Mississippi Embezzlement and Forgery Laws: Penalties (2026)

Mississippi has a separate crime named embezzlement. Under Miss. Code 97-23-19, a person who converts money or property entrusted to him "by virtue of his office, position, place, or employment" is guilty of embezzlement, generally a felony at $1,000 or more with a maximum of 5, 10 or 20 years depending on the value.

Public officers, fiduciaries and others entrusted with money face separate sections in Title 97, Chapter 11 (97-11-25 to 97-11-31) that apply at any value. Forgery is defined act by act in Title 97, Chapter 21 and punished on the value ladder in 97-21-33, and uttering a forged instrument carries the same penalty. For other states, see our guide to embezzlement and forgery laws by state.

Information last verified on 2026-10-18. This article has not been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

Jurisdiction scope: This article covers the Mississippi Code sections on embezzlement (97-23-19 to 97-23-27), fraud and embezzlement by public officers and others entrusted with money (97-11-25, 97-11-27, 97-11-29, 97-11-31, 27-105-345), the public-funds sentencing floor, public-office, employment and voting bars and the Public Funds Offender Registry (99-19-18, 99-19-35, 25-1-113, Laws 2023 SB 2420, Miss. Const. art. 4, s44 and art. 12, s241), the false bank report offense (81-1-101), exploitation of vulnerable persons (43-47-19, 11-7-165), the forgery chapter (97-21-1 to 97-21-61), the 2025 stolen-check offense in SB 2311, sentencing, probation and restitution rules (47-7-33, 99-19-81, 99-37-3) and the time limit for prosecution (99-1-5). It does not cover the full larceny value table (see Mississippi larceny and shoplifting laws), identity theft, scams and victim reporting, federal offenses or civil lawsuits beyond the one vulnerable-adult damages statute described below.

What is embezzlement in Mississippi?

Mississippi treats embezzlement as its own offense, separate from larceny. Section 97-23-19 provides:

"If any person shall embezzle or fraudulently secrete, conceal, or convert to his own use, or make way with, or secrete with intent to embezzle or convert to his own use, any goods, rights in action, money, or other valuable security, effects, or property of any kind or description which shall have come or been entrusted to his care or possession by virtue of his office, position, place, or employment, either in mass or otherwise, he shall be guilty of embezzlement."

The key element is entrustment: the property came into the person's care or possession because of an office, position, place or employment. The section reaches any person in that position, not only a particular job title.

Two related sections sit next to it:

• Unissued negotiable paper (97-23-21). Every "officer, clerk, agent, or other person mentioned in Section 97-23-19" who converts to his own use, "by putting the same in circulation, any evidence of debt negotiable by delivery, but not delivered or issued as a valid instrument," is guilty of embezzlement and punished as in 97-23-19.
• Receiving embezzled property (97-23-23). A person who buys or receives money or property "knowing the same to have been embezzled, taken or secreted contrary to law" suffers "the penalty provided in Section 97-17-70, for receiving stolen property."

Property held on deposit, for repair or in trust

Section 97-23-25 covers a person who "shall fraudulently appropriate personal property or money which has been delivered to him on deposit, or to be carried or repaired, or on any other contract or trust by which he was bound to deliver or return the thing received or its proceeds." The penalty is "imprisonment in the penitentiary not more than ten years, or be fined not more than one thousand dollars and imprisoned in the county jail not more than one year, or either." This section has no value ladder. Section 97-23-27 is a companion provision for borrowed or hired property kept beyond the right given by the contract.

How is embezzlement different from larceny?

Larceny is defined by a taking. Grand larceny under 97-17-41(1) applies to "taking and carrying away, feloniously, the personal property of another" worth $1,000 or more. Embezzlement under 97-23-19 starts with property that was lawfully entrusted to the person's care or possession by virtue of an office, position, place or employment, and then converted. The two offenses share a $1,000 felony line, but each has its own penalty ladder; see Mississippi larceny and shoplifting laws for the larceny tiers.

Is embezzlement a felony in Mississippi?

Generally yes, at $1,000 or more. Section 97-23-19 grades the offense by the value of the property:

• Under $1,000: misdemeanor embezzlement. The person "may be sentenced to a term of imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding six (6) months, or fined not more than One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00), or both if the court finds substantial and compelling reasons why the offender cannot be safely and effectively supervised in the community, is not amenable to community-based treatment or poses a significant risk to public safety. If such a finding is not made, the court shall suspend the sentence of imprisonment and impose a period of probation not exceeding one (1) year or a fine of not more than One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00) or both."
• Third or later offense under that tier, $500 or more. "Any person convicted of a third or subsequent offense under this subsection where the value of the property is not less than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00), shall be imprisoned in the Penitentiary for a term not exceeding three (3) years or fined an amount not exceeding Two Thousand Dollars ($2,000.00), or both."
• $1,000 or more but less than $5,000: felony embezzlement, up to 5 years in the custody of the Department of Corrections, a fine of up to $5,000, or both.
• $5,000 or more but less than $25,000: up to 10 years, a fine of up to $25,000, or both.
• $25,000 or more: up to 20 years, a fine of up to $25,000, or both.

These are statutory maximums ("not more than"). Section 97-23-19 contains no clause adding together the values of separate embezzlements. By contrast, grand larceny (97-17-41) and forgery (97-21-33(3)) each aggregate value taken "from a single victim."

Public officers, fiduciaries and public funds

Mississippi has several flat-penalty offenses for people entrusted with public or other people's money. None of them depends on a value threshold.

Fraud or embezzlement by officers, fiduciaries and agents (97-11-25)

Section 97-11-25 lists a wide range of people: any state, county, district, city, town or village officer, a notary public, "any other person holding any public office or employment, or any executor, administrator or guardian, or any trustee of an express trust, any master or commissioner or receiver, or any attorney at law or solicitor, or any bank or collecting agent, or other person engaged in like public employment, or any other person undertaking to act for others and intrusted by them with business of any kind, or with money."

The offense has two forms: a person who "shall unlawfully convert to his own use any money or other valuable thing which comes to his hands or possession by virtue of his office or employment," or who "shall not, when lawfully required to turn over such money or deliver such thing, immediately do so according to his legal obligation." The penalty is commitment to the Department of Corrections "for not more than twenty (20) years, or be fined not more than five thousand dollars ($5,000.00)."

Fraud or embezzlement in a public office (97-11-31)

"If any officer, or other person employed in any public office, shall commit any fraud or embezzlement therein, he shall be committed to the department of corrections for not more than ten (10) years, or be fined not more than five thousand dollars ($5,000.00), or both."

False public accounts and defrauding the government (97-11-29)

Section 97-11-29 reaches officers and their clerks, agents and employees who willfully and fraudulently falsify public accounts, endorse a warrant that is not genuine, lend public money, or "by willful act or omission of duty whatever, defraud, or attempt to defraud, the state, or any county, city, town or village of any moneys, security, or property." Such a person "shall, on conviction thereof, be guilty of embezzlement, and fined not less than double the amount or value of the moneys, security, stock or other property so embezzled, or committed to the department of corrections for not more than ten (10) years, or both."

Refusing to turn money or records over to a successor (97-11-27)

An officer or agent of the state, a county or a municipality who holds money, books, records or papers required to be delivered to a successor, and who "shall wilfully and not in good faith refuse or neglect, on demand, to so deliver the same," faces imprisonment in the penitentiary for "not more than ten years, or be fined not more than one thousand dollars and be imprisoned in the county jail not more than one year."

