Mississippi Code
Miss. Code Ann. § 99-19-57 (2026)
Execution of death sentence; suspension of sentence when offender is pregnant or a person with mental illness
✓ current as of July 2026
- (1) If the Commissioner of Corrections at any time is satisfied that any female offender in his custody under sentence of death is pregnant, he shall summon a physician to inquire into the pregnancy. The commissioner shall summons and swear all necessary witnesses and the commissioner after full examination shall certify under his hand what the truth may be in relation to the alleged pregnancy, and in case the offender is found to be pregnant, the commissioner shall immediately transmit his findings to the Governor, and the Governor shall suspend the execution of the sentence until he is satisfied that the offender is not or is no longer pregnant. The Governor shall then order, by his warrant to the commissioner, the execution of the offender on a day to be appointed by the Governor according to the sentence and judgment of the court.
- (2)
- (a) If it is believed that an offender under sentence of death has become mentally ill since the judgment of the court, the following shall be the exclusive procedural and substantive procedure. The offender, or a person acting as his next friend, or the Commissioner of Corrections may file an appropriate application seeking post-conviction relief with the Mississippi Supreme Court. If it is found that the offender is a person with mental illness, as defined in this subsection, the court shall suspend the execution of the sentence. The offender shall then be committed to the forensic unit of the Mississippi State Hospital at Whitfield. The order of commitment shall require that the offender be examined and a written report be furnished to the court at that time and every month thereafter, stating whether there is a substantial probability that the offender will become sane under this subsection within the foreseeable future and whether progress is being made toward that goal. If at any time during the commitment, the appropriate official at the state hospital considers the offender to be sane under this subsection, the official shall promptly notify the court to that effect in writing and place the offender in the custody of the Commissioner of Corrections. The court then shall conduct a hearing on the sanity of the offender. The finding of the circuit court is a final order appealable under the terms and conditions of the Mississippi Uniform Post-Conviction Collateral Relief Act.
- (b) For the purposes of this subsection, a person shall be deemed to be a person with mental illness if the court finds that the offender does not have sufficient intelligence to understand the nature of the proceedings against him, what he was tried for, the purpose of his punishment, the impending fate that awaits him, and a sufficient understanding to know any fact that might exist that would make his punishment unjust or unlawful and the intelligence requisite to convey that information to his attorneys or the court.
Codes, Hutchinson's 1848, ch. 64, art. 12, Title 2(15-21); 1857, ch. 64, art. 326; 1871, § 2819; 1880, § 3094; 1892, § 1450; 1906, § 1523; Hemingway's 1917, § 1285; 1930, § 1310; 1942, § 2558; Laws, 1926, ch. 186; Laws, 1984, ch. 448, § 5; Laws, 2008, ch. 442, § 39, eff. 7/1/2008.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 27
cases (1 in the last 5 years), 1983–2023 · leading case: Ford v. Wainwright, 477 U.S. 399 (1986).
Ford v. Wainwright, 477 U.S. 399 (1986). “1985); Miss. Code Ann. § 99-19-57 (2) (Supp. 1985); Mo.”
Van Tran v. State, 6 S.W.3d 257 (Tenn. 1999). “Code, Correctional Services § 3-904(a) (1999); Miss.Code Ann. § 99-19-57 (1994); Mo.Rev.”
Billiot v. State, 655 So. 2d 1 (Miss. 1995). “The court denied Billiot's Motion, finding him competent to be executed pursuant to Miss. Code Ann. § 99-19-57 (2)(b), and the United States Supreme Court decision, Ford v.”
Billiot v. State, 478 So. 2d 1043 (Miss. 1985). “The present application in part asks that execution of the sentence of death be stayed on the grounds that James E. Billiot is presently insane.”
State v. Harris, 789 P.2d 60 (Wash. 1990). “, concurring) (citing Miss. Code Ann. § 99-19-57 (2)(b) (Supp. 1985); Mo.”
