end of his parole or flat-time date.

(b) When a person is placed on parole, the Parole Board shall inform the parolee of the duty to report to the parole officer any change in address ten (10) days before changing address.

(c) The Parole Board shall utilize an Internet website or other electronic means to release or publish the information.

(d) Records maintained on the registry shall be open to law enforcement agencies and the public and shall be available no later than July 1, 2003.

(9) An affirmative vote of at least four (4) members of the Parole Board shall be required to grant parole to an inmate convicted of capital murder or a sex crime.

(10) This section shall stand repealed on July 1, 2027.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-30 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 5 / Section 5-30
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-30
Status: in_force

(1) The Commissioner of Corrections shall develop a strategic plan for its operation of the state correctional system. The strategic plan shall cover a five-year period. The plan shall include, at a minimum, the following:

(a) A clearly defined comprehensive statement of the mission, goals and objectives of the agency;

(b) Performance effectiveness objectives for each facility under the jurisdiction of the department;

(c) A description of the department's internal management system used to evaluate its performance in relation to projected levels;

(d) Detailed plans and strategies for meeting current and future needs and achieving goals and objectives established for the state correctional system;

(e) A detailed analysis of the use of current agency resources in meeting current needs and expected future needs, and additional resources that may be necessary to meet future needs;

(f) An analysis of factors affecting projected prison populations including impact of juveniles on prison populations and how populations are expected to change within the period of the plan;

(g) A plan to remove inmates from county jails.

(2) The department shall revise the plan annually.

(3) Upon completion of the initial plan and each revision, the department shall provide copies to the Governor, the Lieutenant Governor, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the Chairman of the Senate Corrections Committee, the Chairman of the House Penitentiary Committee, the Legislative Budget Office, the Performance Evaluation and Expenditure Review Committee, the Executive Director of the Department of Finance and Administration and the Legislative Reference Bureau.

(4) The commissioner shall develop the strategic plan before September 23, 1994.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-3-7 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 3-7
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-3-7
Status: in_force

If any infectious or contagious disease shall appear in the vicinity of any jail, or if the appearance of such disease be apprehended, the board of supervisors of the county, or, if it should not meet in time, the sheriff of the county, with the concurrence of two (2) members of such board, or of a circuit judge or chancellor, expressed in writing, may cause the prisoners confined in such jail to be removed to some suitable place of security, for safekeeping, until the threatened danger shall be over, when they shall be returned to the jail.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-942 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-942
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-942
Status: in_force

(1) The Department of Corrections, in its discretion, may contract with the board of supervisors of a county to be determined by the department, to house not more than five hundred (500) adult male maximum security state inmates in a maximum security regional correctional facility constructed only with local, federal or private funds.

(2) The Department of Corrections may contract for a period of not more than twenty-five (25) years. The contract shall comply with the cost-savings requirements provided in Section 47-5-1211 . The state shall retain responsibility for medical care for state offenders to the extent that is required by law.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1223 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 5 / Section 5-1223
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1223
Status: in_force

(1) The Commissioner of the Department of Corrections shall designate an existing employee of the Department of Corrections as a contract compliance officer within the department which shall monitor any contracts between the state and private entities for the operation and management of correctional facilities, and shall assure contractor compliance with its performance work statement and assure the provision of prisoner care requirements.

(2) The contract compliance officer shall be responsible for monitoring all aspects of each privatized correctional facility. The officer shall be provided an on-site work area, shall be on-site on a daily basis, and shall have access to all areas of the facilities and to offenders and staff at all times. The private contractor or contractors shall provide any and all data, reports and other materials that the contract compliance officer determines are necessary to carry out monitoring responsibilities under this section.

(3) The contract compliance officer shall report at least annually, or as requested, to the Governor, the Senate Committee on Corrections, the House Penitentiary Committee and the Joint Legislative Committee on Performance Evaluation and Expenditure Review on the performance of the private contractor or contractors.

(4) The salary and expenses of the contract compliance officer shall be reimbursed to the Department of Corrections by the private entity that has contracted to operate or manage a correctional facility.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-537 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-537
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-537
Status: in_force

The Secretary of State, or his designee, shall assist the Department of Corrections and the Department of Finance and Administration in the formation of the nonprofit corporation, and within sixty (60) days after the formation of the corporation, the corporation shall apply for exemption from federal tax under the provisions of Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 , as amended. Any program of the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation of the State Department of Human Services shall not be classified as prison industries under the provisions Sections 47-5-531 through 47-5-575 .
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-411 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-411
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-411
Status: in_force

The Department of Corrections and the county shall endeavor to secure public service work for eligible inmates under Sections 47-5-401 through 47-5-421 , subject to the following criteria:

(a) Such work shall not result in the displacement of employed workers.

(b) Inmates eligible for work shall not be employed to impair any existing contracts.

(c) Exploitation of eligible inmates, in any form, is prohibited either as it might affect the community, the inmates, the Department of Corrections or the county.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-461 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-461
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-461
Status: in_force

State inmates performing public service work or private paid employment under Sections 47-5-451 through 47-5-469 shall be eligible for earned time credit allowances in the same manner as other inmates confined or detained in state prisons or other state correctional facilities.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-149 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-149
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-149
Status: in_force

If any offender of the United States courts who has been delivered to the custody of the department shall escape or attempt to escape, or shall commit any other crime while in the state correctional system, he shall be liable to the like punishment as if he had been convicted by the courts of the state.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1517 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-1517
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1517
Status: in_force

(1) The Department of Corrections shall develop and provide to all correctional facility employees and correctional officers who have contact with pregnant inmates training related to the physical and mental health of pregnant inmates and fetuses, including the following:

(a) General care of pregnant women;

(b) The impact of restraints on pregnant inmates and fetuses;

(c) The impact of being placed in restrictive housing on pregnant inmates; and

(d) The impact of invasive searches on pregnant inmates.

(2) The Department of Corrections shall develop and provide educational programming for pregnant inmates related to:

(a) Prenatal care;

(b) Pregnancy-specific hygiene;

(c) Parenting skills;

(d) The impact of alcohol and drugs on the fetus; and

(e) General health of child.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-331 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-331
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-331
Status: in_force

(1) Upon request of the Board of Corrections the Governor's Office of General Services is authorized to lease one or more existing buildings or portions thereof on the grounds of the Parchman facility of the Department of Corrections (a) to a private individual, firm or corporation for the purpose of establishing and operating a factory for the manufacture and processing of products, or (b) to any other commercial enterprise deemed consistent with the aims and purposes of the Penitentiary-Made Goods Law. The leased premises shall include any real estate needed for reasonable access to and access from the leased buildings. The term of the lease shall not exceed twenty (20) years. Money derived from the lease of such buildings and real estate shall be placed in the Prison Industries Fund in the State Treasury.

(2) Each lease negotiated and concluded under subsection (1) of this section shall include and shall be valid only so long as the lessee adheres to the following provisions:

(a) All persons employed in the factory or other commercial enterprise operated in the leased property, except for lessee's supervisory employees and necessary training personnel approved by the warden, shall be inmates of the State Penitentiary and approved for such employment by the warden and the lessee.

(b) The factory or other commercial enterprise operated in the leased property shall observe at all times such practices and procedures regarding security as the lease may specify, or as the warden may temporarily stipulate during periods of emergency.

(c) The factory or other commercial enterprise operated in the leased property shall be deemed a private enterprise and subject to all the laws and lawfully adopted rules of this state governing the operation of similar business enterprises elsewhere.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-701 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-701
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-701
Status: in_force

Sections 47-5-701 through 47-5-729 shall be known and may be cited as the “Prison Overcrowding Emergency Powers Act.”
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-85 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 5 / Section 5-85
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-85
Status: in_force

There shall be provided an area at each facility of the correctional system for religious worship to be conducted by the chaplain's office of the Mississippi Department of Corrections. The chaplains will have ingress and egress to all facilities of the Mississippi Department of Corrections for the purpose of providing religious services to the offenders incarcerated therein.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-36.1 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 7-36.1
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-36.1
Status: in_force

(1) Any employer of an offender may submit weekly time cards, proof of employment and the results of any required drug tests to the person who supervises an individual placed on parole by the Parole Board or placed on probation by the court in lieu of the meeting requirement described in Section 47-7-36 .

(2) Any employer may withhold an amount from an offender's paycheck sufficient to cover the fees described in Section 47-7-49 and pay the amount to the department monthly.

(3) This section shall not apply to offenders who are self-employed.

(4) The board shall coordinate with the department to promulgate rules and regulations to administer this section.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-27 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 7-27
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-27
Status: in_force

(1) The board may, at any time and upon a showing of probable violation of parole, issue a warrant for the return of any paroled offender to the custody of the department. The warrant shall authorize all persons named therein to return the paroled offender to actual custody of the department from which he was paroled.

(2) Any field supervisor may arrest an offender without a warrant or may deputize any other person with power of arrest by giving him a written statement setting forth that the offender has, in the judgment of that field supervisor, violated the conditions of his parole or earned-release supervision. The written statement delivered with the offender by the arresting officer to the official in charge of the department facility from which the offender was released or other place of detention designated by the department shall be sufficient warrant for the detention of the offender.

(3) The field supervisor, after making an arrest, shall present to the detaining authorities a similar statement of the circumstances of violation. The field supervisor shall at once notify the board or department of the arrest and detention of the offender and shall submit a written report showing in what manner the offender has violated the conditions of parole or earned-release supervision. An offender for whose return a warrant has been issued by the board shall, after the issuance of the warrant, be deemed a fugitive from justice.

(4) Whenever an offender is arrested on a warrant for an alleged violation of parole as herein provided, the board shall hold an informal preliminary hearing within seventy-two (72) hours to determine whether there is reasonable cause to believe the person has violated a condition of parole. A preliminary hearing shall not be required when the offender is not under arrest on a warrant or the offender signed a waiver of a preliminary hearing. The preliminary hearing may be conducted electronically.

(5) The right of the State of Mississippi to extradite persons and return fugitives from justice, from other states to this state, shall not be impaired by this chapter and shall remain in full force and effect. An offender convicted of a felony committed while on parole, whether in the State of Mississippi or another state, shall immediately have his parole revoked upon presentment of a certified copy of the commitment order to the board. If an offender is on parole and the offender is convicted of a felony for a crime committed prior to the offender being placed on parole, whether in the State of Mississippi or another state, the offender may have his parole revoked upon presentment of a certified copy of the commitment order to the board.

(6)(a) The board shall hold a hearing for any parolee who is detained as a result of a warrant or a violation report within twenty-one (21) days of the parolee's admission to detention. The board may, in its discretion, terminate the parole or modify the terms and conditions thereof. If the board revokes parole for one or more technical violations the board shall impose a period of imprisonment to be served in a technical violation center operated by the department not to exceed ninety (90) days for the first revocation and not to exceed one hundred twenty (120) days for the second revocation. For the third revocation, the board may impose a period of imprisonment to be served in a technical violation center for up to one hundred and eighty (180) days or the board may impose the remainder of the suspended portion of the sentence. For the fourth and any subsequent revocation, the board may impose up to the remainder of the suspended portion of the sentence. The period of imprisonment in a technical violation center imposed under this section shall not be reduced in any manner.

(b) If the board does not hold a hearing or does not take action on the violation within the twenty-one-day time frame in paragraph (a) of this subsection, the parolee shall be released from detention and shall return to parole status. The board may subsequently hold a hearing and may revoke parole or may continue parole and modify the terms and conditions of parole. If the board revokes parole for one or more technical violations the board shall impose a period of imprisonment to be served in a technical violation center operated by the department not to exceed ninety (90) days for the first revocation and not to exceed one hundred twenty (120) days for the second revocation. For the third revocation, the board may impose a period of imprisonment to be served in a technical violation center for up to one hundred eighty (180) days or the board may impose the remainder of the suspended portion of the sentence. For the fourth and any subsequent revocation, the board may impose up to the remainder of the suspended portion of the sentence. The period of imprisonment in a technical violation center imposed under this section shall not be reduced in any manner.

(c) For a parolee charged with one or more technical violations who has not been detained awaiting the revocation hearing, the board may hold a hearing within a reasonable time. The board may revoke parole or may continue parole and modify the terms and conditions of parole. If the board revokes parole for one or more technical violations the board shall impose a period of imprisonment to be served in a technical violation center operated by the department not to exceed ninety (90) days for the first revocation and not to exceed one hundred twenty (120) days for the second revocation. For the third revocation, the board may impose a period of imprisonment to be served in a technical violation center for up to one hundred eighty (180) days or the board may impose the remainder of the suspended portion of the sentence. For the fourth and any subsequent revocation, the board may impose up to the remainder of the suspended portion of the sentence. The period of imprisonment in a technical violation center imposed under this section shall not be reduced in any manner.

(7) Unless good cause for the delay is established in the record of the proceeding, the parole revocation charge shall be dismissed if the revocation hearing is not held within the thirty (30) days of the issuance of the warrant.

(8) The chairman and each member of the board and the designated parole revocation hearing officer may, in the discharge of their duties, administer oaths, summon and examine witnesses, and take other steps as may be necessary to ascertain the truth of any matter about which they have the right to inquire.

(9) The board shall provide semiannually to the Oversight Task Force the number of warrants issued for an alleged violation of parole, the average time between detention on a warrant and preliminary hearing, the average time between detention on a warrant and revocation hearing, the number of ninety-day sentences in a technical violation center issued by the board, the number of one-hundred-twenty-day sentences in a technical violation center issued by the board, the number of one-hundred-eighty-day sentences issued by the board, and the number and average length of the suspended sentences imposed by the board in response to a violation.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-531 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-531
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-531
Status: in_force

Sections 47-5-531 through 47-5-575 shall be known as the “Mississippi Prison Industries Act of 1990.”
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-543 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-543
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-543
Status: in_force

(1) Within sixty (60) days after the formation of the corporation pursuant to the provisions of Section 47-5-535 , the State Department of Corrections shall lease to the corporation all existing prison industries including the buildings, land, furnishings, equipment and other chattel used in the operation of such industries. Such lease shall be agreed upon by the State Department of Corrections, State Department of Finance and Administration and the corporation. The initial term of such lease shall not exceed six (6) years, provided that such lease may be renewed for additional successive terms of years not to exceed six (6) years in any one (1) renewal. No sublease to the corporation shall be in excess of that amount for which the department is obligated to pay under any lease agreement with any other state agency. Any receivable and remaining funds shall be transferred to the corporation after the payment of any existing liabilities. No operating loss of any type shall be transferred to the corporation. The State Department of Corrections shall continue to manage and operate the prison industries until such industries are leased to the corporation. When leasing any prison industry program to the corporation, the corporation shall exercise a reasonable effort to employ any personnel of the State Department of Corrections who are currently involved in any prison industry program being leased to the corporation. Before the leasing of the prison industries, buildings, lands and other items mentioned herein to the corporation, the State Auditor of Public Accounts shall perform a comprehensive audit of all the items and things mentioned herein which are to be leased by the department to the corporation. The corporation may expand, eliminate, suspend or alter any of its industries as it sees fit.

(2) Any lands, buildings, equipment, furnishings, livestock, supplies and vehicles used in the department's farming operations which were leased or transferred to the nonprofit corporation under subsection (1) shall be transferred to the department. Any personnel in the department's farming operations employed by the nonprofit corporation who desire to be reassigned to the department and who are under state service may be reassigned to the department.

(3) The department is not required to lease land, buildings, equipment, furnishings or other chattel used in its prison agricultural enterprises.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-419 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-419
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-419
Status: in_force

The sheriff may designate any officer or employee of the county to do and perform for the county any act or function Sections 47-5-401 through 47-5-421 empower the county to do or perform; provided, however, no elected official of the county shall be designated to do or perform any act or function for the county unless such elected officer is agreeable to being so designated.

The Commissioner of Corrections may designate any employee of the State Department of Corrections to do and perform for the department any act or function Sections 47-5-401 through 47-5-421 empower the department to do or perform.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1105 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-1105
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1105
Status: in_force

(1) The commissioner is authorized to enter into contracts for a special needs correctional facility and services only as provided in Sections 47-5-1101 through 47-5-1123 .

(2) No contract shall be entered into unless it offers cost savings of at least ten percent (10%) to the department.

(3) Any inmate sentenced to the custody of the department identified as having a special need may be eligible to be incarcerated in a special needs correctional facility in which a contractor is providing correctional services.

(4) The rates and benefits for correctional services shall be negotiated by the commissioner based upon American Correction Association Standards, state law and court orders.

(5) The special needs facility or the site for a proposed facility must comply with all local zoning ordinances and regulations.