County officers profiting from county money (27-105-345)

The making of profit by a county treasurer, tax collector, school-board treasurer "or any officer whatever" out of county money in the officer's custody, "by loaning or otherwise using it, or depositing the same in any manner contrary to law," or moving it elsewhere than the law provides, "shall constitute a felony." The penalty is up to 2 years in the state penitentiary, a fine of up to $5,000, or both, and the officer "shall be liable on his official bond for all profits realized for such unlawful use of such funds."

Mandatory minimum for public-funds felonies (99-19-18)

"When any person is convicted of a felony or felonies in which public funds in the amount of Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00) or more were unlawfully taken, obtained or misappropriated, the sentence imposed by the court shall include a minimum term of imprisonment of one (1) year in the custody of the Department of Corrections." That minimum "shall not be reduced or suspended nor shall such person be eligible for probation or parole before the expiration of one (1) year of incarceration."

Office, employment, registry and voting consequences

• Public employment (25-1-113(2)). From July 1, 2014, the state and any county, municipality or other political subdivision "shall not employ or continue to employ a person who has been convicted or pled guilty in any court of this state, another state, or in federal court of any felony in which public funds were unlawfully taken, obtained or misappropriated in the abuse or misuse of the person's office or employment or money coming into the person's hands by virtue of the person's office or employment."
• Office of profit, trust or honor (99-19-35). "A person convicted of bribery, burglary, theft, arson, obtaining money or goods under false pretenses, perjury, forgery, embezzlement, or bigamy, shall not be allowed to practice medicine or dentistry, or be appointed to hold or perform the duties of any office of profit, trust, or honor, unless after full pardon for the same."
• Constitutional office bar (Miss. Const. art. 4, s44). Section 44(1) of the Mississippi Constitution provides that no person "shall be eligible to a seat in either house of the Legislature, or to any office of profit or trust, who shall have been convicted of bribery, perjury, or other infamous crime." Under Section 44(2), a person convicted after that subsection's ratification of any felony in federal court, or in another state of an offense that is a felony under Mississippi law, is not eligible "to hold any office of profit or trust in this state." Section 44(3) provides that the section does not disqualify a person who "has been pardoned for the offense."
• Public Funds Offender Registry (Laws 2023, SB 2420). A person convicted of a "registrable offense," which includes a crime chargeable under 97-11-25 through 97-11-31 and "any crime that involves the embezzlement or misappropriation of public funds as determined by the circuit court in its sentencing order upon conviction," is listed on a public online registry kept by the Department of Public Safety. For this purpose, a "conviction" includes a nonadjudication under 99-15-26.
• Registration and hiring bar. The offender must register "within thirty (30) business days of the date of judgment unless the offender is immediately confined or committed," and no offender is removed from the registry "unless and until all fines, penalties and restitution resulting from conviction have been paid." Since July 1, 2023, 25-1-113(3) bars the state and local governments from hiring anyone on the registry "for any position in accounting, or in a treasury or registrar office, or in any office where monies are collected or received directly from rate or fee payers."
• Voting (Miss. Const. art. 12, s241). The Secretary of State lists embezzlement and forgery among the disenfranchising crimes under Section 241 of the Mississippi Constitution, describing disenfranchising crimes as "felony convictions for which a person would lose the right to vote." Miss. Code 23-15-11 bars a person convicted of a disenfranchising crime from being a registered voter. Under art. 12, s253, the Legislature may restore the right to vote by a two-thirds vote of both houses.

When the State Auditor "shall have reason to believe that a public officer or employee has embezzled any public funds, he shall notify the governor and the proper district attorney, and shall attend the trial as a witness for the state, if necessary" (7-7-73).

Banks

The sections above reach bank employees directly. Section 97-11-25 names "any bank or collecting agent," and 97-23-19 applies to anyone entrusted with property by virtue of employment.

Title 81 adds an insider offense. Under 81-1-101, an officer, director, cashier, agent, clerk or stockholder of a bank other than a national bank who "willfully and knowingly subscribes to or makes any false report or any false statement or entry in the books of such bank," or who "knowingly subscribes or exhibits any false writing or paper with the intent to deceive any person as to the condition of such bank," faces a fine of up to $1,000, up to 3 years in the Penitentiary, or both.

