Senate Bill 2666

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 93-21-21, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REVISE THE PUNISHMENT FOR VIOLATION OF A PROTECTIVE ORDER AGAINST DOMESTIC VIOLENCE UNDER CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:

SECTION 1. Section 93-21-21, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

93-21-21. (1) Except as provided in subsection (2) of this section, upon a knowing violation of a protective order issued after a hearing or an ex parte protective order, either of which was issued for the purpose of protecting the victim from abuse as defined by Section 93-21-3(a), whether the order was issued by a Mississippi court or a foreign court of competent jurisdiction, the person violating the order commits a misdemeanor or the court may hold the person in contempt. If the court convicts the person of a misdemeanor, the court maypunish the defendant by imprisonment in the county jail for not more than six (6) months or a fine of not more than One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00), or both.

(2) Upon a knowing violation of a protective order issued after a hearing or an ex parte protective order, either of which was issued for the purpose of protecting the victim from abuse as defined by Section 93-21-3(a), whether the order was issued by a Mississippi court or a foreign court of competent jurisdiction, if an element of the violation is that the person went to a domestic violence shelter, the person violating the order commits a felony and shall be punished by commitment to the custody of the Department of Corrections for not more than five (5) years or a fine of not more than Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00), or both.

(3) A person shall not be both convicted of and held in contempt for the same violation of an order.

(4) Any law enforcement officer has the authority to make an arrest for such violation, either with a warrant or without a warrant pursuant to Section 99-3-7, when he has probable cause to believe that a violation has been committed which is an act of domestic violence or is a violation of an order and has been committed within twenty-four (24) hours of the arrest as described in Section 99-3-7.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2007.