(6) The department may contract for the construction or leasing of a special needs facility. Any facility operated by a private contractor must house medium or maximum security inmates.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-1-49 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 1-49
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-1-49
Status: in_force

In the case of a jail owned jointly by a county and municipality, under the provisions of Section 17-5-1 , the governing authorities of the county and municipality are hereby vested with full and complete authority, jurisdiction and control over such jointly owned jail facility and the governing authority of the municipality may appoint a jailer who shall be responsible for all municipal prisoners lodged in said jail in the same manner in which the sheriff is responsible for state prisoners, and such jailer shall have the same right of access to the jail as the sheriff.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-18 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 7-18
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-18
Status: in_force

(1) No inmate convicted of a sex offense as defined by Section 45-33-23(h) , a crime of violence as defined by Section 97-3-2 , or both, nor an inmate who is eligible for geriatric parole shall be released on parole without a hearing before the Parole Board as required by Section 47-7-17 . All other inmates eligible for parole pursuant to Section 47-7-3 shall be released from incarceration to parole supervision on the inmate's parole eligibility date, without a hearing before the board, if:

(a) The inmate has met the requirements of the parole case plan established pursuant to Section 47-7-3.1 ;

(b) A victim of the offense has not requested the board conduct a hearing;

(c) The inmate has not received a serious or major violation report within the past six (6) months;

(d) The inmate has agreed to the conditions of supervision; and

(e) The inmate has a discharge plan approved by the board.

(2) At least thirty (30) days prior to an inmate's parole eligibility date, the department shall notify the board in writing of the inmate's compliance or noncompliance with the case plan. If an inmate fails to meet a requirement of the case plan, prior to the parole eligibility date, he or she shall have a hearing before the board to determine if completion of the case plan can occur while in the community.

(3) Any inmate for whom there is insufficient information for the department to determine compliance with the case plan shall have a hearing with the board.

(4) A hearing shall be held with the board if requested by the victim following notification of the inmate's parole release date pursuant to Section 47-7-17 .

(5) A hearing shall be held by the board if a law enforcement official from the community to which the inmate will return contacts the board or the department and requests a hearing to consider information relevant to public safety risks posed by the inmate if paroled at the initial parole eligibility date. The law enforcement official shall submit an explanation documenting these concerns for the board to consider.

(6) If a parole hearing is held, the board may determine the inmate has sufficiently complied with the case plan or that the incomplete case plan is not the fault of the inmate and that granting parole is not incompatible with public safety, the board may then parole the inmate with appropriate conditions. If the board determines that the inmate has sufficiently complied with the case plan but the discharge plan indicates that the inmate does not have appropriate housing immediately upon release, the board may parole the inmate to a transitional reentry center with the condition that the inmate spends no more than six (6) months in the center. If the board determines that the inmate has not substantively complied with the requirement(s) of the case plan it may deny parole. If the board denies parole, the board may schedule a subsequent parole hearing and, if a new date is scheduled, the board shall identify the corrective action the inmate will need to take in order to be granted parole. Any inmate not released at the time of the inmate's initial parole date shall have a parole hearing at least every year.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-151 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-151
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-151
Status: in_force

The superintendent (warden) or other person in charge of prisoners, upon the death of any prisoner under his care and control, shall at once notify the county medical examiner or county medical examiner investigator (hereinafter “medical examiner”) of the county in which said prisoner died, of the death of the prisoner, and it shall be the duty of such medical examiner, when so notified of the death of such person, to obtain a court order and notify the State Medical Examiner of the death of such prisoner. It shall be mandatory that the State Medical Examiner cause an autopsy to be performed upon the body of the deceased prisoner. Furthermore, the State Medical Examiner shall investigate any case where a person is found dead on the premises of the correctional system, in accordance with Sections 41-61-51 through 41-61-79 . The State Medical Examiner shall make a written report of his investigation, and shall furnish a copy of the same, including the autopsy report, to the superintendent (warden) and a copy of the same to the district attorney of the county in which said prisoner died. The copy so furnished to the district attorney shall be turned over by the district attorney to the grand jury, and it shall be the duty of the grand jury, if there be any suspicion of wrongdoing shown by the inquest papers, to thoroughly investigate the cause of such death.

It shall be the duty of the medical examiner of the county in which said prisoner died to arrange for the remains to be transported to the State Medical Examiner for said autopsy, and accompanying the remains shall be the court order for autopsy and any documents or records pertaining to the deceased prisoner, institutional health records or other information relating to the circumstances surrounding the prisoner's death. The State Medical Examiner shall arrange for the remains to be transported to the county in which said prisoner died following completion of the autopsy. If the remains are not claimed for burial within forty-eight (48) hours after autopsy, then said remains may be delivered to the University of Mississippi Medical Center for use in medical research or anatomical study.

The provisions herein set forth in the first paragraph shall likewise apply to any case in which any person is found dead on the premises of the Mississippi State Penitentiary except that the autopsy to be performed on the body of such a person shall not be mandatory upon a person who is not a prisoner unless the medical examiner determines that the death resulted from circumstances raising questions as to the cause of death, in which case the medical examiner may cause an autopsy to be performed upon the body of such deceased person in the same manner as authorized to be performed upon the body of a deceased prisoner.

Provided further, that the provisions herein shall apply with respect to any deceased prisoner who at the time of death is being detained by duly constituted state authority such as the Oakley Youth Development Center, Mississippi State Hospital at Whitfield, East Mississippi State Hospital, or any other state institution.

The provisions of this section shall not apply to a prisoner who was lawfully executed as provided in Sections 99-19-49 through 99-19-55 .

Any officer or employee of the prison system or any other officer, employee or person having charge of any prisoner who shall fail to immediately notify the medical examiner of the death of such prisoner, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine of not less than One Hundred Dollars ($100.00) nor more than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) and by confinement in the county jail for not more than one (1) year.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-29 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 7-29
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-29
Status: in_force

Any prisoner who commits a felony while at large upon parole or earned-release supervision and who is convicted and sentenced therefor shall be required to serve such sentence after the original sentence has been completed.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1209 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-1209
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1209
Status: in_force

(1) There is created the Noxubee County Prison Work Program, to be located at the Industrial Park in Macon, Mississippi. The Noxubee County Prison Work Program shall be established pursuant to the authority granted in Sections 47-5-451 through 47-5-469 that provide for the joint state-county work programs, in order to achieve the legislative intent as set out in Section 47-5-351 , making maximum utilization of the farmlands for the purpose of feeding offenders.

(2) The State Prison Emergency Construction and Management Board, subject to such funding as the Legislature may make available, may modify any existing facility or construct and equip one (1) seventy-five-bed correctional work camp in accordance with Section 47-5-455 , on the site of the Industrial Park in Macon, Mississippi. The purpose of constructing this work camp is to provide housing and necessary support in order that the offenders may be available to work for the municipalities and counties in the surrounding areas in addition to working at the Industrial Park.

(3) In the construction and renovation of a work camp, the State Prison Emergency Construction and Management Board, in conjunction with the Mississippi Department of Corrections, shall utilize offenders in the custody of the Department of Corrections for construction to the extent such labor is available. The Mississippi Department of Corrections shall: establish, maintain and implement a program for training and utilizing offenders in construction projects; determine and provide to the State Prison Emergency Construction and Management Board the name, the number and construction skills of offenders; and provide security officers to be in attendance during all hours when offenders are involved in construction. When necessary construction skills are not available from the offender population, the State Prison Emergency Construction and Management Board may contract with private contractors or mechanics to perform necessary construction work.

(4) In the planning, design, procurement and construction of a work camp, the State Prison Emergency Construction and Management Board shall make maximum utilization of plans and specifications prepared for, and processes employed in, completed or ongoing construction projects for the Mississippi Department of Corrections.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-79 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-79
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-79
Status: in_force

All contracts for the purchase of materials, supplies, equipment and sustenance for the offenders of the correctional system shall be made under the provisions of the state purchasing law, same being Sections 31-7-1 through 31-7-55 .
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-505 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-505
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-505
Status: in_force

(1) Except as otherwise specifically provided by law, the Department of Economic Development, and the Mississippi State University Cooperative Extension Service shall collaborate with the Department of Corrections in an initial evaluation of viable industries and businesses readily found in the present economy and a determination of which of these would effectively function within the correctional industries work program. Special consideration shall be given to those industries and businesses which will provide vocational education and training for offenders so as to assist offenders in functioning more successfully following their release from custody.

(2) Except as otherwise specifically provided by law, in conjunction with the initial evaluation and determination described in subsection (1) of this section, the Department of Economic Development shall have the primary responsibility of identifying and evaluating acceptable industries and businesses and of acting as an agent of the Department of Corrections by communicating with such concerns and aggressively soliciting their participation in the correctional industries work program.

(3) Except as otherwise specifically provided by law, after an acceptable industry or business has expressed an interest in participating in the correctional industries work program, the Department of Corrections shall negotiate any necessary contractual agreements and arrangements between the concern and the Department of Corrections, including (a) leases of up to twenty-five (25) years, renewable at the option of the lessee for an additional ten-year period at the end of each lease term, of any property utilized by the state prison correctional system, and (b) authorization for such industry or business to develop leased property in a manner necessary to conduct the operation or project.

(4) Except as otherwise specifically provided by law, any contracts concerning the leasing of real property by the Board of Corrections, any rules and regulations promulgated by the board and the making of any contract by the Department of Corrections with any private business shall be ratified and approved by the Governor's Office of General Services.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-1
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1
Status: in_force

It shall be the policy of this state, in the operation and management of the correctional system, to so manage and conduct the same in that manner as will be consistent with the operation of a modern correctional system and with the view of making the system self-sustaining. Those convicted of violating the law and sentenced to a term in the state correctional system shall have humane treatment, and be given opportunity, encouragement and training in the manner of reformation.

It shall be the policy of this state that the correctional system shall be operated and managed in the most efficient and economical manner possible. The Mississippi Department of Corrections shall so manage and operate the correctional system in that manner in order to make the system self-sustaining and to conserve state general fund revenues. The Mississippi Department of Corrections shall provide leadership to bring about the earliest possible construction of satisfactory prison inmate facilities, and shall utilize existing state resources, including inmates for prison construction labor, when and wherever practicable, in order to minimize the need for state general funds for prison construction.

It shall be the policy of this state that periodic independent internal investigations of the department shall be conducted to ensure the implementation of state correctional policies.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-76 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-76
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-76
Status: in_force

(1) Except as provided in subsection (2) of this section, if an inmate plaintiff files a pauper's affidavit in a civil action and the defendant is an employee of the department and the civil action pertains to the inmate's condition of confinement, the department shall pay, out of any funds available for such purpose, all costs of court assessed against the inmate in the civil action. However, the department shall not pay the costs of court if the inmate has on three (3) or more prior occasions, while incarcerated, brought an action or appeal that was dismissed on the grounds that it was frivolous, malicious, or failed to state a claim upon which relief could be granted.

An inmate shall not bring a civil action or appeal a judgment in a civil action or proceeding in forma pauperis if the prisoner has, on three (3) or more prior occasions, while incarcerated or detained in any facility, brought an action or appeal in a court that was dismissed on the grounds that it was frivolous, malicious, or failed to state a claim upon which relief may be granted, unless the prisoner is under imminent danger of serious physical injury.

(2) An inmate who proceeds in forma pauperis in a civil action shall pay twenty percent (20%) per month of the funds in his or her inmate account to the Department of Corrections until all filing fees and costs of his or her litigation are paid to the department. The department may withdraw such funds automatically from the account of any inmate permitted a civil filing as a pauper. If an inmate is allowed an appeal in forma pauperis of a civil action, the inmate shall reimburse all costs and fees to the department by automatic withdrawal each month in the amount of twenty percent (20%) of his or her funds until all state funds are reimbursed.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-731 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-731
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-731
Status: repealed

Sections 47-5-701 through 47-5-729, Mississippi Code of 1972 , which create the Prison Overcrowding Emergency Powers Act, shall stand repealed from and after July 1, 2025.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-78 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-78
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-78
Status: in_force

There is established within the State Treasury a revolving fund to fund forest management costs provided under Sections 47-5-56 and 47-5-66 for the Lambert State Forest in Quitman County and shall be disbursed as provided in those sections. The fund shall be called the “Lambert State Forest Revolving Fund,” and moneys for the fund shall accrue from any revenues derived from the Lambert State Forest including, but not limited to, timber sales and any other revenue derived from forest management practices. The State Treasurer shall invest all monies in the fund, and interest earned on the investments shall be paid back into the fund and not into the General Fund. The fund shall be audited annually by the State Auditor.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-149 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 5 / Section 5-149
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-149
Status: in_force

If any offender of the United States courts who has been delivered to the custody of the department shall escape or attempt to escape, or shall commit any other crime while in the state correctional system, he shall be liable to the like punishment as if he had been convicted by the courts of the state.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-715 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-715
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-715
Status: in_force

During the continuation of a state of emergency, the Commissioner of the Department of Corrections shall weekly certify to the Governor the prison system population for each day of the preceding week. The Governor shall declare the state of emergency terminated upon notification that the prison system population has been at or below ninety-five percent (95%) of operating capacity for seven (7) consecutive days.

If no declaration of termination is issued within seven (7) days after the certification of conditions for termination of the state of emergency, the state of emergency is considered terminated as of the seventh day after the certification.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-471 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-471
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-471
Status: in_force

Upon the request of any county for eligible inmates, the Department of Corrections shall make available for participation in the state-county work program in the requesting county any eligible inmates. Upon request and approval of such request by the Department of Corrections, the requesting county shall arrange for transportation of such inmates from the Department of Corrections to such county. Upon receiving any inmates, the county shall be responsible for all expenses related to housing and caring for such inmates but shall be reimbursed by the Department of Corrections at the rate prescribed under Section 47-5-901(2) . Regardless of any eligibility criteria established by the Department of Corrections, no inmate convicted of a sex crime, a crime of violence as defined by Section 97-3-2 , or any other crime which specifically prohibits parole shall be eligible for participation in the program. The requesting county may, in its sole discretion, refuse any inmate deemed to present an undue risk to such county.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-143 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-143
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-143
Status: in_force

For purposes of this section and Section 47-5-145 , the following words shall have the meanings ascribed herein unless the context otherwise requires:

(a) “ Change of name petition ” means a petition to change the legal name of an individual.

(b) “ Offender ” means any physically incarcerated person convicted of a crime or offense under the laws and ordinances of the state and its political subdivisions or the laws and regulations of the federal government.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1207 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-1207
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1207
Status: in_force

(1) The State Prison Emergency Construction and Management Board shall select a suitable site or sites for a public or private facility not to exceed one thousand (1,000) beds in any of the following counties: Lauderdale, Quitman, Perry and Sharkey.

(2) The State Prison Emergency Construction and Management Board may contract for the construction, lease, acquisition, improvement, operation and management of a private correctional facility in Marshall County or Wilkinson County for the private incarceration of not more than one thousand (1,000) state inmates at the facility.

(3) The State Prison Emergency Construction and Management Board may contract with any county industrial or economic development authority or district for the construction, lease, acquisition, improvement, operation and management of a private correctional facility to be sited or constructed under Chapter 26, Laws of 1994 First Extraordinary Session.

(4) The State Prison Emergency Construction and Management Board may contract for the construction, lease, acquisition, improvement and operation of two (2) private restitution centers, one of which may be in Bolivar County. The capacity of each restitution center shall not exceed seventy-five (75) state inmates.

(5)(a) The State Prison Emergency Construction and Management Board may contract for the special needs facility and services authorized in Sections 47-5-1101 through 47-5-1123 .

(b) No later than September 15, 1994, the Joint Legislative Committee on Performance Evaluation and Expenditure Review shall determine the state medical cost per inmate day to use as a basis for measuring the validity of ten percent (10%) savings of the contractor cost.

(6) Each private contractor and private facility housing state inmates must meet the requirements of Section 47-5-1211 through Section 47-5-1227 .

(7) No additional emergency prisons shall be located in any city and/or county, except upon the submission to the State Prison Emergency Construction and Management Board, of a resolution signed by a majority of the governing authorities of the city and/or county, wherein the proposed prison site is to be located, approving and/or requesting that a prison facility be located at the proposed site.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-39 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 7-39
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-39
Status: in_force

If, for good and sufficient reasons, a probationer desires to change his residence within or without the state, such transfer may be effected by application to his field supervisor which transfer shall be subject to the court's consent and subject to such regulations as the court, or judge, may require.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-193 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-193
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-193
Status: in_force

(1) It is unlawful for any officer or employee of the department, of any county sheriff's department, of any private correctional facility in this state in which offenders are confined, of any municipal or other correctional facility in this state, or for any other person or offender to possess, furnish, attempt to furnish, or assist in furnishing to any offender confined in this state any weapon, deadly weapon, unauthorized electronic device, contraband item, or cell phone or any of its components or accessories to include, but not limited to, Subscriber Information Module (SIM) cards or chargers. It is unlawful for any person or offender to take, attempt to take, or assist in taking any weapon, deadly weapon, unauthorized electronic device, contraband item, cell phone or any of its components or accessories to include, but not limited to, Subscriber Information Module (SIM) cards or chargers on property within the state belonging to the department, a county, a municipality, or other entity that is occupied or used by offenders, except as authorized by law.