Exploitation of a vulnerable person

Financial exploitation of a vulnerable person falls under the Vulnerable Persons Act. "Exploitation" means "the illegal or improper use of a vulnerable person or his resources for another's profit, advantage or unjust enrichment, with or without the consent of the vulnerable person, and may include actions taken pursuant to a power of attorney" (43-47-5). Who counts as a vulnerable person is defined in the same section.

Under 43-47-19(2)(b), a person who "willfully exploits a vulnerable person, where the value of the exploitation is less than Two Hundred Fifty Dollars ($250.00), shall be guilty of a misdemeanor" punishable by a fine of up to $5,000, up to one year in the county jail, or both. Where the value "is Two Hundred Fifty Dollars ($250.00) or more," it is a felony punishable by up to 10 years in the custody of the Department of Corrections. A third or later misdemeanor conviction under the section, for offenses committed within five years, is a felony carrying 1 to 5 years and a fine of $2,000 to $5,000 (43-47-19(5)).

On the civil side, 11-7-165(1) allows damages of "up to three (3) times the amount of the monetary damages or value of the property embezzled, converted or otherwise stolen" when a person took property worth $250 or more from a vulnerable adult by "conversion, embezzlement, extortion, theft or fraud without the owner's consent," or obtained consent "by intimidation, deception, undue influence or by misusing a position of trust or a confidential relationship with the owner." For warning signs and reporting, see our guide to elder financial exploitation.

Forgery and uttering

How the forgery chapter is built

Mississippi has no degrees of forgery and no single general definition. Instead, each section of Title 97, Chapter 21 declares a specific act to be forgery and points to the penalty schedule in 97-21-33. The broadest is 97-21-35, which applies to anyone who, "with the intent to injure or defraud, shall falsely make, alter, forge, or counterfeit" court process, pleadings, certificates, licenses, "or any instrument or writing being or purporting to be the act of another, by which any pecuniary demand or obligation shall be or purport to be created, increased, discharged, or diminished, or by which any right or property whatever shall be or purport to be transferred, conveyed, discharged, diminished, or in any manner affected, by which false making, forging, altering or counterfeiting any person may be affected, bound, or in any way injured in his person or property."

Two chapter-wide rules widen the reach:

• Signatures count as writings. "Every instrument, partly written and partly printed, or wholly printed, with a written signature thereto, and every signature of an individual, firm, or corporate body, or of any officer of such body, and every writing purporting to be such signature, shall be deemed a writing and a written instrument within the meaning of the provisions of this chapter" (97-21-5).
• Intent to defraud anyone. Where intent to defraud is required, "it shall be sufficient if such intent appear to defraud the United States, any state or territory, and body-corporate, county, city, town, or village, or any public officer in his official capacity, any copartnership, or any one of such partners, or any real person whatever" (97-21-27).

Other sections make it forgery to make an instrument in one's own name and pass it "under the pretense that it is the act of another who bears the same name" (97-21-29), to join parts of several genuine instruments (97-21-31), and to erase or destroy a writing with intent to defraud (97-21-21). Forgery of account books in public offices (97-21-1) or kept by corporations (97-21-3), certificates of acknowledgment of deeds (97-21-7), public securities and shares in public stock (97-21-9), corporate evidences of debt signed by a pretended officer (97-21-19), records of wills, judgments and court returns (97-21-45), state, court, county, city and corporate seals (97-21-47), railroad passenger tickets (97-21-39 to 97-21-43) and treasury warrants (97-21-61) each have their own section.

Uttering and possession with intent to utter

Passing a forged instrument carries the forger's penalty. Under 97-21-59, every person convicted "of having uttered or published as true, and with intent to defraud, any forged, altered, or counterfeit instrument, or any counterfeit gold or silver coin," knowing it to be forged, "shall suffer the punishment herein provided for forgery, pursuant to Section 97-21-33."

Possession is covered too. A person who has "any forged, altered or counterfeited negotiable note, bill, draft, or other evidence of debt," knowing it is forged, "with intention to utter the same as true or as false, or to cause the same to be uttered, with intent to injure or defraud, shall be guilty of forgery and shall be punished according to the schedule in Section 97-21-33" (97-21-37). Selling forged notes or checks knowing they are forged is a separate forgery section (97-21-49).

Forgery penalties (97-21-33)

Section 97-21-33(1) grades forgery by the amount of value involved:

• Under $1,000: up to 6 months in the county jail, a fine of up to $1,000, or both, if the court makes the same "substantial and compelling reasons" finding required for misdemeanor embezzlement. A person convicted "of a third or subsequent offense under this paragraph (a), where the value of the property is not less than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00), shall be punished by imprisonment in the Penitentiary for a term not exceeding three (3) years or by a fine not exceeding One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00), or both."
• $1,000 or more but less than $5,000: up to 5 years in the Penitentiary, a fine of up to $10,000, or both.
• $5,000 or more but less than $25,000: up to 10 years, a fine of up to $10,000, or both.
• $25,000 or more: up to 20 years, a fine of up to $10,000, or both.

"The total value of the forgery by the person from a single victim shall be aggregated in determining the gravity of the offense" (97-21-33(3)). The felony fine cap for forgery is $10,000 in every tier, while the embezzlement fine cap is $5,000 or $25,000 depending on the tier.

Counterfeit currency and check plates

Counterfeiting current or United States treasury notes (97-21-13), foreign currency (97-21-15), possessing counterfeit currency with intent to utter it (97-21-17) and engraving or possessing a bank-check plate (97-21-23) are punished on a separate felony schedule in 97-21-33(2) at any value: up to 5 years under $5,000, up to 10 years from $5,000 to under $25,000 and up to 20 years at $25,000 or more.

Since July 1, 2025, 97-21-23 also covers "using or having in his custody or possession check-printing software or hardware with the intent to produce, make, design, or otherwise utter a counterfeit promissory note, bill of exchange, draft, check, bank check, certificate of deposit, or other evidence of debt, treasury note or monetary instrument" (2025 SB 2311, Section 7).

Signing another person's name

Signing another person's name can be a crime under two different provisions. When it is done on an instrument with intent to defraud, the forgery sections above apply; 97-21-5 treats "every writing purporting to be" a person's signature as a written instrument.

Section 97-21-51 is a separate misdemeanor: "If any person shall wilfully and falsely, or fraudulently forge, sign, or otherwise use the name of another person to a telegram, petition or related communication or instrument of writing with intent to deceive, defraud, or for personal gain or benefit, or for the benefit of another person, without the express written approval of such person, he shall be guilty of a misdemeanor," punishable by up to 90 days in the county jail and a fine of up to $500, "or both in the discretion of the court."

If you are dealing with a forged or washed check as the victim, see our guide to mail theft and check washing.

Trademark labels and slugs

The forgery chapter also holds offenses about manufacturers' marks: forging a manufacturer's private stamp or label (97-21-53), possessing dies, plates or labels to imitate one (97-21-55) and selling goods bearing counterfeit labels (97-21-57). Possessing such a die, plate or label with intent to use or sell it to pass off goods "shall be guilty of a felony, and, upon conviction, be punished by imprisonment for not more than five (5) years and a fine of Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00)" (97-21-55(1)). Using slugs in coin-operated machines (97-21-11) is a misdemeanor.