Colleen Mary Rohan, Ex Rel. Oscar Gates v. Jeanne Woodford, Warden, 334 F.3d 803 (9th Cir. 2003). “, Miss.Code Ann. § 99-19-57(2)(b); Fisher v.”
Edward Earl Johnson v. Donald Cabana, Acting Comm'r, Mississippi Dep't of Corr., 818 F.2d 333 (5th Cir. 1987). “Miss.Code Ann. § 99-19-57(2) (Supp.1986).”
Neal v. State, 687 So. 2d 1180 (Miss. 1996). “1995), states: For the purposes of this subsection, a person shall be deemed insane if the court finds the convict does not have sufficient intelligence to understand the nature of the proceedings against him, what he was tried for, the purpose of his punishment, the impending…”
Billiot v. Epps, 671 F. Supp. 2d 840 (S.D. Miss. 2009). “That court granted Billiot’s request for an evidentiary hearing on his competency allegations, citing both Ford and Miss. Code Ann. § 99-19-57 (2)(l972 & Supp.”
In Re Heidnik, 720 A.2d 1016 (Pa. 1998). “811 (1997)(counsel for prisoner may move for stay of execution and hearing in court of circuit where execution is to take place); Miss. Code Ann. § 99-19-57 (2)(a)(1997)(convict, or a person acting as his next friend, or commissioner of corrections may file application); § 552.”
State v. Perry, 610 So. 2d 746 (La. 1992). “1992); Miss.Code Ann. § 99-19-57 (Supp.1985); Mo.”
Jimmy Lee Gray v. Eddie Lucas & the State of Mississippi, 710 F.2d 1048 (5th Cir. 1983). “381 (1962). Further, as these sources show, it has at most been intimated, but never held, that a person sentenced to die has a right protected by the federal constitution that protects him against execution because of present insanity 3 — an issue that we must face here.”
— Miss. Code Ann. § 99-19-57(2) — 3 cases
Panetti v. Dretke, 448 F.3d 815 (5th Cir. 2006).
Edward Earl Johnson v. Donald Cabana, Acting Comm'r, Mississippi Dep't of Corr., 818 F.2d 333 (5th Cir. 1987). “Miss.Code Ann. § 99-19-57(2) (Supp.1986).”
Billiot v. Epps, 671 F. Supp. 2d 840 (S.D. Miss. 2009). “That court granted Billiot’s request for an evidentiary hearing on his competency allegations, citing both Ford and Miss. Code Ann. § 99-19-57 (2)(l972 & Supp.”
— Miss. Code Ann. § 99-19-57(2)(a) — 2 cases
Edwin Turner v. Christopher Epps, Comm'r, Et, 460 F. App'x 322 (5th Cir. 2012).
Robert Simon, Jr. v. Christopher Epps, Commissione, 463 F. App'x 339 (5th Cir. 2012).
— Miss. Code Ann. § 99-19-57(2)(b) — 5 cases
Van Tran v. State, 6 S.W.3d 257 (Tenn. 1999). “Code, Correctional Services § 3-904(a) (1999); Miss.Code Ann. § 99-19-57 (1994); Mo.Rev.”
Colleen Mary Rohan, Ex Rel. Oscar Gates v. Jeanne Woodford, Warden, 334 F.3d 803 (9th Cir. 2003). “, Miss.Code Ann. § 99-19-57(2)(b); Fisher v.”
Edward Earl Johnson v. Donald Cabana, Acting Comm'r, Mississippi Dep't of Corr., 818 F.2d 333 (5th Cir. 1987). “Miss.Code Ann. § 99-19-57(2) (Supp.1986).”
Billiot v. Epps, 671 F. Supp. 2d 840 (S.D. Miss. 2009). “That court granted Billiot’s request for an evidentiary hearing on his competency allegations, citing both Ford and Miss. Code Ann. § 99-19-57 (2)(l972 & Supp.”
Provenzano v. State, 760 So. 2d 137 (Fla. 2000).
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