(2) The circuit court is authorized to issue an order to disable the contraband cell phone service from the carrier.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-473 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-473
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-473
Status: repealed

(1) The Sheriffs of Rankin County, Harrison County, Lee County and Hinds County are authorized to establish a Pilot Work Release Program. No person sentenced for a crime listed in Section 97-3-2 shall be eligible for participation in the program established under this section. During the pilot phase of the program, there shall be a limit of twenty-five (25) people in the program at a time.

(2) The sheriff shall collect and maintain data which shall be shared semiannually with the Joint Legislative Committee on Performance Evaluation and Expenditure Review (PEER) and the Corrections and Criminal Justice Oversight Task Force in sortable electronic format. The first report shall be made before January 15, 2022, and in six-month intervals thereafter. The data shall include:

(a) Total number of participants at the beginning of each month by race, gender, and offenses charged;

(b) Total number of participants at the end of each month by race, gender, and offenses charged;

(c) Total number of participants who began the program in each month by race, gender, and offenses charged;

(d) Total number of participants who successfully completed the program in each month by race, gender, and offenses charged;

(e) Total number of participants who left the program in each month and reason for leaving by race, gender, and offenses charged;

(f) Total number of participants who were arrested for a new criminal offense while in the program in each month by race, gender, and offenses charged;

(g) Total number of participants who were convicted of a new crime while in the program in each month by race, gender, and offenses charged;

(h) Total number of participants who completed the program and were convicted of a new crime within three (3) years of completing the program;

(i) Total amount earned by participants and how the earnings were distributed in each month;

(j) Results of any initial risk and needs assessments conducted on each participant by race, gender, and offenses charged; and

(k) Any other data or information as requested by the task force.

(3) Any person who has been sentenced to confinement in jail or who has been sentenced for a felony conviction but is confined in a jail may request assignment to the work release program established under this section. Admission to the program shall be in the discretion of the sheriff. The sheriff may further authorize the offender to participate in educational or other rehabilitative programs designed to supplement his work release employment or to prepare the person for successful reentry. No offender shall be eligible for this program if he or she has more than one (1) year remaining on his or her sentence.

(4) The sheriff shall adopt and publish rules and regulations prior to accepting inmates. These rules and regulations shall at a minimum include all requirements for work release programs established pursuant to Sections 47-5-451 through 47-5-471 . Participating employers shall pay no less than the prevailing wage for the position and shall under no circumstance pay less than the federal minimum wage.

(5) Any offender assigned to such a program by the sheriff who, without proper authority or just cause, leaves the area to which he has been assigned to work or attend educational or other rehabilitative programs, or leaves the vehicle or route of travel involved in his or her going to or returning from such place, will be guilty of escape as provided in Section 97-9-49 . An offender who is found guilty under this section shall be ineligible for further participation in a work release program during his or her current term of confinement.

(6)(a) The offender shall maintain an account through a local financial institution and shall provide a copy of a check stub to the sheriff.

(b) The offender shall be required:

(i) To pay twenty-five percent (25%) of his or her wages after mandatory deductions for the following purposes:

(1.) To pay support of dependents or to the Mississippi Department of Human Services on behalf of dependents as may be ordered by a judge of competent jurisdiction; and

(2.) To pay any fines, restitution, or costs as ordered by the court to include any fines and fees associated with obtaining a valid driver's license upon release.

(ii) To pay fifteen percent (15%) of the offender's wages to the sheriff's department for administrative expenses to include transportation costs.

(iii) To save fifty percent (50%) of the offender's wages in the account required under paragraph (a) of this subsection. Monies under this subparagraph shall be made available to the offender upon parole or release.

(c) The offender shall have access to the remaining ten percent (10%) of the monies in his or her account to purchase incidental expenses.

(d) Any monies remaining under paragraph (a) of this subsection after all mandatory deductions are paid, shall be deposited in the inmate's account established under this subsection. Any monies remaining upon release in paragraph (c) of this subsection shall be released to the inmate.

(7) The Joint Legislative Committee on Performance Evaluation and Expenditure Review (PEER) shall conduct a review of the work release program established under this section and beginning in 2024 produce an annual report due December 1 each year to the Legislature on the effectiveness of the program. The PEER Committee shall seek the assistance of the Corrections and Criminal Justice Task Force and may seek assistance from any other criminal justice experts it deems necessary during its review.

(8) This section shall stand repealed on July 1, 2027.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-110 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 5 / Section 5-110
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-110
Status: in_force

(1) Commitment to any institution or facility within the jurisdiction of the department shall be to the department, not to a particular institution or facility. The commissioner shall assign a newly committed offender to an appropriate facility consistent with public safety; provided, however, that any offender who, in the opinion of the sentencing judge, requires confinement in a maximum security unit shall be assigned, upon initial commitment, to the Parchman facility. The commissioner may extend the place of confinement of eligible offenders as provided under subsection (2) of this section. He may transfer an offender from one (1) institution to another, consistent with the commitment and in accordance with treatment, training and security needs. The commissioner shall have the authority to transfer inmates from the various correctional facilities of the department to restitution centers if such inmates meet the qualifications prescribed in Section 99-37-19 . The commissioner shall prepare appropriate standards of eligibility for such transfers of offenders from one (1) institution to another institution and transfers of offenders who meet the qualifications for placement in restitution centers. The commissioner shall have the authority to remove the offenders from restitution centers and to transfer them to other facilities of the department. The commissioner shall obtain the approval of the sentencing court before transferring an offender committed to the department to a restitution center. On the request of the chief executive officer of the affected unit of local government, the commissioner may transfer a person detained in a local facility to a state facility. The commissioner shall determine the cost of care for that person to be borne by the unit of local government. The commissioner may assign to a community work center, any offender who is convicted under the Mississippi Implied Consent Law and who is sentenced to the custody of the Department of Corrections, except that if a death or a serious maiming has occurred during the commission of the violation of the Mississippi Implied Consent Law, then the offender so convicted may not be assigned to a community work center.

(2) The department may establish by rule or policy and procedure a community prerelease program which shall be subject to the following requirements:

(a) The commissioner may extend the limits of confinement of offenders serving sentences for violent or nonviolent crimes who have six (6) months or less remaining before release on parole, conditional release or discharge to participate in the program. Parole violators may be allowed to participate in the program.

(b) Any offender who is referred to the program shall remain an offender of the department and shall be subject to rules and regulations of the department pertaining to offenders of the department until discharged or released on parole or conditional release by the State Parole Board.

(c) The department shall require the offender to participate in work or educational or vocational programs and other activities that may be necessary for the supervision and treatment of the offender.

(d) An offender assigned to the program shall be authorized to leave a community prerelease center only for the purpose and time necessary to participate in the program and activities authorized in paragraph (c) of this subsection.

(3) The commissioner shall have absolute immunity from liability for any injury resulting from a determination by the commissioner that an offender shall be allowed to participate in the community prerelease program.

(4)(a) The department may by rule or policy and procedure provide evidence-based programs for the benefit of inmates, with emphasis on those that are targeted at reducing inmate recidivism and prerelease service for offenders at each of its major correctional facilities: Mississippi State Penitentiary, Central Mississippi Correctional Institution and South Mississippi Correctional Institution and other facilities where the department confines state inmates.

(b) The commissioner may establish prerelease programs at the South Mississippi Correctional Institution. The prerelease program may be located on the grounds of this facility or another facility designated by the commissioner.

(c) For purposes of this subsection, the term “evidence-based programs” shall have ascribed to it the meaning in Section 27-103-159 .
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-18 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 5 / Section 7-18
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-18
Status: in_force

(1) No inmate convicted of a sex offense as defined by Section 45-33-23(h) , a crime of violence as defined by Section 97-3-2 , or both, nor an inmate who is eligible for geriatric parole shall be released on parole without a hearing before the Parole Board as required by Section 47-7-17 . All other inmates eligible for parole pursuant to Section 47-7-3 shall be released from incarceration to parole supervision on the inmate's parole eligibility date, without a hearing before the board, if:

(a) The inmate has met the requirements of the parole case plan established pursuant to Section 47-7-3.1 ;

(b) A victim of the offense has not requested the board conduct a hearing;

(c) The inmate has not received a serious or major violation report within the past six (6) months;

(d) The inmate has agreed to the conditions of supervision; and

(e) The inmate has a discharge plan approved by the board.

(2) At least thirty (30) days prior to an inmate's parole eligibility date, the department shall notify the board in writing of the inmate's compliance or noncompliance with the case plan. If an inmate fails to meet a requirement of the case plan, prior to the parole eligibility date, he or she shall have a hearing before the board to determine if completion of the case plan can occur while in the community.

(3) Any inmate for whom there is insufficient information for the department to determine compliance with the case plan shall have a hearing with the board.

(4) A hearing shall be held with the board if requested by the victim following notification of the inmate's parole release date pursuant to Section 47-7-17 .

(5) A hearing shall be held by the board if a law enforcement official from the community to which the inmate will return contacts the board or the department and requests a hearing to consider information relevant to public safety risks posed by the inmate if paroled at the initial parole eligibility date. The law enforcement official shall submit an explanation documenting these concerns for the board to consider.

(6) If a parole hearing is held, the board may determine the inmate has sufficiently complied with the case plan or that the incomplete case plan is not the fault of the inmate and that granting parole is not incompatible with public safety, the board may then parole the inmate with appropriate conditions. If the board determines that the inmate has sufficiently complied with the case plan but the discharge plan indicates that the inmate does not have appropriate housing immediately upon release, the board may parole the inmate to a transitional reentry center with the condition that the inmate spends no more than six (6) months in the center. If the board determines that the inmate has not substantively complied with the requirement(s) of the case plan it may deny parole. If the board denies parole, the board may schedule a subsequent parole hearing and, if a new date is scheduled, the board shall identify the corrective action the inmate will need to take in order to be granted parole. Any inmate not released at the time of the inmate's initial parole date shall have a parole hearing at least every year.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-122 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-122
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-122
Status: in_force

The Commissioner of Corrections may provide for agricultural production in connection with disciplinary programs, rehabilitation, inmate work projects, prison agricultural enterprise programs or any similar activity of the department; however, agricultural activities shall be conducted in a manner which are labor intensive and a minimum amount of mechanized or power-driven equipment shall be utilized to the extent practical and economically feasible.

The Department of Corrections is authorized to enter into contracts or agreements with the federal government with respect to agricultural subsidies or payments.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-3 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 7 / Section 7-3
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-3
Status: repealed

(1) Every prisoner who has been convicted of any offense against the State of Mississippi, and is confined in the execution of a judgment of such conviction in the Mississippi Department of Corrections for a definite term or terms of one (1) year or over, or for the term of his or her natural life, whose record of conduct shows that such prisoner has observed the rules of the department, and who has served the minimum required time for parole eligibility, may be released on parole as set forth herein:

(a) Habitual offenders. Except as provided by Sections 99-19-81 through 99-19-87 , no person sentenced as a confirmed and habitual criminal shall be eligible for parole;

(b) Sex offenders. Any person who has been sentenced for a sex offense as defined in Section 45-33-23(h) shall not be released on parole except for a person under the age of nineteen (19) who has been convicted under Section 97-3-67 ;

(c) Capital offenders. No person sentenced for the following offenses shall be eligible for parole:

(i) Capital murder committed on or after July 1, 1994, as defined in Section 97-3-19(2) ;

(ii) Any offense to which an offender is sentenced to life imprisonment under the provisions of Section 99-19-101 ; or

(iii) Any offense to which an offender is sentenced to life imprisonment without eligibility for parole under the provisions of Section 99-19-101 , whose crime was committed on or after July 1, 1994;

(d) Murder. No person sentenced for murder in the first degree, whose crime was committed on or after June 30, 1995, or murder in the second degree, as defined in Section 97-3-19 , shall be eligible for parole;

(e) Human trafficking. No person sentenced for human trafficking, as defined in Section 97-3-54.1 , whose crime was committed on or after July 1, 2014, shall be eligible for parole;

(f) Drug trafficking. No person sentenced for trafficking and aggravated trafficking, as defined in Section 41-29-139(f) through (g) , shall be eligible for parole;

(g) Offenses specifically prohibiting parole release. No person shall be eligible for parole who is convicted of any offense that specifically prohibits parole release;

(h)(i) Offenders eligible for parole consideration for offenses committed after June 30, 1995. Except as provided in paragraphs (a) through (g) of this subsection, offenders may be considered eligible for parole release as follows:

1. Nonviolent crimes. All persons sentenced for a nonviolent offense shall be eligible for parole only after they have served twenty-five percent (25%) or ten (10) years, whichever is less, of the sentence or sentences imposed by the trial court. For purposes of this paragraph, “ nonviolent crime ” means a felony not designated as a crime of violence in Section 97-3-2 .

2. Violent crimes. A person who is sentenced for a violent offense as defined in Section 97-3-2 , except robbery with a deadly weapon as defined in Section 97-3-79 , drive-by shooting as defined in Section 97-3-109 , and carjacking as defined in Section 97-3-117 , shall be eligible for parole only after having served fifty percent (50%) or twenty (20) years, whichever is less, of the sentence or sentences imposed by the trial court. Those persons sentenced for robbery with a deadly weapon as defined in Section 97-3-79 , drive-by shooting as defined in Section 97-3-109 , and carjacking as defined in Section 97-3-117 , shall be eligible for parole only after having served sixty percent (60%) or twenty-five (25) years, whichever is less, of the sentence or sentences imposed by the trial court.

3. Nonviolent and nonhabitual drug offenses. A person who has been sentenced to a drug offense pursuant to Section 41-29-139(a) through (d) , whose crime was committed after June 30, 1995, shall be eligible for parole only after he has served twenty-five percent (25%) or ten (10) years, whichever is less, of the sentence or sentences imposed.

(ii) Parole hearing required. All persons eligible for parole under subparagraph (i) of this paragraph (h) who are serving a sentence or sentences for a crime of violence, as defined in Section 97-3-2 , shall be required to have a parole hearing before the Parole Board pursuant to Section 47-7-17 , prior to parole release.

(iii) Geriatric parole. Notwithstanding the provisions in subparagraph (i) of this paragraph (h), a person serving a sentence who has reached the age of sixty (60) or older and who has served no less than ten (10) years of the sentence or sentences imposed by the trial court shall be eligible for parole. Any person eligible for parole under this subparagraph (iii) shall be required to have a parole hearing before the board prior to parole release. No inmate shall be eligible for parole under this subparagraph (iii) of this paragraph (h) if:

1. The inmate is sentenced as a habitual offender under Sections 99-19-81 through 99-19-87 ;

2. The inmate is sentenced for a crime of violence under Section 97-3-2 ;

3. The inmate is sentenced for an offense that specifically prohibits parole release;

4. The inmate is sentenced for trafficking in controlled substances under Section 41-29-139(f) ;

5. The inmate is sentenced for a sex crime; or

6. The inmate has not served one-fourth ( 1 / 4 ) of the sentence imposed by the court.

(iv) Parole consideration as authorized by the trial court. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (a) of this subsection, any offender who has not committed a crime of violence under Section 97-3-2 and has served twenty-five percent (25%) or more of his sentence may be paroled by the State Parole Board if, after the sentencing judge or if the sentencing judge is retired, disabled or incapacitated, the senior circuit judge authorizes the offender to be eligible for parole consideration; or if the senior circuit judge must be recused, another circuit judge of the same district or a senior status judge may hear and decide the matter. A petition for parole eligibility consideration pursuant to this subparagraph (iv) shall be filed in the original criminal cause or causes, and the offender shall serve an executed copy of the petition on the District Attorney. The court may, in its discretion, require the District Attorney to respond to the petition.

(2) The State Parole Board shall, by rules and regulations, establish a method of determining a tentative parole hearing date for each eligible offender taken into the custody of the Department of Corrections. The tentative parole hearing date shall be determined within ninety (90) days after the department has assumed custody of the offender. Except as provided in Section 47-7-18 , the parole hearing date shall occur when the offender is within thirty (30) days of the month of his parole eligibility date. Any parole eligibility date shall not be earlier than as required in this section.

(3) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an inmate shall not be eligible to receive earned time, good time or any other administrative reduction of time which shall reduce the time necessary to be served for parole eligibility as provided in subsection (1) of this section.

(4) Any inmate within forty-eight (48) months of his parole eligibility date and who meets the criteria established by the classification board shall receive priority for placement in any educational development and job-training programs that are part of his or her parole case plan. Any inmate refusing to participate in an educational development or job-training program, including, but not limited to, programs required as part of the case plan, shall be in jeopardy of noncompliance with the case plan and may be denied parole.

(5) In addition to other requirements, if an offender is convicted of a drug or driving under the influence felony, the offender must complete a drug and alcohol rehabilitation program prior to parole, or the offender shall be required to complete a postrelease drug and alcohol program as a condition of parole.

(6) Except as provided in subsection (1)(a) through (h) of this section, all other persons shall be eligible for parole after serving twenty-five percent (25%) of the sentence or sentences imposed by the trial court, or, if sentenced to thirty (30) years or more, after serving ten (10) years of the sentence or sentences imposed by the trial court.

(7) The Corrections and Criminal Justice Oversight Task Force established in Section 47-5-6 shall develop and submit recommendations to the Governor and to the Legislature annually on or before December 1st concerning issues relating to juvenile and habitual offender parole reform and to review and monitor the implementation of Chapter 479, Laws of 2021.

(8) The amendments contained in Chapter 479, Laws of 2021, shall apply retroactively from and after July 1, 1995.

(9) Notwithstanding provisions to the contrary in this section, a person who was sentenced before July 1, 2021, may be considered for parole if the person's sentence would have been parole eligible before July 1, 2021.

(10) This section shall stand repealed on July 1, 2027.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-5 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-5
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-5
Status: in_force

The commissioner, as soon as possible after passage of this section, shall prepare a plan to bring about the limited centralization of facilities within the state correctional system grounds at Parchman, Mississippi. The commissioner is authorized and empowered to use any state funds appropriated for such purposes, together with any available federal funds appropriated by the United States Congress for improvement of correctional institutions to construct modern security facilities for housing of offenders to the end that the state correctional system achieves the greatest degree of security for said offenders. Provided, however, that no new facility to house offenders shall be constructed within two-fifths ( 2 / 5 ) of a mile of any other offender camp. The commissioner shall bring about centralization of food facilities, recreational activities, utility services and other related facilities and correctional services that are presently decentralized within the correctional system.

It is the intent of the Mississippi Legislature that the commissioner shall fully utilize existing knowledge, architectural plans and expertise currently available with the Federal Bureau of Prisons and the Law Enforcement Assistance Administration to the end that the State of Mississippi shall have an efficient, modern, and properly secure state correctional system.

The commissioner is authorized to receive and disburse private and public grants, gifts and bequests which may be available to this state for correctional facilities, offender rehabilitation purposes and related purposes, which said sum so received shall be subject to all of the laws applicable to the State Fiscal Management Board.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-142 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-142
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-142
Status: in_force

(1) In order to provide incentive for offenders to achieve positive and worthwhile accomplishments for their personal benefit or the benefit of others, and in addition to any other administrative reductions of the length of an offender's sentence, any offender shall be eligible, subject to the provisions of this section, to receive meritorious earned time as distinguished from earned time for good conduct and performance.

(2) Subject to approval by the commissioner of the terms and conditions of the program or project, meritorious earned time may be awarded for the following: (a) successful completion of educational or instructional programs; (b) satisfactory participation in work projects; and (c) satisfactory participation in any special incentive program.

(3) The programs and activities through which meritorious earned time may be received shall be published in writing and posted in conspicuous places at all facilities of the department and such publication shall be made available to all offenders in the custody of the department.

(4) The commissioner shall make a determination of the number of days of reduction of sentence which may be awarded an offender as meritorious earned time for participation in approved programs or projects; the number of days shall be determined by the commissioner on the basis of each particular program or project.

(5) No offender shall be awarded any meritorious earned time while assigned to the maximum security facilities for disciplinary purposes.

(6) All meritorious earned time shall be forfeited by the offender in the event of escape and/or aiding and abetting an escape.

(7) Any officer or employee of the department who shall willfully violate the provisions of this section and be convicted therefor shall be removed from office or employment.

(8) An offender may forfeit all or any part of his meritorious earned time allowance for just cause upon the written order of the commissioner or his designee. Any meritorious earned time allowance forfeited under this section shall not be restored nor shall it be re-earned by the offender.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-567 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-567
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-567
Status: in_force

Except as otherwise specifically provided by law, no inmate shall be eligible for unemployment compensation or workmen's compensation whether employed by the corporation or by any other private enterprise operating on the grounds of a correctional institution or elsewhere where such employment shall be a part of a correctional work program or work release program of either the corporation or the department.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-452 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 5 / Section 5-452
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-452
Status: in_force

Upon written request by a majority of the board of supervisors of any county, the Commissioner of Corrections may authorize offenders committed to the custody of the Department of Corrections to clean abandoned or neglected cemeteries of the county or clean public roads of the county. The offenders shall be under the supervision of the department and the department shall establish all proper regulations for the working, guarding, safekeeping, clothing, housing and subsistence of offenders while working.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-77 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-77
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-77
Status: in_force

The commissioner shall remit to the State Treasurer all moneys belonging to the correctional system received by him in accordance with the provisions of Section 7-9-21 . All bills and accounts of said correctional system shall be paid from appropriations made by the Legislature upon sworn accounts and warrants drawn by the State Fiscal Management Board on the State Treasurer in the same manner as provided by general law. Each account shall be approved by the commissioner or, in the commissioner's absence, by his designee.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-139 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-139
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-139
Status: in_force

(1) An inmate shall not be eligible for the earned time allowance if:

(a) The inmate was sentenced to life imprisonment; but an inmate, except an inmate sentenced to life imprisonment for capital murder, who has reached the age of sixty-five (65) or older and who has served at least fifteen (15) years may petition the sentencing court for conditional release;

(b) The inmate was convicted as a habitual offender under Sections 99-19-81 through 99-19-87 ;

(c) The inmate has forfeited his earned time allowance by order of the commissioner;

(d) The inmate was convicted of a sex crime; or

(e) The inmate has not served the mandatory time required for parole eligibility for a conviction of robbery or attempted robbery with a deadly weapon.

(2) An offender under two (2) or more consecutive sentences shall be allowed commutation based upon the total term of the sentences.

(3) All earned time shall be forfeited by the inmate in the event of escape and/or aiding and abetting an escape. The commissioner may restore all or part of the earned time if the escapee returns to the institution voluntarily, without expense to the state, and without act of violence while a fugitive from the facility.

(4) Any officer or employee who shall willfully violate the provisions of this section and be convicted therefor shall be removed from office or employment.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-407 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 5 / Section 5-407
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-407
Status: in_force

Any county establishing a work program pursuant to Sections 47-5-401 through 47-5-421 may also establish a work camp to be used in carrying out the program, wherein inmates participating in the program may be housed in lieu of confinement in the county jail.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-27 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 7-27
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-27
Status: in_force

(1) The board may, at any time and upon a showing of probable violation of parole, issue a warrant for the return of any paroled offender to the custody of the department. The warrant shall authorize all persons named therein to return the paroled offender to actual custody of the department from which he was paroled.

(2) Any field supervisor may arrest an offender without a warrant or may deputize any other person with power of arrest by giving him a written statement setting forth that the offender has, in the judgment of that field supervisor, violated the conditions of his parole or earned-release supervision. The written statement delivered with the offender by the arresting officer to the official in charge of the department facility from which the offender was released or other place of detention designated by the department shall be sufficient warrant for the detention of the offender.

(3) The field supervisor, after making an arrest, shall present to the detaining authorities a similar statement of the circumstances of violation. The field supervisor shall at once notify the board or department of the arrest and detention of the offender and shall submit a written report showing in what manner the offender has violated the conditions of parole or earned-release supervision. An offender for whose return a warrant has been issued by the board shall, after the issuance of the warrant, be deemed a fugitive from justice.

(4) Whenever an offender is arrested on a warrant for an alleged violation of parole as herein provided, the board shall hold an informal preliminary hearing within seventy-two (72) hours to determine whether there is reasonable cause to believe the person has violated a condition of parole. A preliminary hearing shall not be required when the offender is not under arrest on a warrant or the offender signed a waiver of a preliminary hearing. The preliminary hearing may be conducted electronically.

(5) The right of the State of Mississippi to extradite persons and return fugitives from justice, from other states to this state, shall not be impaired by this chapter and shall remain in full force and effect. An offender convicted of a felony committed while on parole, whether in the State of Mississippi or another state, shall immediately have his parole revoked upon presentment of a certified copy of the commitment order to the board. If an offender is on parole and the offender is convicted of a felony for a crime committed prior to the offender being placed on parole, whether in the State of Mississippi or another state, the offender may have his parole revoked upon presentment of a certified copy of the commitment order to the board.

(6)(a) The board shall hold a hearing for any parolee who is detained as a result of a warrant or a violation report within twenty-one (21) days of the parolee's admission to detention. The board may, in its discretion, terminate the parole or modify the terms and conditions thereof. If the board revokes parole for one or more technical violations the board shall impose a period of imprisonment to be served in a technical violation center operated by the department not to exceed ninety (90) days for the first revocation and not to exceed one hundred twenty (120) days for the second revocation. For the third revocation, the board may impose a period of imprisonment to be served in a technical violation center for up to one hundred and eighty (180) days or the board may impose the remainder of the suspended portion of the sentence. For the fourth and any subsequent revocation, the board may impose up to the remainder of the suspended portion of the sentence. The period of imprisonment in a technical violation center imposed under this section shall not be reduced in any manner.

(b) If the board does not hold a hearing or does not take action on the violation within the twenty-one-day time frame in paragraph (a) of this subsection, the parolee shall be released from detention and shall return to parole status. The board may subsequently hold a hearing and may revoke parole or may continue parole and modify the terms and conditions of parole. If the board revokes parole for one or more technical violations the board shall impose a period of imprisonment to be served in a technical violation center operated by the department not to exceed ninety (90) days for the first revocation and not to exceed one hundred twenty (120) days for the second revocation. For the third revocation, the board may impose a period of imprisonment to be served in a technical violation center for up to one hundred eighty (180) days or the board may impose the remainder of the suspended portion of the sentence. For the fourth and any subsequent revocation, the board may impose up to the remainder of the suspended portion of the sentence. The period of imprisonment in a technical violation center imposed under this section shall not be reduced in any manner.

(c) For a parolee charged with one or more technical violations who has not been detained awaiting the revocation hearing, the board may hold a hearing within a reasonable time. The board may revoke parole or may continue parole and modify the terms and conditions of parole. If the board revokes parole for one or more technical violations the board shall impose a period of imprisonment to be served in a technical violation center operated by the department not to exceed ninety (90) days for the first revocation and not to exceed one hundred twenty (120) days for the second revocation. For the third revocation, the board may impose a period of imprisonment to be served in a technical violation center for up to one hundred eighty (180) days or the board may impose the remainder of the suspended portion of the sentence. For the fourth and any subsequent revocation, the board may impose up to the remainder of the suspended portion of the sentence. The period of imprisonment in a technical violation center imposed under this section shall not be reduced in any manner.

(7) Unless good cause for the delay is established in the record of the proceeding, the parole revocation charge shall be dismissed if the revocation hearing is not held within the thirty (30) days of the issuance of the warrant.

(8) The chairman and each member of the board and the designated parole revocation hearing officer may, in the discharge of their duties, administer oaths, summon and examine witnesses, and take other steps as may be necessary to ascertain the truth of any matter about which they have the right to inquire.

(9) The board shall provide semiannually to the Oversight Task Force the number of warrants issued for an alleged violation of parole, the average time between detention on a warrant and preliminary hearing, the average time between detention on a warrant and revocation hearing, the number of ninety-day sentences in a technical violation center issued by the board, the number of one-hundred-twenty-day sentences in a technical violation center issued by the board, the number of one-hundred-eighty-day sentences issued by the board, and the number and average length of the suspended sentences imposed by the board in response to a violation.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-103 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-103
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-103
Status: in_force

(1) The classification hearing officer shall be responsible for assigning a classification to each offender within forty (40) days after the offender's commitment to the custody of the department. The classification shall determine the offender's work duties, living quarters, educational, vocational or other rehabilitation programs, and privileges to be accorded the offender while in custody of the department. The classification hearing officer, in assigning classifications, shall consider the offender's age, offense and surrounding circumstances, the complete record of the offender's criminal history including records of law enforcement agencies or of a youth court regarding that offender's juvenile criminal history, family background, education, practical or employment experience, interests and abilities as evidenced by mental and psychological examination and knowledge obtained by the classification hearing officer in personal interview with the offender. The classification hearing officer shall use the above criteria to assign each offender a classification which will serve and enhance the best interests and general welfare of the offender. The designee or designees of the commissioner shall approve or disapprove each classification. The classification hearing officer shall provide the State Parole Board with a copy of the classification assigned to each offender in the custody of the department who is eligible for parole.

(2) The classification board, consisting of the commissioner, or his designee, deputy commissioner of institutions and the director of offender services may change an action of the classification or disciplinary hearing officer if the board makes a determination that the action of the hearing officer was not supported by sufficient factual information. The commissioner, in emergency situations, may suspend the classification of an offender or offenders for a period of not exceeding fifteen (15) days to relieve the emergency situation. The classification of each offender may be reviewed by a classification hearing officer at least once each year. In no case shall an offender serve as a servant in the home of any employee other than authorized by the commissioner.

(3) The classification board shall establish substantive and procedural rules and regulations governing the assignment and alteration of inmate classifications, and shall make such rules and regulations available to any offender upon request.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-729 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-729
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-729
Status: in_force

The Commissioner of Corrections shall within thirty (30) days after April 10, 1985, establish the operating capacities of the prison system, and shall at least quarterly certify existing operating capacities or establish changed or new operating capacities.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-934 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-934
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-934
Status: in_force

If a regional facility authorized under Section 47-5-931 experiences a disruption in the housing of state inmates due to a natural disaster in which the Governor has declared a disaster emergency under the laws of this state or the President of the United States has declared an emergency or major disaster to exist in this state, notwithstanding the limitation prescribed in Section 47-5-933 , the term of the contract entered into by the Department of Corrections and the board of supervisors of the involved county or counties may be extended for a period not to exceed five (5) years.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-515 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-515
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-515
Status: in_force

(1) The Department of Corrections shall establish work training programs in conjunction with private industry to provide training to offenders in those trades in which there is a shortage of workers.

(2) The commissioner may cooperate with private industry for the establishment of work training programs.

(3) Private industry shall provide the training at state correctional facilities.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-41 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 7-41
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-41
Status: in_force

When a probationer shall be discharged from probation by the court of original jurisdiction, the field supervisor, upon receiving a written request from the probationer, shall forward a written report of the record of the probationer to the Division of Community Corrections of the department, which shall present a copy of this report to the Governor. The Governor may, in his discretion, at any time thereafter by appropriate executive order restore any civil rights lost by the probationer by virtue of his conviction or plea of guilty in the court of original jurisdiction.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-1-15 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 1-15
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-1-15
Status: in_force

Any convict working under the direction of the board of supervisors who renders efficient services and complies with all necessary rules and regulations may have deducted from the term of his imprisonment one-fourth ( 1 / 4 ) thereof.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-501 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-501
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-501
Status: in_force

Except as otherwise specifically provided by law, it is hereby declared to be the intent of the Legislature to provide vocational education and training for offenders in the custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections and simultaneously reimburse the state for the expenses of incarcerating such offenders. To implement this goal, the Legislature intends for the Department of Corrections to work in conjunction with private industry to locate viable industries and businesses on property utilized by the State Prison Correctional System and utilize offenders in the custody of the Department of Corrections as the labor force necessary to conduct their operations.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-47 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 7 / Section 7-47
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-47
Status: in_force

(1) The judge of any circuit court may place an offender on a program of earned probation, in an intensive supervision program or any intervention court authorized by law after a period of confinement as set out herein and the judge may seek the advice of the commissioner and shall direct that the defendant be under the supervision of the department.

(2)(a) Any circuit court or county court may, upon its own motion, acting upon the advice and consent of the commissioner not earlier than thirty (30) days nor later than three (3) years after the defendant has been delivered to the custody of the department, incarcerated by order of the court or otherwise sentenced, modify, alter or suspend the further execution of the sentence and place the defendant on earned probation, in an intensive supervision program or any intervention court authorized by law except when a death sentence or life imprisonment is the maximum penalty which may be imposed or if the defendant has been confined two (2) or more times for the conviction of a felony on a previous occasion in any court or courts of the United States and of any state or territories thereof or has been convicted of a felony involving the use of a deadly weapon.

(b) The authority granted in this subsection shall be exercised by the judge who imposed sentence on the defendant, or his successor.

(c) The time limit imposed by paragraph (a) of this subsection is not applicable to those defendants sentenced to the custody of the department prior to April 14, 1977. Persons who are convicted of crimes that carry mandatory sentences shall not be eligible for earned probation.

(3) When any circuit or county court places an offender on earned probation, the court shall give notice to the Mississippi Department of Corrections within fifteen (15) days of the court's decision to place the offender on earned probation. Notice shall be delivered to the central office of the Mississippi Department of Corrections and to the regional office of the department which will be providing supervision to the offender on earned probation.

(4) If the court places any person on probation or earned probation, the court may order the person, as a condition of probation, to a period of confinement and treatment at a private or public agency or institution, either within or without the state, which treats emotional, mental or drug-related problems. Any person who, as a condition of probation, is confined for treatment at an out-of-state facility shall be supervised pursuant to Section 47-7-71 , and any person confined at a private agency shall not be confined at public expense. Time served in any such agency or institution may be counted as time required to meet the criteria of subsection (2)(a).

(5) If the court places any person on probation or earned probation, the court may order the person to make appropriate restitution to any victim of his crime or to society through the performance of reasonable work for the benefit of the community.

(6) If the court places any person on probation or earned probation, the court may order the person, as a condition of probation, to submit, as provided in Section 47-5-601 , to any type of breath, saliva or urine chemical analysis test, the purpose of which is to detect the possible presence of alcohol or a substance prohibited or controlled by any law of the State of Mississippi or the United States.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-19 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 7-19
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-19
Status: in_force

It shall be the duty of all correctional system officials to grant to the members of the board or its properly accredited representatives, access at all reasonable times to any person over whom the board may have jurisdiction under this chapter; to provide for the board or such representatives facilities for communicating with and observing the offender; and to furnish to the board such reports as the board shall require concerning the conduct and character of any offender in the department of corrections custody and any other facts deemed by the board pertinent in determining whether such offender shall be paroled.

It shall be the duty of any judge, district attorney, county attorney, police officer, or other public official of the state, having information with reference to any person eligible for parole, to send such information as may be in his possession or under his control to the board, in writing, upon request of any member or employee thereof.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-47 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-47
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-47
Status: in_force

It shall be unlawful for any person related by affinity or consanguinity within the third degree computed according to the rules of the civil law to the Governor, Lieutenant Governor or commissioner to accept any employment in the state correctional system, neither shall the commissioner or other officer or employee of the state correctional system be directly or indirectly interested in any contract, purchase or sale for or in behalf of or on account of the state correctional system.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-727 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-727
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-727
Status: in_force

Advancement of parole eligibility dates under Sections 47-5-701 through 47-5-729 shall occur independently of all other adjustments of the parole eligibility dates, such as advancing the parole eligibility dates as a result of receiving earned time allowances.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1115 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 5 / Section 5-1115
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1115
Status: in_force

A contract for correctional services shall not be entered into unless the following requirements are met:

(a) The contractor provides an adequate plan of insurance, specifically including insurance for civil rights claims, as determined by an independent risk management/actuarial firm with demonstrated experience in public liability for state governments. In determining the adequacy of the plan, such firm shall determine whether:

(i) The insurance is adequate to protect the state from any and all actions by a third party against the contractor or the state as a result of the contract;

(ii) The insurance is adequate to protect the state against any and all claims arising as a result of any occurrence during the term of the contract; that is, the insurance is adequate on an occurrence basis, not on a claims-made basis;

(iii) The insurance is adequate to assure the contractor's ability to fulfill its contract with the state in all respects, and to assure that the contractor is not limited in this ability because of financial liability which results from judgments; and

(iv) The insurance is adequate to satisfy such other requirements specified by the independent risk management/actuarial firm.

(b) The sovereign immunity of the state shall not apply to the contractor. Neither the contractor nor the insurer of the contractor may plead the defense of sovereign immunity in any action arising out of the performance of the contract.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-3.1 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 7-3.1
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-3.1
Status: in_force

(1) In consultation with the Parole Board, the department shall develop a case plan for all parole-eligible inmates to guide an inmate's rehabilitation while in the department's custody and to reduce the likelihood of recidivism after release.

(2) The case plan shall include, but not be limited to:

(a) Programming and treatment requirements based on the results of a risk and needs assessment;

(b) Any programming or treatment requirements contained in the sentencing order; and

(c) General behavior requirements in accordance with the rules and policies of the department.

(3) With respect to parole-eligible inmates admitted to the department's custody on or after July 1, 2021, the department shall complete the case plan within ninety (90) days of admission. With respect to parole-eligible inmates admitted to the department's custody before July 1, 2021, the department shall complete the case plan by January 1, 2022.

(4) The department shall provide the inmate with a written copy of the case plan and the inmate's caseworker shall explain the conditions set forth in the case plan.

(a) Within ninety (90) days of admission, the caseworker shall notify the inmate of their parole eligibility date as calculated in accordance with Section 47-7-3(3) ;

(b) At the time a parole-eligible inmate receives the case plan, the department shall send the case plan to the Parole Board for approval.

(5) With respect to parole-eligible inmates admitted to the department's custody after July 1, 2021, the department shall ensure that the case plan is achievable prior to the inmate's parole eligibility date. With respect to parole-eligible inmates admitted to the department's custody before July 1, 2021, the department shall, to the extent possible, ensure that the case plan is achievable prior to the inmate's parole eligibility date or next parole hearing date, or date of release, whichever is sooner.

(6) The caseworker shall meet with the inmate every eight (8) weeks from the date the offender received the case plan to review the inmate's case plan progress.

(7) Every four (4) months the department shall electronically submit a progress report on each parole-eligible inmate's case plan to the Parole Board. The board may meet to review an inmate's case plan and may provide written input to the caseworker on the inmate's progress toward completion of the case plan.

(8) The Parole Board shall provide semiannually to the Oversight Task Force the number of parole hearings held, the number of prisoners released to parole without a hearing and the number of parolees released after a hearing.

(9) If the Department of Corrections fails to adequately provide opportunity and access for the completion of such case plans, the Department of Corrections shall, to the extent possible, contract with regional jail facilities that offer educational development and job-training programs to facilitate the fulfillment of the case plans of parole-eligible inmates.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-122 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 5 / Section 5-122
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-122
Status: in_force

The Commissioner of Corrections may provide for agricultural production in connection with disciplinary programs, rehabilitation, inmate work projects, prison agricultural enterprise programs or any similar activity of the department; however, agricultural activities shall be conducted in a manner which are labor intensive and a minimum amount of mechanized or power-driven equipment shall be utilized to the extent practical and economically feasible.

The Department of Corrections is authorized to enter into contracts or agreements with the federal government with respect to agricultural subsidies or payments.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1107 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-1107
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1107
Status: in_force

All facilities that are governed by this chapter shall be designed, constructed, and at all times maintained and operated in accordance with the American Correctional Association Standards in force at the time of contracting, as well as with subsequent ACA Standards to the extent that they are approved by the contracting agency. The facility shall meet the percentage of standards required for accreditation by the American Correctional Association.

In addition, all facilities shall at all times comply with all federal and state constitutional standards, federal, state and local laws, and all court orders.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-35 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 5 / Section 7-35
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-35
Status: in_force

(1) The courts referred to in Section 47-7-33 or 47-7-34 shall determine the terms and conditions of probation or post-release supervision and may alter or modify, at any time during the period of probation or post-release supervision, the conditions and may include among them the following or any other:

That the offender shall:

(a) Commit no offense against the laws of this or any other state of the United States, or of any federal, territorial or tribal jurisdiction of the United States;

(b) Avoid injurious or vicious habits;

(c) Avoid persons or places of disreputable or harmful character;

(d) Report to the probation and parole officer as directed;

(e) Permit the probation and parole officer to visit him at home or elsewhere;

(f) Work faithfully at suitable employment so far as possible;

(g) Remain within a specified area;

(h) Pay his fine in one (1) or several sums;

(i) Support his dependents;

(j) Submit, as provided in Section 47-5-601 , to any type of breath, saliva or urine chemical analysis test, the purpose of which is to detect the possible presence of alcohol or a substance prohibited or controlled by any law of the State of Mississippi or the United States;

(k) Register as a sex offender if so required under Title 45, Chapter 33.

(2) When any court places a defendant on misdemeanor probation, the court must cause to be conducted a search of the probationer's name or other identifying information against the registration information regarding sex offenders maintained under Title 45, Chapter 33. The search may be conducted using the Internet site maintained by the Department of Public Safety Sex Offender Registry.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-151 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-151
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-151
Status: in_force

The superintendent (warden) or other person in charge of prisoners, upon the death of any prisoner under his care and control, shall at once notify the county medical examiner or county medical examiner investigator (hereinafter “medical examiner”) of the county in which said prisoner died, of the death of the prisoner, and it shall be the duty of such medical examiner, when so notified of the death of such person, to obtain a court order and notify the State Medical Examiner of the death of such prisoner. It shall be mandatory that the State Medical Examiner cause an autopsy to be performed upon the body of the deceased prisoner. Furthermore, the State Medical Examiner shall investigate any case where a person is found dead on the premises of the correctional system, in accordance with Sections 41-61-51 through 41-61-79 . The State Medical Examiner shall make a written report of his investigation, and shall furnish a copy of the same, including the autopsy report, to the superintendent (warden) and a copy of the same to the district attorney of the county in which said prisoner died. The copy so furnished to the district attorney shall be turned over by the district attorney to the grand jury, and it shall be the duty of the grand jury, if there be any suspicion of wrongdoing shown by the inquest papers, to thoroughly investigate the cause of such death.

It shall be the duty of the medical examiner of the county in which said prisoner died to arrange for the remains to be transported to the State Medical Examiner for said autopsy, and accompanying the remains shall be the court order for autopsy and any documents or records pertaining to the deceased prisoner, institutional health records or other information relating to the circumstances surrounding the prisoner's death. The State Medical Examiner shall arrange for the remains to be transported to the county in which said prisoner died following completion of the autopsy. If the remains are not claimed for burial within forty-eight (48) hours after autopsy, then said remains may be delivered to the University of Mississippi Medical Center for use in medical research or anatomical study.

The provisions herein set forth in the first paragraph shall likewise apply to any case in which any person is found dead on the premises of the Mississippi State Penitentiary except that the autopsy to be performed on the body of such a person shall not be mandatory upon a person who is not a prisoner unless the medical examiner determines that the death resulted from circumstances raising questions as to the cause of death, in which case the medical examiner may cause an autopsy to be performed upon the body of such deceased person in the same manner as authorized to be performed upon the body of a deceased prisoner.

Provided further, that the provisions herein shall apply with respect to any deceased prisoner who at the time of death is being detained by duly constituted state authority such as the Oakley Youth Development Center, Mississippi State Hospital at Whitfield, East Mississippi State Hospital, or any other state institution.

The provisions of this section shall not apply to a prisoner who was lawfully executed as provided in Sections 99-19-49 through 99-19-55 .

Any officer or employee of the prison system or any other officer, employee or person having charge of any prisoner who shall fail to immediately notify the medical examiner of the death of such prisoner, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine of not less than One Hundred Dollars ($100.00) nor more than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) and by confinement in the county jail for not more than one (1) year.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1113 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-1113
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1113
Status: in_force

All employees of a facility operated pursuant to Sections 47-5-1101 through 47-5-1123 must receive, at a minimum, the same quality and quantity of training as that required by the state, for employees of public correctional and detention facilities. All training expenses shall be the responsibility of the contractor.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-601 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 5 / Section 5-601
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-601
Status: in_force

The Mississippi Department of Corrections is authorized to establish a drug identification program and shall have the power and duty to adopt rules not inconsistent with law as it may deem proper and necessary with respect to the establishment, administration and operation of the program.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1011 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-1011
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1011
Status: in_force

(1) Before entering an order for commitment for electronic house arrest, the department shall inform the participant and other persons residing in the home of the nature and extent of the approved electronic monitoring devices by doing the following:

(a) Securing the written consent of the participant in the program to comply with the rules and regulations of the program.

(b) Advising adult persons residing in the home of the participant at the time an order or commitment for electronic house arrest is entered and asking such persons to acknowledge the nature and extent of approved electronic monitoring devices.

(c) Insuring that the approved electronic devices are minimally intrusive upon the privacy of other persons residing in the home while remaining in compliance with Sections 47-5-1001 through 47-5-1015 .

(2) The participant shall be responsible for the cost of equipment and any damage to such equipment. Any intentional damage, any attempt to defeat monitoring, any committing of a criminal offense or any associating with felons or known criminals, shall constitute a violation of the program.

(3) Any person whose residence is utilized in the program shall agree to keep the home drug and alcohol free and to exclude known felons and criminals in order to provide a noncriminal environment.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-126 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-126
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-126
Status: in_force

All inmates, unless physically unable, shall be required to perform such work as may be set out in the policy-making board of the institution.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-37 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-37
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-37
Status: in_force

The commissioner shall employ a qualified fiscal comptroller who shall be a certified public accountant and who shall be charged with the responsibility of maintaining a modern accounting system which shall accurately reflect all fiscal transactions in such manner and in such form as shall be recommended by the State Fiscal Management Board. The commissioner shall employ such qualified bookkeepers and other clerical personnel as required to maintain the accounting system who shall devote their full time to their duties as employees of the correctional system. The fiscal comptroller shall make a monthly report to the Governor and Chairmen of Corrections Committee of the Senate and the Penitentiary Committee of the House of Representatives. The fiscal comptroller shall countersign all checks. The fiscal comptroller shall have sole responsibility for all purchases and the signing of all purchase orders issued by the correctional system. Such fiscal comptroller shall execute a good and sufficient bond payable to the State of Mississippi in the sum of Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000.00), conditioned for the satisfactory performance of the duties of his office, and the accurate accounting of any moneys and properties coming into his hands.

The commissioner or his designee shall sign all requisitions for issuance of warrant authorizing any disbursement of any sum or sums on account of the correctional system, and no money shall be paid out on any account of the correctional system except on a requisition for issuance of warrant signed by him or his designee.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-85 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 7 / Section 7-85
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-85
Status: in_force

Pursuant to the Interstate Compact for Adult Offender Supervision, the Department of Corrections may charge a one-time application fee in the amount of Fifty Dollars ($50.00) to each offender applying for out-of-state transfer under the Interstate Compact for Adult Offender Supervision. Payments received under this section shall be deposited into a special fund which is created in the State Treasury. Monies in the fund shall be expended by the Department of Corrections, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to defray costs incurred by the department under the Interstate Compact for Adult Offender Supervision. Unexpended amounts remaining in the special fund at the end of a fiscal year shall not lapse into the State General Fund, and any interest earned or investment earnings on amounts in the special fund shall be deposited to the credit of the special fund.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1251 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-1251
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1251
Status: repealed

(1) There is created the “Prison Industry Enhancement Program,” through which the Department of Corrections may contract with the nonprofit corporation organized and formed under the “Mississippi Prison Industries Act of 1990” to employ offenders within the custody of the department or prison industries.

(2) Except as provided in Section 47-5-579 , which is the provision authorizing a work initiative, the offenders must be under the supervision of the department at all times while working. The offenders shall be paid, by the entity or entities, wages at a rate which is not less than that paid for similar work in the locality in which the work is performed. The wages may be subject to deductions which shall not, in the aggregate, exceed eighty percent (80%) of gross wages. The deductions shall be limited to the following:

(a) To pay federal, state and local taxes;

(b) To pay reasonable charges for room and board as determined by regulations issued by the Commissioner of Corrections;

(c) To support the offender's family pursuant to state statute, court order or agreement by the offender; and

(d) To pay contributions equaling not less than five percent (5%) but not more than twenty percent (20%) of the offender's gross wages into the Crime Victims' Compensation Fund as created in Section 99-41-29 .

(3) Notwithstanding any other provision of the law to the contrary, the offenders shall not be qualified to receive any payments for unemployment compensation while incarcerated. However, the offenders shall not solely by their status as offenders be deprived of the right to participate in benefits made available by the federal or state government to other individuals on the basis of their employment, such as workers' compensation.

(4) Offenders who participate in the employment must do so voluntarily and must agree in advance to the specific deductions made from gross wages pursuant to this section and to all other financial arrangements or benefits resulting from participation in the employment.

(5) The Department of Corrections shall develop rules and regulations to meet the criteria established by the Bureau of Justice Assistance under the Prison Industry Enhancement Certification Program.

(6) This section shall stand repealed on July 1, 2027.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-441 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-441
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-441
Status: in_force

(1) Any sheriff, or his designee, may use any person who has been convicted of a nonviolent offense and who is serving all or any part of his sentence in the county jail to clear, clean, stabilize, preserve, maintain and restore historic cemeteries in the county. For the purposes of this section the term “ historic cemeteries ” means cemeteries that are at least one hundred (100) years old.