Stolen checks and bad checks

SB 2311 (2025) created a new offense in Title 97 for the "theft or receipt of a stolen check or sight order": "Stealing an unsigned check, signed check, or sight order or, with knowledge that an unsigned check, signed check or sight order has been stolen, receiving the check or sight order with intent to use it, to sell it, or to transfer it to a person other than the person from whom the check or sight order was taken." The penalty is up to 5 years, a fine of up to $5,000, or both; "Upon a second or subsequent conviction or violation," it is "not less than one (1) year nor more than ten (10) years" with a possible fine of up to $20,000. Full restitution is mandatory. The act took effect July 1, 2025.

Bad checks are a separate fraud offense. Section 97-19-55(1)(a) makes it unlawful "with fraudulent intent" to make, draw, issue, utter or deliver a check "knowing at the time" that the maker "has not sufficient funds" on deposit to pay it in full.

Other statutes that use the word embezzle

Outside the embezzlement chapter, a few statutes use the word for specific kinds of funds:

• Perpetual-care cemetery trust funds (41-43-53(2)). Anyone who "embezzles or fraudulently or knowingly and willfully misapplies or converts perpetual care trust funds" faces a fine of up to $500 and up to one year in the county jail if the amount is under $1,000, and up to 10 years in the custody of the Department of Corrections if it is $1,000 or more.
• Railroad passenger tickets (97-25-9). The penalty is "imprisonment in the penitentiary not exceeding five years, or by fine not exceeding one thousand dollars."
• Credit union funds (81-13-71). Embezzlement of credit union funds is punishable under the general laws.

Mississippi embezzlement and forgery offenses at a glance

The embezzlement and forgery sections set their own maximum terms and fines rather than referring to lettered felony classes. For how Mississippi sorts felonies and misdemeanors generally, see Mississippi felony vs. misdemeanor sentences.

Probation, restitution and repeat offenders

The ranges in 97-23-19 and 97-21-33 are maximums. Under 47-7-33(1), a circuit or county court, "after conviction or a plea of guilty, except in a case where a death sentence or life imprisonment is the maximum penalty which may be imposed," may "suspend the imposition or execution of sentence, and place the defendant on probation," but "shall not suspend the execution of a sentence of imprisonment after the defendant shall have begun to serve such sentence." The public-funds floor in 99-19-18 is an exception that cannot be suspended.

Under the general restitution statute, restitution is in the court's discretion: when criminal activity has "resulted in pecuniary damages, in addition to any other sentence it may impose, the court may order that the defendant make restitution to the victim," and a justice court may not order more than $5,000 (99-37-3(1)). In deciding whether to order it, the court "shall take into account" the defendant's financial resources and the burden payment would impose (99-37-3(2)). The 2025 stolen-check offense is an exception: a person convicted of it "shall be ordered to make full restitution to the victim and any other person who has suffered a financial loss as a result of the offense" (SB 2311, Section 3(4)).

Prior felonies can lock in the maximum. Under 99-19-81, a person convicted of a felony "who shall have been convicted twice previously of any felony or federal crime upon charges separately brought and arising out of separate incidents at different times and who shall have been sentenced to separate terms of one (1) year or more in any state and/or federal penal institution" shall be sentenced to the maximum term for the felony "unless the court provides an explanation in its sentencing order setting forth the cause for deviating from the maximum sentence," and that sentence "shall not be reduced or suspended nor shall such person be eligible for parole or probation."

Time limits for prosecution

Section 99-1-5(1)(a) provides that "The passage of time shall never bar prosecution against any person for the offenses of" a list that includes "forgery, counterfeiting, robbery, larceny, rape, embezzlement, obtaining money or property under false pretenses or by fraud." For any offense not listed, 99-1-5(2) requires that prosecution be "commenced within two (2) years after the commission thereof." Section 99-1-5(1)(b) sets a five-year period for "felonious abuse of vulnerable persons, as described in Section 43-47-19," and 99-1-5(3) states that the section does not bar prosecution of a person who absconds, leaves the state or cannot be found or served. Civil filing deadlines are different; see the Mississippi statute of limitations guide.

Recent changes

• 2025: check-printing tools and stolen checks. SB 2311, approved by the Governor on March 12, 2025 and effective July 1, 2025, amended the bank-plate forgery section (97-21-23) to cover check-printing software or hardware used or held with intent to produce a counterfeit check or other instrument, and created the stolen-check offense described above.
• 2023: Public Funds Offender Registry. SB 2420, approved by the Governor on March 14, 2023 and effective July 1, 2023, created the registry described above and added the hiring bar in 25-1-113(3).
• 2026: time limits. SB 2338 (2026, approved March 19, 2026, effective on passage) amended 99-1-5 to move felonious assistance-program fraud out of the five-year period in subsection (1)(b) and give it a ten-year period in a new subsection (1)(f). The rule that the passage of time never bars prosecution for forgery, counterfeiting, larceny and embezzlement did not change.

Federal law separately reaches embezzlement from banks and federal programs and mail or wire fraud schemes; those offenses are covered on our embezzlement and forgery laws by state hub. If you were the target of a fraud scheme, our Mississippi scam and fraud laws guide explains where to report it.

Related pages

• Embezzlement and forgery laws by state
• Mississippi larceny and shoplifting laws
• Mississippi felony vs. misdemeanor sentences
• Mississippi scam and fraud laws
• Mississippi statute of limitations

This article provides general legal information about Mississippi law and is not legal advice. For advice about a specific situation, contact a lawyer licensed in Mississippi.

Last updated: 2026-10-18.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is embezzlement a felony in Mississippi?

Generally yes, at $1,000 or more (Miss. Code 97-23-19). Below $1,000 it is misdemeanor embezzlement, though a third or later offense involving $500 or more carries up to 3 years in the Penitentiary. Officers, fiduciaries and others covered by 97-11-25 face up to 20 years at any value.

What is the penalty for embezzlement in Mississippi?

Under 97-23-19, felony embezzlement carries up to 5 years and/or $5,000 from $1,000 to under $5,000, up to 10 years and/or $25,000 from $5,000 to under $25,000, and up to 20 years and/or $25,000 at $25,000 or more. These are maximums; courts may suspend a sentence and order probation under 47-7-33, except where a statute such as the public-funds minimum (99-19-18) or the habitual-offender rule (99-19-81) bars it.

What happens if a public official embezzles in Mississippi?

Fraud or embezzlement in a public office carries up to 10 years and/or $5,000 (97-11-31), and converting money received by virtue of office carries up to 20 years or a $5,000 fine (97-11-25), at any value. A felony involving $10,000 or more of public funds carries a one-year minimum that cannot be suspended (99-19-18), and any felony in which public funds were taken in the abuse of office or employment bars state and local government employment (25-1-113). A conviction for a crime chargeable under 97-11-25 through 97-11-31, or other public-funds embezzlement named in the sentencing order, also places the person on the Public Funds Offender Registry created in 2023.

How is embezzlement different from larceny in Mississippi?

Larceny under 97-17-41 is the felonious taking and carrying away of another's personal property. Embezzlement under 97-23-19 covers property that came into a person's care or possession by virtue of an office, position, place or employment and was then converted.

Is forgery a felony in Mississippi?

Forgery is a felony when the value involved is $1,000 or more, with a maximum of 5, 10 or 20 years by value and a fine of up to $10,000 (97-21-33). Under $1,000 it is a misdemeanor, but a third or later offense of $500 or more carries up to 3 years in the Penitentiary. Counterfeiting currency and check plates are felonies at any value.

Is uttering a forged check a crime in Mississippi?

Yes. Under 97-21-59, uttering or publishing a forged instrument as true, knowing it is forged and with intent to defraud, carries the same punishment as forgery under 97-21-33.

Is there a statute of limitations for embezzlement in Mississippi?

No. Miss. Code 99-1-5(1)(a) states that the passage of time never bars prosecution for embezzlement, forgery, counterfeiting, larceny, or obtaining money or property under false pretenses or by fraud.