Bill Text: MS SB2791 | 2026 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: Purple Angels Law; enact to create a persistent-domestic-violence-offender registry within the Department of Public Safety.

Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 5)

Status: (Failed) 2026-02-03 - Died In Committee [SB2791 Detail]

Download: Mississippi-2026-SB2791-Introduced.html

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MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE

2026 Regular Session

To: Judiciary, Division B

By: Senator(s) Mumford, Frazier, Jackson, Blount, Gillespie Isom

Senate Bill 2791

AN ACT TO ENACT THE PURPLE ANGELS LAW; TO CREATE A REGISTRY OF PERSISTENT DOMESTIC VIOLENCE OFFENDERS WITHIN THE MISSISSIPPI DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY; TO DEFINE TERMS; TO REQUIRE THE COURT OF CONVICTION TO ORDER REGISTRATION UPON QUALIFYING CONVICTIONS; TO REQUIRE CLERKS OF COURT TO TRANSMIT CONVICTION DATA; TO PROVIDE A REGISTRATION FEE ASSESSED AGAINST EACH QUALIFYING OFFENDER; TO PROVIDE FOR THE DISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS TO SUPPORT DOMESTIC VIOLENCE PREVENTION AND INTERVENTION SERVICES THROUGH THE STATE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH; TO ESTABLISH TIMEFRAMES FOR REMOVAL FROM THE REGISTRY; TO DIRECT CODIFICATION OF THE ACT AS A CHAPTER WITHIN TITLE 45; 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 "Purple Angels Law."

     SECTION 2.  As used in this chapter:

          (a)  "Convicted" or "conviction" means a verdict of guilty by a judge or jury or a plea of guilty, including a plea of nolo contendere or a best-interest plea accepted by the court.

          (b)  "Court of conviction" means the court that sentences an offender for a qualifying offense under this chapter.

          (c)  "Domestic abuse victim" means a person who qualifies as a domestic abuse victim under Section 93-21-1, Mississippi Code of 1972, or any successor provision.

          (d)  "Persistent domestic violence offender" means a person who:

              (i)  Has been convicted in this state of an offense committed against a domestic abuse victim; and

              (ii)  Has at least one (1) prior conviction for an offense committed against a domestic abuse victim.

          (e)  "Prior conviction" means a conviction that occurred before the current qualifying offense, regardless of whether the conviction occurred in this state or another jurisdiction, provided that any offense from another jurisdiction would constitute as an offense against a domestic abuse victim under Mississippi law.

          (f)  "Department" means the Department of Public Safety.

     SECTION 3.  (1)  There is created within the Mississippi Department of Public Safety a registry of persistent domestic violence offenders.

     (2)  The department shall maintain the registry using information provided by clerks of court pursuant to this chapter and information available from the Mississippi Department of Corrections and local law enforcement agencies.

     (3)  The department shall make the registry available for public inquiry on the internet.

     SECTION 4.  (1)  The registry shall include the following information for each persistent domestic violence offender:

          (a)  Name;

          (b)  Date of birth;

          (c)  Date of conviction;

          (d)  County or counties of conviction; and

          (e)  A current photograph.

     (2)  When available, after reasonable inquiry, the clerk of the court of conviction shall provide the department with a copy of the offender's driver's license or other state or federal identification and any additional identifying data the department determines is necessary to accurately identify the offender and exclude innocent persons.

     (3)  The registry made available for public inquiry shall not include the offender's social security number, driver's license number, or any other state or federal identification number.

     SECTION 5.  (1)  If a person is convicted of an offense committed against a domestic abuse victim and has at least one (1) prior conviction for an offense committed against a domestic abuse victim, the court of conviction shall, upon proof of the prior conviction, order the defendant to register as a persistent domestic violence offender under this chapter.

     (2)  When a court of conviction orders registration under this chapter, the clerk of the court of conviction shall forward to the department a certified copy of the qualifying conviction and the defendant's date of birth within seven (7) days of the date of conviction.

     SECTION 6.  (1)  In addition to any other penalty imposed by law, a defendant required to register under this chapter shall be assessed a registration fee of Two Hundred Fifty Dollars ($250.00).

     (2)  The fee shall be paid to the clerk of the court of conviction, who shall:

          (a)  Deposit a sum equal to Fifty Dollars ($50.00) for the purpose of defraying administrative costs associated with processing and transmitting registration information under this chapter;

          (b)  Transfer a sum equal to Fifty Dollars ($50.00) to the Mississippi Department of Public Safety to be retained by the department for the purpose of defraying administrative costs associated with the establishment, maintenance, and enforcement of the registry and implementation of this chapter; and

          (c)  Transfer the remaining balance of the fee of One Hundred Fifty Dollars ($150.00) to the State Department of Health to be deposited into the Domestic Violence Fund, to be used exclusively for domestic violence prevention, intervention, and victim-support services.

     (3)  Funds transferred, deposited and retained under this section shall not revert to the State General Fund at the end of the fiscal year.  Any unexpended funds remaining at the close of a fiscal year shall be carried forward for the purposes authorized in this section.

     SECTION 7.  (1)  The Department shall remove the name and identifying information of a persistent domestic violence offender from the registry according to the following procedure:

          (a)  Five (5) years after the date of the most recent conviction if the offender has one (1) prior conviction;

          (b)  Seven (7) years after the date of the most recent conviction if the offender has two (2) prior convictions;

          (c)  Ten (10) years after the date of the most recent conviction if the offender has three (3) prior convictions; or

          (d)  Twenty (20) years after the date of the most recent conviction if the offender has four (4) or more prior convictions.

     (2)  If an offender has been convicted of a felony against a domestic violence victim, the offender shall not be removed from the registry.

     SECTION 8.  This chapter applies only to offenses committed on or after July 1, 2026.  Prior convictions used to establish eligibility for registration are not required to have occurred on or after July 1, 2026.

     SECTION 9.  Section 1 through 8 of this act shall be codified as a chapter within Title 45, Mississippi Code of 1972.

     SECTION 10.  This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2026.