(2) Before undertaking work on an historic cemetery, the sheriff, or his designee, shall contact the Department of Archives and History to obtain information on the appropriate procedures for the preservation and restoration of an historical cemetery.

(3) Any sheriff, or his designee, may use any person who has been convicted of a crime and is serving all or part of his sentence in the county jail, who volunteers his time, to prepare or serve food in county or public facilities in conjunction with a nonprofit organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code .
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-196 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-196
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-196
Status: in_force

The Department of Corrections shall develop and implement a drug testing program for its employees no later than July 1, 1997. The department shall develop a written policy for alcohol and drug testing of employees to deter the use of alcohol and drugs at its facilities and to ensure an alcohol and drug free environment at correctional facilities. Participation by employees is mandatory and the tests may be conducted in a random manner.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-549 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-549
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-549
Status: in_force

Any service or item manufactured, processed, grown or produced by the corporation from its prison industries may be furnished or sold to any legislative, executive or judicial branch of the state, any political subdivision or any governing authority of the state, any other state, any school, college or university of the state, any foreign government, any agency of the federal government or to any private entity. The corporation shall make reasonable efforts to purchase raw materials from in-state vendors. The prices for industry-made products shall be established by the board of directors of the corporation or its designee.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1009 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-1009
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1009
Status: in_force

(1) The department shall have absolute immunity from liability for any injury resulting from a determination by a judge or correctional officer that an offender shall be allowed to participate in the electronic home detention program.

(2) The Department of Audit shall annually audit the records of the department to ensure compliance with Sections 47-5-1001 through 47-5-1015 .
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-41 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-41
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-41
Status: in_force

All employees, before entering upon their duties, shall take and subscribe the following oath to be filed and preserved by the commissioner:

“I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully and diligently perform all the duties required of me as __________ of the correctional system, and will observe and execute the laws, rules and regulations passed and prescribed for the government thereof so far as the same concerns or pertains to any employment, and that I will not ill-treat or abuse any offender under my care contrary to the law and the rules and regulations prescribed by legal authority. So help me God.”
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-147 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 5 / Section 5-147
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-147
Status: in_force

When an offender escapes from the custody of the department, the commissioner shall immediately notify the Governor who shall have exclusive power to authorize the payment of a reward, in his discretion, not exceeding Fifty Dollars ($50.00), out of any money available in the state treasury not otherwise appropriated, for the arrest and delivery of such offender to the proper authorities.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-301 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-301
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-301
Status: in_force

Sections 47-5-301 through 47-5-327 may be cited as the “Penitentiary-Made Goods Law of 1978.”
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-115 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-115
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-115
Status: in_force

Any offender who has been sentenced to suffer death, and whose sentence has been commuted by the Governor to imprisonment in the state correctional system, shall be confined in the state correctional system on order of the Governor and treated as are other offenders.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1215 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-1215
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1215
Status: in_force

(1) A contractor's employees serving as “correctional officers” shall be allowed to use force only while on the grounds of a facility, while transporting inmates, and while pursuing escapees from a facility.

(2) Private correctional officers shall be authorized to use only such non-deadly force as the circumstances require in the following situations: to prevent the commission of a felony or misdemeanor, including escape; to defend oneself or others against physical assault; to prevent serious damage to property; to enforce institutional regulations and orders; and to prevent or quell a riot.

(3) A contractor's employees, while performing their officially assigned duties relating to the custody, control, transportation, recapture or arrest of any escaped offender assigned to a contract prison, shall be authorized to use force and firearms as necessary to pursue and recapture escapees.

(4) Private correctional officers who have been appropriately certified as determined by the contracting agency and trained pursuant to the provisions of subsection (5) shall have the right to carry and use firearms and shall exercise such authority and may use deadly force to prevent an act that could result in death or serious bodily injury to oneself or to another person.

(5) Private correctional officers shall be trained in the use of force and the use of firearms, in accordance with ACA Standards and shall be trained, at the private contractor's expense, for at least the minimum number of hours that public personnel are currently trained.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-463 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-463
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-463
Status: in_force

The Commissioner of Corrections may institute a procedure for granting passes and leaves to inmates participating under Sections 47-5-451 through 47-5-469 , and may grant such passes or leaves in deserving cases, not to exceed three (3) days or seventy-two (72) hours.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-39 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 7-39
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-39
Status: in_force

If, for good and sufficient reasons, a probationer desires to change his residence within or without the state, such transfer may be effected by application to his field supervisor which transfer shall be subject to the court's consent and subject to such regulations as the court, or judge, may require.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1301 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-1301
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1301
Status: in_force

Notwithstanding any other provisions of law to the contrary, as a supplementary method for granting concurrent jurisdiction to the United States, the Governor of the State of Mississippi may grant to the United States full civil and criminal jurisdiction concurrent with the State of Mississippi over any correctional facility and the grounds of the facility in which are housed or located inmates committed to the custody of the United States or over any correctional facility and the grounds of the facility which are owned by a private entity that has entered into a contract for the confinement of inmates committed to the custody of the United States.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-938 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-938
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-938
Status: in_force

(1) Offenders are encouraged to participate in work programs. The chief corrections officer as created in Section 47-5-935 , with ratification of the board of supervisors of the county in which a correctional facility established pursuant to Sections 47-5-931 through 47-5-941 , is located, may enter into agreements to provide work for any state offender housed in the facility, with the approval of the Commissioner of Corrections, to perform any work:

(a) Authorized in the Mississippi Prison Industries Act of 1990 as provided in Sections 47-5-531 through 47-5-575 ;

(b) Authorized in the Prison Agricultural Enterprises Act as provided in Sections 47-5-351 through 47-5-357 ;

(c) Authorized in the Penitentiary-Made Goods Law of 1978 as provided in Sections 47-5-301 through 47-5-331 ;

(d) Authorized in the Public Service Work Programs Act as provided in Sections 47-5-401 through 47-5-421 ;

(e) Authorized in Section 47-5-431 , which authorizes the sheriff to use county or state offenders to pick up trash along public roads and state highways.

(2) The chief corrections officer shall promulgate rules and regulations as may be necessary to govern the work performance of the offenders for the parties to the agreements. Political subdivisions of the State of Mississippi including but not limited to counties, municipalities, school districts, drainage districts, water management districts and joint county-municipal endeavors are to have free use of the offender's labor but are responsible for reimbursing the facility for costs of transportation, guards, meals and other necessary costs when the inmates are providing work for that political body. Offenders may be compensated for work performed if the agreement so provides.

(3) There is created a special fund in the county treasury to be known as the “offender's compensation fund.” All compensation paid to offenders shall be placed in the special fund for use by the offenders to purchase certain goods and other items of value as authorized in Section 47-5-109 , for offenders housed in state correctional facilities. As provided in Section 47-5-194 , no cash is to be paid to offenders. The agreement shall provide that a certain portion of the compensation shall be used for the welfare of the offenders. All money collected from the regional jail canteen operations shall be placed in a county special fund. Expenditures from that fund can be made by the chief corrections officer for any lawful purpose that is in the best interest and welfare of the offenders. The chief corrections officer, his employees and the county or counties owning the facility are given the authority necessary to carry out the provisions of this section.

(4) The provisions of this section shall be supplemental to any other provisions of law regarding offender labor and work programs.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-5 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-5
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-5
Status: in_force

The commissioner, as soon as possible after passage of this section, shall prepare a plan to bring about the limited centralization of facilities within the state correctional system grounds at Parchman, Mississippi. The commissioner is authorized and empowered to use any state funds appropriated for such purposes, together with any available federal funds appropriated by the United States Congress for improvement of correctional institutions to construct modern security facilities for housing of offenders to the end that the state correctional system achieves the greatest degree of security for said offenders. Provided, however, that no new facility to house offenders shall be constructed within two-fifths ( 2 / 5 ) of a mile of any other offender camp. The commissioner shall bring about centralization of food facilities, recreational activities, utility services and other related facilities and correctional services that are presently decentralized within the correctional system.

It is the intent of the Mississippi Legislature that the commissioner shall fully utilize existing knowledge, architectural plans and expertise currently available with the Federal Bureau of Prisons and the Law Enforcement Assistance Administration to the end that the State of Mississippi shall have an efficient, modern, and properly secure state correctional system.

The commissioner is authorized to receive and disburse private and public grants, gifts and bequests which may be available to this state for correctional facilities, offender rehabilitation purposes and related purposes, which said sum so received shall be subject to all of the laws applicable to the State Fiscal Management Board.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-731 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-731
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-731
Status: repealed

Sections 47-5-701 through 47-5-729, Mississippi Code of 1972 , which create the Prison Overcrowding Emergency Powers Act, shall stand repealed from and after July 1, 2025.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-321 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-321
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-321
Status: in_force

The State Board of Corrections shall have the power and authority to prepare and promulgate policies which are necessary to give effect to the provisions of Sections 47-5-301 through 47-5-327 with respect to matters of administration respecting the same which if made shall be in writing, entered on their minutes, and available to the general public for inspection during the regular office hours of the department. Before taking effect, said policies, as well as subsequent amendments thereto, shall be placed on file by the department in the office of the secretary of state in a well-bound book designated by the secretary for that purpose.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1301 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-1301
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1301
Status: in_force

Notwithstanding any other provisions of law to the contrary, as a supplementary method for granting concurrent jurisdiction to the United States, the Governor of the State of Mississippi may grant to the United States full civil and criminal jurisdiction concurrent with the State of Mississippi over any correctional facility and the grounds of the facility in which are housed or located inmates committed to the custody of the United States or over any correctional facility and the grounds of the facility which are owned by a private entity that has entered into a contract for the confinement of inmates committed to the custody of the United States.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-58 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-58
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-58
Status: in_force

The commissary located at any facility of the correctional system shall not sell to any person or agency, any food or other commodities, whether produced by the correctional system or not, for any amount less than the wholesale price of such food or other commodities in the area of the facility.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-33 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 7-33
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-33
Status: in_force

(1) When it appears to the satisfaction of any circuit court or county court in the State of Mississippi having original jurisdiction over criminal actions, or to the judge thereof, that the ends of justice and the best interest of the public, as well as the defendant, will be served thereby, such court, in termtime or in vacation, shall have the power, after conviction or a plea of guilty, except in a case where a death sentence or life imprisonment is the maximum penalty which may be imposed, to suspend the imposition or execution of sentence, and place the defendant on probation as herein provided, except that the court shall not suspend the execution of a sentence of imprisonment after the defendant shall have begun to serve such sentence. In placing any defendant on probation, the court, or judge, shall direct that such defendant be under the supervision of the Department of Corrections.

(2) When any circuit or county court places an offender on probation, the court shall give notice to the Mississippi Department of Corrections within fifteen (15) days of the court's decision to place the offender on probation. Notice shall be delivered to the central office of the Mississippi Department of Corrections and to the regional office of the department which will be providing supervision to the offender on probation.

(3) When any circuit court or county court places a person on probation in accordance with the provisions of this section and that person is ordered to make any payments to his family, if any member of his family whom he is ordered to support is receiving public assistance through the State Department of Human Services, the court shall order him to make such payments to the county welfare officer of the county rendering public assistance to his family, for the sole use and benefit of said family.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-45 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 7-45
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-45
Status: in_force

The provisions of this chapter shall not apply to probation under the Youth Court Law nor to parole from the Oakley Youth Development Center.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-509 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-509
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-509
Status: in_force

The department of corrections shall at all times be responsible for the security of the facility being used for the operation or project. No offender granted privileges under the provisions of Section 47-5-501 et seq. shall be deemed to be an agent, employee, or involuntary servant of the participating industry or business while working in the correctional industries work program, or while going to and from employment or other specified areas.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1215 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-1215
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1215
Status: in_force

(1) A contractor's employees serving as “correctional officers” shall be allowed to use force only while on the grounds of a facility, while transporting inmates, and while pursuing escapees from a facility.

(2) Private correctional officers shall be authorized to use only such non-deadly force as the circumstances require in the following situations: to prevent the commission of a felony or misdemeanor, including escape; to defend oneself or others against physical assault; to prevent serious damage to property; to enforce institutional regulations and orders; and to prevent or quell a riot.

(3) A contractor's employees, while performing their officially assigned duties relating to the custody, control, transportation, recapture or arrest of any escaped offender assigned to a contract prison, shall be authorized to use force and firearms as necessary to pursue and recapture escapees.

(4) Private correctional officers who have been appropriately certified as determined by the contracting agency and trained pursuant to the provisions of subsection (5) shall have the right to carry and use firearms and shall exercise such authority and may use deadly force to prevent an act that could result in death or serious bodily injury to oneself or to another person.

(5) Private correctional officers shall be trained in the use of force and the use of firearms, in accordance with ACA Standards and shall be trained, at the private contractor's expense, for at least the minimum number of hours that public personnel are currently trained.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-119 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-119
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-119
Status: in_force

Offenders, when received into a facility of the correctional system, shall be carefully searched. If money be found on the person of the offender, or received by him at any time, it shall be taken in charge by the commissioner and placed to the offender's credit and expended for the offender's benefit on his written order and under such restrictions as may be prescribed by law or the rules. If an offender with money charged to his credit shall die from any cause while in a facility of the correctional system or be discharged without claiming such money, the commissioner shall make every effort to give notice of such fact to the discharged offender or to the beneficiary or nearest-known relative, if any, of the deceased or discharged offender, and upon a valid claim presented shall pay out such money to such discharged offender, beneficiary or nearest relative. After two (2) years from the date of giving such notice, or a valid attempt to give such notice, or two (2) years after the death of such offender, if the beneficiary or nearest relative is unknown, if such money has not been validly claimed, the commissioner shall make an affidavit of such fact, which sums shall escheat to the correctional system special vocational training program fund to help in offender rehabilitation. Any officer or employee having charge of the offenders' money who misappropriates the same, or any part thereof, shall be deemed guilty of a felony, and upon conviction thereof shall be confined in the correctional system for a term of not more than five (5) years. All sums credited to the account of an offender who shall escape shall immediately, upon the offender's escape, escheat to the special vocational training program fund to help in offender rehabilitation.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-943 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-943
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-943
Status: in_force

The Mississippi Department of Corrections may contract with the Walnut Grove Correctional Authority or the governing authorities of the Municipality of Walnut Grove, Leake County, Mississippi, to provide for the private housing, care and control of not more than one thousand five hundred (1,500) offenders who are in the custody of the Department of Corrections at a maximum security facility in Walnut Grove. A county or circuit judge shall not order any offender to be housed in the correctional facility authorized in Sections 47-5-943 through 47-5-953 . Commitment of offenders shall not be to this facility, but shall be to the jurisdiction of the department. The commissioner shall assign newly sentenced offenders to an appropriate facility consistent with public safety. Any facility owned or leased by the Walnut Grove Correctional Authority or the Municipality of Walnut Grove for this purpose shall be designed, constructed, operated and maintained in accordance with American Correctional Association standards, and shall comply with all constitutional standards of the United States and the State of Mississippi and with all court orders that may now or hereinafter be applicable to the facility. The contract must comply with Sections 47-5-1211 through 47-5-1227 .
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1115 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-1115
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1115
Status: in_force

A contract for correctional services shall not be entered into unless the following requirements are met:

(a) The contractor provides an adequate plan of insurance, specifically including insurance for civil rights claims, as determined by an independent risk management/actuarial firm with demonstrated experience in public liability for state governments. In determining the adequacy of the plan, such firm shall determine whether:

(i) The insurance is adequate to protect the state from any and all actions by a third party against the contractor or the state as a result of the contract;

(ii) The insurance is adequate to protect the state against any and all claims arising as a result of any occurrence during the term of the contract; that is, the insurance is adequate on an occurrence basis, not on a claims-made basis;

(iii) The insurance is adequate to assure the contractor's ability to fulfill its contract with the state in all respects, and to assure that the contractor is not limited in this ability because of financial liability which results from judgments; and

(iv) The insurance is adequate to satisfy such other requirements specified by the independent risk management/actuarial firm.

(b) The sovereign immunity of the state shall not apply to the contractor. Neither the contractor nor the insurer of the contractor may plead the defense of sovereign immunity in any action arising out of the performance of the contract.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-1-37 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 1-37
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-1-37
Status: in_force

In the cultivation of crops and the gathering thereof if it shall appear necessary, from the lack of convict labor, the board of supervisors may employ free labor at current prices to work on a county convict farm until such time as the convict labor may become sufficient to complete and gather the crops started on such a farm, and pay for the same out of the county treasury.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1117 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-1117
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1117
Status: in_force

A plan shall be developed and certified by the commissioner which demonstrates the method by which the state would resume control of the prison upon contract termination. Such plan shall be submitted for review and comment to law enforcement agencies, the district attorney and circuit judges in the county in which the prison is located.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-121 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-121
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-121
Status: in_force

All female offenders shall be kept separate and apart from male offenders. Where practicable, the commissioner shall keep the female offenders within a separate facility from the male offenders, and shall provide reasonable rules and regulations for the government of same.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-64 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-64
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-64
Status: reserved

(1) The commissioner is hereby directed to determine the number of acres and location of land under the department's jurisdiction that are needed for security purposes, for Prison Agricultural Enterprises and for nonagricultural purposes. The commissioner shall designate and reserve such additional land for agricultural or nonagricultural enterprise projects of the department, as he deems necessary. The commissioner shall then recommend to the Department of Finance and Administration the number of acres of department land that should be leased to private entities and the term of the leases.

(2) The Department of Finance and Administration is authorized to lease for agricultural purposes that Penitentiary land so recommended for not less than three (3) nor more than eight (8) years, with the approval of the Public Procurement Review Board.

(3) The Department of Finance and Administration, with the approval of the Governor, the Secretary of State and the Commissioner of the Department of Corrections, is authorized to lease Penitentiary land for power generation projects or other commercial or industrial projects at the same time that it leases the land as prescribed in subsection (2) of this section. The Department of Finance and Administration is authorized to negotiate all aspects of leases or related agreements executed under this subsection consistent with the following:

(a) The period of the lease term combined with the term of renewal shall not exceed forty (40) years.

(b) Any lease or renewal lease shall:

(i) Provide for periodic rent adjustments throughout the term of the lease; and

(ii) Require the lessee to provide a decommissioning and restoration bond or other security securing the lessee's obligation to remove all aboveground and underground facilities to a depth of at least three (3) feet underground and to restore the surface to a condition similar to its condition before the commencement of the lease.

(c) Any lease or renewal lease may provide for any combination of the following: base rent, bonuses, percentage of income payments, royalty payments or other terms and conditions that the Department of Finance and Administration deems necessary to maintain a fair and equitable return to the state and to protect the leased land throughout the term of the lease or renewal lease.

(d) Oil, gas and mineral rights in the leased land shall be reserved to the State of Mississippi.

(e) This subsection does not authorize the sale or transfer of title to any state lands.

(f) The Department of Finance and Administration may charge fees and expenses, not to exceed costs, incurred in administering this subsection.

(g) Any monies derived from leasing lands under this subsection shall be deposited to the Prison Agricultural Enterprise Fund as provided in Section 47-5-66 .
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-553 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 5 / Section 5-553
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-553
Status: in_force

Before any prison industry may commence operations, the chief executive officer of the corporation must communicate with the Commissioner of Corrections regarding the proper security for the facility. If at anytime the Commissioner of Corrections recognizes a need for improvement in the security at any facility, then he or she shall communicate to the corporation regarding what improvements are needed for the facility to be properly secured. The corporation shall furnish its own security within the parameters of any prison industry work area.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-940 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-940
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-940
Status: repealed

(1)(a) The Department of Corrections may contract with the Bolivar County Regional Facility for a five-year pilot program dedicated to an intensive and comprehensive alcohol and other drug treatment program for not more than two hundred fifty (250) inmates. The Bolivar County Regional Facility shall have the option of canceling the contract for the drug treatment program after giving the Department of Corrections thirty (30) days' notice of its intent to cancel. The program shall be a prison-based treatment program designed to reduce substance abuse by inmates, correct dysfunctional thinking and behavioral patterns, and prepare inmates to make a successful and crime-free readjustment to the community.

(b) The Department of Corrections shall reimburse the Bolivar County Regional Facility at the per diem rate allowed under Section 47-5-933 .

(2)(a) An inmate who is within eighteen (18) months of his earned release date or parole date may be placed in the program.

(b) The Department of Corrections shall remove any inmate within seventy-two (72) hours after being notified by the Bolivar County Regional Facility that the inmate is violent or refuses to participate in the drug treatment program.

(3) The program shall consist, but is not limited to, the following components:

(a) An assessment and placement component using a recidivism needs assessment of the inmates.

(b) An intensive and comprehensive treatment and rehabilitation component which addresses the specific drug or alcohol problem of the inmate. This component shall include relapse prevention strategies and anger management strategies.

(c) An aftercare post-release component that has a specific transition plan for each inmate. The transition plan must address specific post-release needs such as employment, housing, medical care, relapse prevention and treatment. The plan shall require personnel to assist the inmate with these needs and to assist in finding community-based programs for the inmate. The plan shall require the inmate to be tracked in at least thirty-day intervals to measure compliance with his established transition plan.

(d) A monitoring assessment of recidivism containing post-release history of substance abuse, breaches of trust, arrests, convictions, employment, community functioning, and marital and family interaction.

(4) The department shall file a report annually on the program with specific data on recidivism of inmates including the data required in subsection (3)(d).

(5) The program authorized under this section may be renewed if it meets performance requirements as may be determined by the Legislature.

(6) This section shall be repealed on July 1, 2025.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-303 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 5 / Section 5-303
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-303
Status: in_force

The aims and purposes of Sections 47-5-301 through 47-5-327 are:

(a) To utilize the labor of offenders for self-maintenance and for reimbursing this state for expenses incurred by reason of their crimes and imprisonment; and

(b) To effect the requisitioning and disbursement of penitentiary products directly through established state authorities and to permit the sale of such products to the public.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-575 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-575
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-575
Status: in_force

Any records or reports which relate to the financial aspect or operations of the corporation, with the exception of any trade secrets, shall be considered as public records and shall be subject to the provisions of the Mississippi Public Records Act of 1983.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-21 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 7-21
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-21
Status: in_force

All information obtained in the discharge of official duty by a field officer as an employee of the Department of Corrections shall be privileged and shall not be disclosed directly or indirectly to anyone other than to (a) the State Parole Board, (b) a judge, or (c) law enforcement agencies when such information is relevant to criminal activity.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-175 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-175
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-175
Status: in_force

The Commissioner of Corrections, with the concurrence of the Governor, is hereby authorized to enter into agreements with appropriate federal agencies to provide housing and incarceration of persons convicted by the courts of Mississippi and sentenced to the Mississippi Department of Corrections by such courts under such terms and conditions as may be prescribed if a determination is made that the best interest of the State of Mississippi would be served by making such transfer.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-134 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-134
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-134
Status: in_force

The Commissioner of Corrections may authorize the working of offenders, on a voluntary basis, in support of Habitat for Humanity, Inc., or the Fuller Center for Housing, Inc., which are nonprofit organizations. However, offenders shall only be used to work on construction projects. The Department of Corrections shall establish all proper regulations for the working, guarding, safekeeping, clothing, housing and subsistence of offenders when they are working.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-71 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 7-71
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-71
Status: in_force

I. The governor of this state is hereby authorized and directed to execute a compact on behalf of the state of Mississippi with any of the United States legally joining therein in the form substantially as follows:

A Compact

Entered into by and among the contracting states, signatories hereto, with the consent of the congress of the United States of America, granted by an act entitled “An act granting the consent of Congress to any two (2) or more states to enter into agreements or compacts for cooperative effort and mutual assistance in the prevention of crime and for other purposes.”

The contracting states solemnly agree:

(1) That it shall be competent for the duly constituted judicial and administrative authorities of a state party to this compact (herein called “sending state”), to permit any person convicted of an offense within such state and placed on probation or released on parole to reside in any other state party to this compact (herein called “receiving state”), while on probation or parole, if

(a) Such person is in fact a resident of or has his family residing within the receiving state and can obtain employment there;

(b) Though not a resident of the receiving state and not having his family residing there, the receiving state consents to such person being sent there.

Before granting such permission, opportunity shall be granted to the receiving state to investigate the home and prospective employment of such person.

A resident of the receiving state, within the meaning of this section, is one who has been an actual inhabitant of such state continuously for more than one (1) year prior to his coming to the sending state and has not resided within the sending state more than six (6) continuous months immediately preceding the commission of the offense for which he has been convicted.

(2) That each receiving state will assume the duties of visitation of and supervision over probationers or parolees of any sending state and in the exercise of those duties will be governed by the same standards that prevail for its own probationers and parolees.

(3) That duly accredited officers of a sending state may at all times enter a receiving state and there apprehend and retake any person on probation or parole. For that purpose no formalities will be required other than establishing the authority of the officer and the identity of the person to be retaken. All legal requirements to obtain extradition of fugitives from justice are hereby expressly waived on the part of states party hereto, as to such persons. The decision of the sending state to retake a person on probation or parole shall be conclusive upon and not reviewable within the receiving state: Provided, however, that if at the time when a state seeks to retake a probationer or parolee there should be pending against him within the receiving state any criminal charge, or he should be suspected of having committed within such state a criminal offense, he shall not be retaken without the consent of the receiving state until discharged from prosecution or from imprisonment for such offense.

(4) That the duly accredited officers of the sending state will be permitted to transport prisoners being retaken through any and all states parties to this compact, without interference.

(5) That the governor of each state may designate an officer who, acting jointly with like officers of other contracting states, if and when appointed, shall promulgate such rules and regulations as may be deemed necessary to more effectively carry out the terms of this compact.

(6) That this compact shall become operative immediately upon its execution by any state as between it and any other state or states so executing. When executed it shall have the full force and effect of law within such state, the form of execution to be in accordance with the laws of the executing state.

(7) That this compact shall continue in force and remain binding upon each executing state until renounced by it. The duties and obligations hereunder of a renouncing state shall continue as to parolees or probationers residing therein at the time of withdrawal until retaken or finally discharged by the sending state. Renunciation of this compact shall be by the same authority which executed it, by sending six (6) months' notice in writing of its intention to withdraw from the compact to the other state party hereto.

II. This section may be cited as the uniform act for out-of-state parolee supervision.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-405 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-405
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-405
Status: in_force

Each county electing to establish a work program under Sections 47-5-401 through 47-5-421 is authorized through its sheriff to adopt regulations and policies for joint state-county work programs, including extending the limits of the place of confinement of an eligible inmate as to whom there is reasonable cause to believe he will know his trust.

Any rules, regulations or policies promulgated by the sheriff shall be filed with the board of supervisors, and shall be left on file for a minimum of thirty (30) days before any such rules, regulations or policies can be implemented or utilized for any inmate pursuant to the provisions of Sections 47-5-401 through 47-5-421 . Provided further, such rules as they pertain to state inmates shall also be submitted to the Department of Corrections for approval which shall be granted or rejected within thirty (30) days of submission. If said rules are rejected the reasons therefor shall be stated in writing.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-71 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-71
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-71
Status: in_force

The State Highway Commission and the Mississippi Department of Corrections are hereby authorized to enter into and perform agreements to contract together for the construction or the pavement of roads by the State Highway Department in and adjoining to any facility of the correctional system.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-109 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-109
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-109
Status: in_force

(1) The State Department of Corrections is hereby authorized to operate a facility or facilities to be known as an inmate canteen facility or facilities, the purpose of which is to make available certain goods and other items of value for purchase by offenders confined at the State Penitentiary at Parchman, offenders confined at any other facility of the department, certain employees of the department and certain persons visiting offenders or employees. The commissioner shall promulgate rules and regulations for the operation of such a facility.

(2) Any funds which may be derived from the operation of an inmate canteen facility or facilities shall be deposited into an account to be known as the Canteen Fund. For accounting purposes, certain allocated costs attributable to the operation of such a facility, and as prescribed by the rules and regulations of the board, shall be chargeable as operating costs against profits earned. These costs of operation which are chargeable shall include, but shall not be limited to, rent allocation, utility allocation and employee wages. Any net profits which may accrue from the operation of such a facility and any interest earned thereon shall be deposited into the Inmate Welfare Fund.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-101 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-101
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-101
Status: in_force

The classification and disciplinary hearing officers shall maintain a record of all actions and orders by minutes. The hearing officers shall meet on a regular basis.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-323 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-323
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-323
Status: in_force

(1) In order to carry out the provisions of Sections 47-5-301 through 47-5-327 , the department is authorized to expend such monies out of appropriations from the Prison Industries Fund, as established by Section 47-5-66 , as may be necessary to erect buildings, to improve existing facilities, to purchase equipment, to procure tools, supplies and materials, to purchase, install or replace equipment and otherwise to defray the necessary expenses incident to the employment of offenders as herein provided.

(2) All monies collected by the State Department of Corrections from the sale or disposition of articles and products manufactured or produced by penitentiary labor in accordance with the provisions of Sections 47-5-301 through 47-5-327 shall be forthwith deposited into the Prison Industries Fund authorized by subsection (1) of this section. The money so collected and deposited shall be used solely for the purchase of raw materials, manufacturing supplies, equipment, machinery and buildings used to carry out the purposes of Sections 47-5-301 through 47-5-327 , to otherwise defray the necessary expenses incident thereto, including the employment of such necessary supervisory personnel as is unavailable in the inmate population. All expenditures from such fund shall be subject to the approval of the commissioner; provided, however, that such Prison Industries Fund shall never be maintained in excess of the amount necessary to carry out efficiently and properly the intentions of Sections 47-5-301 through 47-5-327 .
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-433 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-433
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-433
Status: in_force

The State Highway Commission may furnish vehicles along state highways to pick up trash bagged by inmates.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-461 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-461
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-461
Status: in_force

State inmates performing public service work or private paid employment under Sections 47-5-451 through 47-5-469 shall be eligible for earned time credit allowances in the same manner as other inmates confined or detained in state prisons or other state correctional facilities.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-38 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 7 / Section 7-38
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-38
Status: in_force

(1) The department shall have the authority to impose graduated sanctions as an alternative to judicial modification or revocation, as provided in Sections 47-7-27 and 47-7-37 , for offenders on probation, parole, or post-release supervision who commit technical violations of the conditions of supervision as defined by Section 47-7-2 .

(2) The commissioner shall develop a standardized graduated sanctions system, which shall include a grid to guide field officers in determining the suitable response to a technical violation. The commissioner shall promulgate rules and regulations for the development and application of the system of sanctions. Field officers shall be required to conform to the sanction grid developed.

(3) The system of sanctions shall include a list of sanctions for the most common types of violations. When determining the sanction to impose, the field officer shall take into account the offender's assessed risk level, previous violations and sanctions, and severity of the current and prior violations.

(4) Field officers shall notify the sentencing court when a probationer has committed a technical violation or the parole board when a parolee has committed a technical violation of the type of violation and the sanction imposed. When the technical violation is an arrest for a new criminal offense, the field officer shall notify the court within forty-eight (48) hours of becoming aware of the arrest.

(5) The graduated sanctions that the department may impose include, but shall not be limited to:

(a) Verbal warnings;

(b) Increased reporting;

(c) Increased drug and alcohol testing;

(d) Mandatory substance abuse treatment;

(e) Loss of earned-discharge credits; and

(f) Incarceration in a county jail for no more than two (2) days. Incarceration as a sanction shall not be used more than two (2) times per month for a total period incarcerated of no more than four (4) days.

(6) The system shall also define positive reinforcements that offenders will receive for compliance with conditions of supervision. These positive reinforcements shall include, but not limited to:

(a) Verbal recognition;

(b) Reduced reporting; and

(c) Credits for earned discharge which shall be awarded pursuant to Section 47-7-40 .

(7) The Department of Corrections shall provide semiannually to the Oversight Task Force the number and percentage of offenders who have one or more violations during the year, the average number of violations per offender during the year and the total and average number of incarceration sanctions as defined in subsection (5) of this section imposed during the year.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-4-1 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 4-1
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-4-1
Status: in_force

(1) It is lawful for there to be located within Wilkinson County and Leflore County a correctional facility operated entirely by a private entity pursuant to a contractual agreement between such private entity and the federal government, any state, or a political subdivision of any state to provide correctional services to any such public entity for the confinement of inmates subject to the jurisdiction of such public entity. Any person confined in such a facility pursuant to the laws of the jurisdiction from which he is sent shall be considered lawfully confined within this state. The private entity shall assume complete responsibility for the inmates and shall be liable to the State of Mississippi for any illegal or tortious actions of such inmates.

(2) The Department of Corrections shall contract with the Board of Supervisors of Leflore County for the private incarceration of not more than one thousand (1,000) state inmates at a facility in Leflore County. Any contract must comply with the requirements of Section 47-5-1211 through Section 47-5-1227 .

(3) It is lawful for any county to contract with a private entity for the purpose of providing correctional services for the confinement of federal inmates subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. Any person confined in such a facility pursuant to the laws of the United States shall be considered lawfully confined within this state. The private entity shall assume complete responsibility for the inmates and shall be liable to the county or the State of Mississippi, as the case may be, for any illegal or tortious actions of the inmates.

