Senate Bill 2610

AN ACT TO ENACT THE MISSISSIPPI CLEAN SLATE ACT TO PROVIDE FOR THE AUTOMATIC EXPUNGEMENT OF CERTAIN MISDEMEANOR CONVICTIONS AND MISDEMEANOR RECORDS; TO PROVIDE FOR THE EFFECT OF THE EXPUNGEMENT; TO PROVIDE FOR THE REINSTATEMENT OF CERTAIN CONVICTIONS; TO AMEND SECTION 45-27-21, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO CONFORM; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

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

SECTION 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "Mississippi Clean Slate Act."

SECTION 2. (1) Subject to appropriation by the Legislature, a misdemeanor conviction for an offense for which the maximum punishment is imprisonment for not more than sixty (60) days is expunged under this section by operation of law if seven (7) years have passed from the imposition of the sentence. Each court shall notify the arresting law enforcement agency of each conviction on or before the tenth day of each month that is expunged under this subsection for the preceding month. Each law enforcement agency need not retain and shall make nonpublic the notification that the conviction has been expunged, and the record of the arrest, fingerprinting, conviction, and sentence of the person in the case to which the notification applies.

(2) Subject to appropriation by the Legislature, a conviction for a misdemeanor offense for which the maximum punishment is imprisonment for not more than sixty (60) days that is recorded and maintained in the Criminal Information Center database is expunged under this section by operation of law if seven (7) years have passed from the imposition of the sentence.

(3) Subject to appropriation by the Legislature and subsections (4), (5) and (6) of this section, a conviction for a misdemeanor offense for which the maximum punishment is imprisonment for sixty (60) days or more that is recorded and maintained in the Criminal Information Center database is expunged under this section by operation of law if seven (7) years have passed from the imposition of the sentence. Four (4) misdemeanor convictions total that are recorded and maintained in the Criminal Information Center database may be expunged under this section during the lifetime of an individual under the authority of this subsection.

(4) A conviction is not expunged under subsection (3) of this section unless all of the following apply:

(a) The applicable time period required under subsection (3) of this section has elapsed;

(b) There are no criminal charges pending in the Criminal Information Center database against the applicant; and

(c) The applicant has not been convicted of any criminal offense that is recorded and maintained in the Criminal Information Center database during the applicable time period required under subsection (3) of this section.

(5) Subsection (3) of this section does not apply to an individual who has more than one (1) conviction for a crime of violence as defined by Section 97-3-2 or an attempted crime of violence as defined By Section 97-3-2 that is recorded and maintained in the Criminal Information Center database.

(6) Subsection (3) of this section does not apply to a conviction recorded and maintained in the Criminal Information Center database for the commission of or attempted commission of any of the following:

(a) A crime with an element of assault;

(b) A serious misdemeanor;

(d) Any violation related to sex offense; or

(e) Any violation related to domestic violence.

(7) The Department of Information Technology Services, in conjunction with the Administrative Office of Courts and the Criminal Information Center, shall develop and maintain a computer-based program for the expungement of convictions under this section. In fulfilling its duty under this subsection, the Department of Information Technology Services may contract with a private technical consultant as needed.

(8) The expungement of a conviction under this section is subject to reinstatement under Section 4 of this act.

(9) An individual whose conviction is expunged under this section impliedly consents to the creation of the nonpublic record under Section 45-27-21.

(10) The Department of Public Safety shall create and maintain an electronically accessible record of each conviction recorded and maintained in the Criminal Information Center database that was expunged under this section that must be provided to or accessible by each court in this state. An electronic record created as required under this section may only be used as authorized under Section 45-27-21 and by a court for purposes of updating locally maintained court records.

SECTION 3. (1) Upon the automatic expungement of a conviction under Section 2 of this act, the applicant, for purposes of the law, is considered not to have been previously convicted, except as provided in this section and Section 45-27-21.

(2) The applicant is not entitled to the remission of any fine, costs, or other money paid as a consequence of a conviction that is expunged.

(3) This act does not affect the right of the applicant to rely upon the conviction to bar subsequent proceedings for the same offense.

(4) This act does not affect the right of a victim of a crime to prosecute or defend a civil action for damages.

(5) This act does not create a right to commence an action for damages for incarceration under the sentence that the applicant served before the conviction is expunged under this act.

(6) This act does not relieve any obligation to pay restitution owed to the victim of a crime nor does it affect the jurisdiction of the convicting court or the authority of any court order with regard to enforcing an order for restitution.

(7) A conviction, including any records relating to the conviction and any records concerning a collateral action, that has been expunged under this act cannot be used as evidence in an action for negligent hiring, admission, or licensure against any person.

(8) A conviction that is expunged under Section 2 of this act may be considered as a prior conviction by court, law enforcement agency, prosecuting attorney, or the attorney general, as applicable, for purposes of charging a crime as a second or subsequent offense or for sentencing.

(9) As used in this section, "applicant" means an individual whose conviction or convictions have been expunged under Section 2 of this act.

SECTION 4. (1) A conviction that was expunged by operation of law under Section 2 of this act shall be reinstated by the court as provided in this section.

(2) If it is determined that a conviction was improperly or erroneously expunged under Section 2 of this act because the conviction was not eligible to be expunged under Section 2 of this act, the court shall, on its own motion, reinstate the conviction.

(3) Upon a motion by a person owed restitution, or on its own motion, the court shall reinstate a conviction that was expunged under Section 2 of this act for which the individual whose conviction was expunged was ordered to pay restitution if the court determines that the individual owes restitution.

SECTION 5. All records in a case that resulted in an acquittal on all charges or a case that is dismissed with prejudice shall be automatically expunged by operation of law if the person charged would be eligible for the expungement provided for in Section 2 of this act if the person had been convicted. The Administrative Office of Courts shall promulgate rules and regulations to effectuate the purposes of this section.

SECTION 6. Section 45-27-21, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

45-27-21. A certified copy of every expunction and nonadjudication order and a record of every expungement under Section 2 of this act shall be sent by the circuit clerk to the Mississippi Criminal Information Center where it shall be maintained in a separate confidential database accessible only upon written request by a district attorney, a county prosecuting attorney, a municipal court prosecuting attorney, the Attorney General of Mississippi and the Mississippi Law Enforcement Standards and Training Board. Any criminal conviction which has been expunged or nonadjudicated or expunged may be used for the purpose of determining habitual offender status and for the use of the Mississippi Law Enforcement Standards and Training Board in giving or retaining law enforcement certification, and to ensure that a person is only eligible for first-offender status one (1) time and for compliance with Section 4 of this act.

SECTION 7. The implementation of this act is subject to appropriation by the Legislature. The Department of Public Safety and the Department of Information Technology Services, the Administrative Office of Courts and the Criminal Information Center shall begin work to implement the provisions of the act immediately upon appropriation.

SECTION 8. Sections 1 through 6 of this act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2026. Section 7 of this act shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage.