Senate Bill 2634

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 97-5-3, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO ALLOW CHARGES AGAINST A PARENT WHO SHALL DESERT OR WILLFULLY NEGLECT OR REFUSE TO PROVIDE SUPPORT AND MAINTENANCE OF HIS OR HER CHILD WHEN THAT CHILD IS UNDER 21 YEARS OF AGE TO BE PURSUED FOR THREE YEARS AFTER THE CHILD TURNS 21 YEARS OF AGE FOR ANY OFFENSE UNDER THIS SECTION WHEN THE CHILD WAS UNDER THE AGE OF 21 YEARS; TO AMEND SECTION 99-1-5, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REVISE THE STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS FOR CHARGES AGAINST A PARENT WHO DESERTS, WILLFULLY NEGLECTS OR REFUSES TO PROVIDE SUPPORT OR MAINTENANCE OF HIS OR HER CHILD; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

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

SECTION 1. Section 97-5-3, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

97-5-3. (1) Any parent who shall desert or * * * ~~wilfully~~ willfully neglect or refuse to provide for the support and maintenance of his or her child or children, including the natural parent of an illegitimate child or children wherein paternity has been established by law or when the natural parent has acknowledged paternity in writing, while said child or children are under the age of * * * ~~eighteen (18)~~ twenty-one (21) years shall be guilty of a felony and, on conviction thereof, shall be punished for a first offense by a fine of not less than One Hundred Dollars ($100.00) nor more than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00), or by commitment to the custody of the Department of Corrections not more than five (5) years, or both; and for a second or subsequent offense, by a fine of not less than One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00) nor more than Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00), or by commitment to the custody of the Department of Corrections not less than two (2) years nor more than five (5) years, or both, in the discretion of the court.

(2) Charges under this section against a parent may be pursued for three (3) years after the child turns twenty-one (21) years of age for any offense under this section when the child was under the age of twenty-one (21) years.

(3) In any prosecution under this section, it is a defense if, during the relevant time period, the child:

(i) Marries, or

(ii) Joins the military and serves on a full-time basis, or

(iii) Is convicted of a felony and is sentenced to incarceration of two (2) or more years for committing such felony, or

(iv) Discontinues full-time enrollment in school having attained the age of eighteen (18) years, unless the child is disabled, or

(v) Voluntarily moves from the home of the custodial parent or guardian, establishes independent living arrangements, obtains full-time employment and discontinues educational endeavors prior to attaining the age of twenty-one (21) years, or

(vi) Cohabits with another person without the approval of the parent obligated to pay support.

SECTION 2. Section 99-1-5, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

99-1-5. The passage of time shall never bar prosecution against any person for the offenses of murder, manslaughter, aggravated assault, aggravated domestic violence, kidnapping, arson, burglary, forgery, counterfeiting, robbery, larceny, rape, embezzlement, obtaining money or property under false pretenses or by fraud, felonious abuse or battery of a child as described in Section 97-5-39, touching or handling a child for lustful purposes as described in Section 97-5-23, sexual battery of a child as described in Section 97-3-95(1)(c), (d) or (2), exploitation of children as described in Section 97-5-33, promoting prostitution under Section 97-29-51(2) when the person involved is a minor, or any human trafficking offense as described in Section 97-3-54.1(1)(a), (1)(b) or (1)(c), Section 97-3-54.2, or Section 97-3-54.3. A person shall not be prosecuted for conspiracy, as described in Section 97-1-1, for felonious assistance-program fraud, as described in Section 97-19-71, or for felonious abuse of vulnerable persons, as described in Sections 43-47-18 and 43-47-19, unless the prosecution for the offense is commenced within five (5) years next after the commission thereof. A person shall not be prosecuted for larceny of timber as described in Section 97-17-59, unless the prosecution for the offense is commenced within six (6) years next after the commission thereof. A person shall not be prosecuted for deserting, neglecting, or refusing to support a child under Section 97-5-3 unless the prosecution for the offense is commenced within three (3) years after the child turns twenty-one (21) years of age for an offense under Section 97-5-3 when the child was under the age of twenty-one (21) years of age, subject to the limitations in Section 97-5-3(3). A person shall not be prosecuted for any other offense not listed in this section unless the prosecution for the offense is commenced within two (2) years next after the commission thereof. Nothing contained in this section shall bar any prosecution against any person who shall abscond or flee from justice, or shall absent himself from this state or out of the jurisdiction of the court, or so conduct himself that he cannot be found by the officers of the law, or that process cannot be served upon him.

SECTION 3. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2023.