(4) It is lawful for there to be located within any county a correctional facility operated entirely by a private entity and the federal government to provide correctional services to the United States for the confinement of federal inmates subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. Any person confined in a facility pursuant to the laws of the United States shall be considered lawfully confined within this state. The private entity shall assume complete responsibility for the inmates and shall be liable to the State of Mississippi for any illegal or tortious actions of the inmates.

A person convicted of simple assault on an employee of a private correctional facility while such employee is acting within the scope of his or her duty or employment shall be punished by a fine of not more than One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00) or by imprisonment for not more than five (5) years, or both.

A person convicted of aggravated assault on an employee of a private correctional facility while such employee is acting within the scope of his or her duty or employment shall be punished by a fine of not more than Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00) or by imprisonment for not more than thirty (30) years, or both.

(5) The Department of Corrections may contract with the Tallahatchie County Correctional Facility authorized in Chapter 904, Local and Private Laws of 1999, for the private incarceration of not more than one thousand (1,000) state inmates at a facility in Tallahatchie County. Any contract must comply with the requirements of Section 47-5-1211 through Section 47-5-1227 . No state inmate shall be assigned to the Tallahatchie County Correctional Facility unless the inmate cost per day is at least ten percent (10%) less than the inmate cost per day for housing a state inmate at a state correctional facility.

(6) If a private entity houses state inmates, the private entity shall not displace state inmate beds with federal inmate beds unless the private entity has obtained prior written approval from the Commissioner of Corrections.

(7) It is lawful for there to be located within Leflore County a correctional facility operated entirely by a private entity pursuant to a contractual agreement between such private entity and the federal government, the State of Mississippi, or Leflore County for the incarceration of federal inmates. Such correctional facility may include a separate Leflore County jail which may be located on or adjacent to the correctional facility site. To further the provisions of this subsection:

(a) Any private entity, the State of Mississippi, or Leflore County may enter into any agreement regarding real property or property, including, but not limited to, a lease, a ground lease and leaseback arrangement, a sublease or any other lease agreement or arrangement, as lessor or lessee. Such agreements shall not exceed forty (40) years. The Department of Corrections may enter such agreements or arrangements on behalf of the State of Mississippi;

(b) The powers conferred under this subsection shall be additional and supplemental to the powers conferred by any other law. Where the provisions of this subsection conflict with other law, this subsection shall control; and

(c) The private entity shall assume complete responsibility for the inmates and shall be liable to the State of Mississippi for any illegal or tortious actions of the inmates.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-198 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-198
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-198
Status: in_force

(1) It is unlawful for any person to sell within, bring to, or be in possession of, in any correctional facility or convict camp within the state or any county, municipal or other jail within the state, except as authorized by law, any controlled substance or narcotic drug.

(2) It is unlawful for any person who is the keeper or officer in charge of the facility, camp or jail, or who is employed in or about the facility, camp or jail to knowingly permit any controlled substance or narcotic drug to be sold, possessed or used therein contrary to law.

(3) Any person who violates the provisions of this section and is convicted shall be fined up to Twenty-five Thousand Dollars ($25,000.00) and be punished by imprisonment for not less than three (3) years nor more than seven (7) years; and the person is not eligible for probation, parole, suspension of sentence, earned time allowance or any other reduction of sentence.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-34 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 7-34
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-34
Status: in_force

(1) When a court imposes a sentence upon a conviction for any felony committed after June 30, 1995, the court, in addition to any other punishment imposed if the other punishment includes a term of incarceration in a state or local correctional facility, may impose a term of post-release supervision. However, the total number of years of incarceration plus the total number of years of post-release supervision shall not exceed the maximum sentence authorized to be imposed by law for the felony committed. The defendant shall be placed under post-release supervision upon release from the term of incarceration. The period of supervision shall be established by the court.

(2) The period of post-release supervision shall be conducted in the same manner as a like period of supervised probation, including a requirement that the defendant shall abide by any terms and conditions as the court may establish. Failure to successfully abide by the terms and conditions shall be grounds to terminate the period of post-release supervision and to recommit the defendant to the correctional facility from which he was previously released. Procedures for termination and recommitment shall be conducted in the same manner as procedures for the revocation of probation and imposition of a suspended sentence as required pursuant to Section 47-7-37 .

(3) Post-release supervision programs shall be operated through the probation and parole unit of the Division of Community Corrections of the department. The maximum amount of time that the Mississippi Department of Corrections may supervise an offender on the post-release supervision program is five (5) years.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-91 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-91
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-91
Status: in_force

The commissioner is authorized and directed to provide for transportation of children of employees of the Mississippi State Penitentiary both in Sunflower County and Quitman County to a public elementary or secondary school located in those counties and to pay for such transportation out of the support and maintenance fund of the department of correction. The commissioner shall further pay to any public elementary or secondary school located in said counties which said children are sent, an amount not to exceed Sixty Dollars ($60.00) per student per month as tuition, which also shall be paid out of the support and maintenance fund of the department of correction. Any student who receives benefits under this section shall not be eligible for any other educational financial state grant or loan.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-505 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-505
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-505
Status: in_force

(1) Except as otherwise specifically provided by law, the Department of Economic Development, and the Mississippi State University Cooperative Extension Service shall collaborate with the Department of Corrections in an initial evaluation of viable industries and businesses readily found in the present economy and a determination of which of these would effectively function within the correctional industries work program. Special consideration shall be given to those industries and businesses which will provide vocational education and training for offenders so as to assist offenders in functioning more successfully following their release from custody.

(2) Except as otherwise specifically provided by law, in conjunction with the initial evaluation and determination described in subsection (1) of this section, the Department of Economic Development shall have the primary responsibility of identifying and evaluating acceptable industries and businesses and of acting as an agent of the Department of Corrections by communicating with such concerns and aggressively soliciting their participation in the correctional industries work program.

(3) Except as otherwise specifically provided by law, after an acceptable industry or business has expressed an interest in participating in the correctional industries work program, the Department of Corrections shall negotiate any necessary contractual agreements and arrangements between the concern and the Department of Corrections, including (a) leases of up to twenty-five (25) years, renewable at the option of the lessee for an additional ten-year period at the end of each lease term, of any property utilized by the state prison correctional system, and (b) authorization for such industry or business to develop leased property in a manner necessary to conduct the operation or project.

(4) Except as otherwise specifically provided by law, any contracts concerning the leasing of real property by the Board of Corrections, any rules and regulations promulgated by the board and the making of any contract by the Department of Corrections with any private business shall be ratified and approved by the Governor's Office of General Services.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-505 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 5 / Section 5-505
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-505
Status: in_force

(1) Except as otherwise specifically provided by law, the Department of Economic Development, and the Mississippi State University Cooperative Extension Service shall collaborate with the Department of Corrections in an initial evaluation of viable industries and businesses readily found in the present economy and a determination of which of these would effectively function within the correctional industries work program. Special consideration shall be given to those industries and businesses which will provide vocational education and training for offenders so as to assist offenders in functioning more successfully following their release from custody.

(2) Except as otherwise specifically provided by law, in conjunction with the initial evaluation and determination described in subsection (1) of this section, the Department of Economic Development shall have the primary responsibility of identifying and evaluating acceptable industries and businesses and of acting as an agent of the Department of Corrections by communicating with such concerns and aggressively soliciting their participation in the correctional industries work program.

(3) Except as otherwise specifically provided by law, after an acceptable industry or business has expressed an interest in participating in the correctional industries work program, the Department of Corrections shall negotiate any necessary contractual agreements and arrangements between the concern and the Department of Corrections, including (a) leases of up to twenty-five (25) years, renewable at the option of the lessee for an additional ten-year period at the end of each lease term, of any property utilized by the state prison correctional system, and (b) authorization for such industry or business to develop leased property in a manner necessary to conduct the operation or project.

(4) Except as otherwise specifically provided by law, any contracts concerning the leasing of real property by the Board of Corrections, any rules and regulations promulgated by the board and the making of any contract by the Department of Corrections with any private business shall be ratified and approved by the Governor's Office of General Services.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-327 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-327
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-327
Status: in_force

The provisions of Sections 47-5-301 through 47-5-327 shall be liberally construed to achieve the primary objective of vocational training and rehabilitation of offenders through work in industrial types of activities which also will best serve the economical and efficient operation of state agencies. The provisions of Sections 47-5-301 through 47-5-327 shall be considered as supplementary, or in addition to, other existing provisions of law relative to the employment of offenders.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-73 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 5 / Section 7-73
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-73
Status: in_force

The Department of Corrections shall notify the sheriff of the county and the police chief of each municipality in the county when a person is placed on probation or released on parole to reside in the county under the Uniform Act for Out-of-state Parolee Supervision.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-701 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-701
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-701
Status: in_force

Sections 47-5-701 through 47-5-729 shall be known and may be cited as the “Prison Overcrowding Emergency Powers Act.”
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-140 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-140
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-140
Status: in_force

Each county attorney, district attorney, each member of the Parole Board and circuit judge shall be provided a copy of a handbook prepared by the commissioner which shall include a copy of Section 47-5-138 and Section 47-5-139 , and shall clearly show how such sections would apply to an offender sentenced to terms of various lengths. Each offender shall be provided a copy of the handbook upon arrival at the correctional system and have it explained to him as a part of his initial orientation.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-3-9 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 3-9
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-3-9
Status: in_force

Removal of prisoners pursuant to Section 47-3-7 may be to some place in the county, or to the jail of another county. The jailer of such other county shall receive the prisoners and keep them safely, and surrender them when called for by the authority of the sheriff of the county from which they were removed. All the expenses of any such removal of prisoners and their imprisonment anywhere else, shall be borne by the county chargeable with the expense of imprisonment and trial of prisoners.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-55 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-55
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-55
Status: in_force

The officers and employees of the state correctional system are exempt from jury service.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-545 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-545
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-545
Status: in_force

Except as otherwise specifically provided by law, after the commissioning and implementation of a marketing feasibility study for any proposed new prison industry, the corporation may establish such prison industry. Before any new industry is established, the corporation shall hold a hearing to determine the impact such industry may have on the private sector market. The corporation shall provide adequate and advance notice regarding the nature, time, date and place of such hearing. After the hearing which is required under this section, the corporation may commence negotiations with the State Department of Corrections, with the Secretary of State, or his designee, serving as a mediator, regarding the leasing of land and other chattels for the purpose of establishing any new industry.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-1-27 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 1-27
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-1-27
Status: in_force

An official, or guard, or other employee, having the custody of any county prisoner, or any official or employee of the county having custody of any county prisoner, who shall maltreat or abuse any such convict, or who shall knowingly permit the same to be done, or who being under duty to provide sufficient and wholesome food, clothing, shelter, bathing facilities, or medical attention to such convict, shall wilfully fail to furnish the same to such convict, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and on conviction shall be fined in any sum not less than Ten Dollars ($10.00) nor more than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00), or shall be imprisoned not less than one (1) month, or shall suffer both such fine and imprisonment, in the discretion of the court, and it shall be the duty of the judge of the circuit court of such county to so charge the grand jury.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-1-7 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 1-7
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-1-7
Status: in_force

In any county where there are not a sufficient number of convicts to make it economically feasible for such county to own and operate a county convict farm as provided for by law, the board of supervisors of any such county may agree with the board of supervisors of any contiguous county to own and operate in common with such contiguous county, a county convict farm upon which prisoners of both such counties may be detained and required to work. In like manner the board of supervisors of any county in which there are not a sufficient number of convicts to make it economically feasible to own and operate a county convict farm, may make similar arrangements with any city, town or village within said county to own and operate said farm in connection with said city, town or village. In any county where there are not a sufficient number of convicts to make it economically feasible for such county to own a farm or to own and operate a farm with a contiguous county or with a city or town, the board of supervisors of such county may contract with the board of supervisors of any contiguous county or with any county in the same circuit or chancery court district, to have its prisoners worked by the contiguous county or counties in the same circuit or chancery court district upon payment made to the board of supervisors of such contiguous county or counties in the same circuit or chancery court district for the purpose of detaining and working such prisoners. The terms of such a contract are to be agreed upon by and between the two contracting boards and the same shall not be in violation of the law. Where the board of supervisors of one county so contracts to work convicts of another county, all the provisions of Sections 47-1-1 through 47-1-37 , Sections 47-1-41 , 47-1-45 , 47-1-47 , and 47-1-61, Mississippi Code of 1972 , and Section 226 of the Constitution in regard to the working of convicts shall apply to the convicts contracted for as herein provided; and the name of the convict or convicts may be entered on the jail docket of the county contracting to detain and work the convict or convicts, together with all other information required by Section 47-1-21 .
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-937 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 1 / Section 5-937
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-937
Status: in_force

Sections 47-5-931 through 47-5-941 shall be full and complete authority for the exercise of all powers and authority granted herein and no requirements or restrictions of law which would otherwise be applicable to acts of the county or sheriff or the Department of Corrections shall be applicable except as expressly provided herein. The sheriff is expressly authorized to employ counsel to represent the facility to be paid a salary within the range allowed for a legal assistant to a district attorney with the employment to continue for a period of time not to exceed the duration of the indebtedness incurred for construction of the facility. The county or counties shall pay this cost and other costs incurred in the operation of the facility from the proceeds of the funds derived from the financing of the project and the housing of offenders.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-33 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 5 / Section 5-33
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-33
Status: in_force

The commissioner, in the discharge of his duties, is authorized to administer oaths, to summon and examine witnesses, and take such other steps as may be necessary to ascertain the truth of any matter about which he may have the right to inquire.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-85 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-85
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-85
Status: in_force

There shall be provided an area at each facility of the correctional system for religious worship to be conducted by the chaplain's office of the Mississippi Department of Corrections. The chaplains will have ingress and egress to all facilities of the Mississippi Department of Corrections for the purpose of providing religious services to the offenders incarcerated therein.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-531 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 5 / Section 5-531
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-531
Status: in_force

Sections 47-5-531 through 47-5-575 shall be known as the “Mississippi Prison Industries Act of 1990.”
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1501 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-1501
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-1501
Status: in_force

Sections 47-5-1501 through 47-5-1517 may be cited as the “Dignity for Incarcerated Women Act.”
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-31 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 7 / Section 7-31
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-31
Status: in_force

Upon request of the governor the department of corrections shall investigate and report to him with respect to any case of pardon, commutation of sentence, reprieve, furlough or remission of fine or forfeiture.

Any attorney of record in the state of Mississippi representing any person whose record is before the department shall have the right to inspect such records on file with the department.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-105 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 5-105
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-105
Status: in_force

The award of all contracts within the purview of the Department of Finance and Administration under Section 27-104-7 in excess of Five Hundred Thousand Dollars ($500,000.00) entered into by the commissioner shall be approved by the Public Procurement Review Board and shall be entered on the minutes of such board before any funds shall be expended therefor. Provided further, that the entrance of the award of contracts on the minutes of the Public Procurement Review Board shall contain a detailed accounting of all bids entered showing clearly the lowest bid and best bid that was awarded in each and every case and, if the bid accepted is not the lowest, then the reasons and justification for not accepting the lowest bid shall be spread on the minutes. A true copy of the minutes of each meeting of the Public Procurement Review Board shall be sent monthly to the Governor, members of the Legislative Budget Office and Chairmen of the Corrections Committees of the Senate and the House of Representatives.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-409 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 5-409
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-5-409
Status: in_force

The willful failure of an inmate to remain within the extended limits of his confinement or to return to the place of confinement within the time prescribed shall be deemed an escape from a state penal institution in the case of a state inmate, and an escape from the custody of the sheriff in the case of a county inmate, and shall be punishable accordingly.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-13 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 4 / Section 7-13
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-13
Status: in_force

A majority of the board shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of all business. A decision to parole an offender convicted of murder or a sex-related crime shall require the affirmative vote of three (3) members. The board shall maintain, in minute book form, a copy of each of its official actions with the reasons therefor. Suitable and sufficient office space and support resources and staff necessary to conducting Parole Board business shall be provided by the Department of Corrections. However, the principal place for conducting parole hearings shall be the state penitentiary at Parchman.
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-36.1 — MS Code / Title 47 / Chapter 3 / Section 7-36.1
Miss. Code Ann. § 47-7-36.1
Status: in_force

(1) Any employer of an offender may submit weekly time cards, proof of employment and the results of any required drug tests to the person who supervises an individual placed on parole by the Parole Board or placed on probation by the court in lieu of the meeting requirement described in Section 47-7-36 .

(2) Any employer may withhold an amount from an offender's paycheck sufficient to cover the fees described in Section 47-7-49 and pay the amount to the department monthly.

(3) This section shall not apply to offenders who are self-employed.

(4) The board shall coordinate with the department to promulgate rules and regulations to administer this section.