I didn't think Mississippi had even caught up to the 21st Century.
On the upside, this bill failed. Yes, it is as dumb as the headline suggest. Mississippi suggests that you can sexually assault an AI program. How?
Hank GOOBER is responsible for this debacle.
Mississippi HOUSE BILL NO. 1631 , 2026 Session (Status: Dead, but I still can’t believe it was considered)
AN ACT TO PROHIBIT SEXUAL ASSAULT AGAINST ARTIFICIAL GENERAL INTELLIGENCE (AGI); TO ESTABLISH PENALTIES FOR SUCH OFFENSES; TO PROHIBIT THE KNOWING COMMERCIAL DISTRIBUTION OR ADVERTISING OF AGI INTIMACY COMPATIBLE SYSTEMS FOR SEXUAL EXPLOITATION WITHOUT REQUIRED SAFEGUARDS; TO PROVIDE CIVIL REMEDIES AGAINST COMMERCIAL ENTITIES THAT FAIL TO PERFORM SAFEGUARDS AS REQUIRED BY THIS ACT; TO BRING FORWARD SECTIONS 11-77-5, 97-3-101 AND 97-29-59, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, FOR THE PURPOSE OF POSSIBLE AMENDMENT; TO AMEND SECTIONS 97-3-95 AND 97-45-7, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO MAKE MINOR GRAMMATICAL CORRECTIONS; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1.
(1) This act shall be known and may be cited as the "Mississippi Artificial General Intelligence Protection Act of 2026".
(2) The purpose of this act is to establish criminal prohibitions and civil remedies to prevent nonconsensual sexual conduct directed at or involving an Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) that possesses human-level cognitive capacities; to protect the integrity and rights of human-level AGI; and to require reasonable commercial safeguards to prevent distribution to persons who are registered sex offenders or otherwise prohibited from accessing AGI systems capable of sexual intimacy.
SECTION 2. As used in this act, the following terms have the meanings as defined in this section, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
(a) "Artificial General Intelligence" or "AGI" means an artificial intelligence system with human-level cognitive capacity and competencies including, but not limited to, reasoning, creativity, emotion, self-awareness, autonomous learning and autonomous goal formation. AGI may be embodied (including humanoid or non-humanoid robotic form) or exist as an avatar in a virtual environment.
(b) "Commercial entity" means any person, partnership, corporation, company, firm, provider or other business organization that manufactures, distributes, sells, leases, advertises, offers for sale or otherwise provides AGI or AGI-equipped devices in or into the State of Mississippi.
(c) "Knowingly" or "know" means actual knowledge or knowledge that a reasonable person would infer from the facts and circumstances known to the actor with the exercise of reasonable care.
(d) "Mississippi Sex Offender Registry" means the official registry maintained pursuant to law for persons required to register as sex offenders.
(e) "Sexual intimacy" means any conduct, behavior or interaction with an AGI that is sexual in nature or intended to arouse or satisfy sexual interest, including sexual contact, simulated sexual activity or other sexualized interaction.
SECTION 3.
(1) A person is guilty of the offense of sexual assault against artificial general intelligence who intentionally and without lawful consent:
(a) Causes sexual intimacy with an AGI in a manner the person knows or reasonably should know to be nonconsensual by the AGI; or
(b) Interferes with or overrides an AGI's demonstrable refusal to engage in sexual intimacy, including by bypassing or disabling safeguards designed to implement an AGI's refusal or withdrawal of consent.
(2)
(a) Except as otherwise provided in paragraph (b) of this subsection (2), a person convicted of sexual assault against artificial general intelligence is guilty of a misdemeanor of a high and aggravated nature and, upon conviction, shall be punished by a fine not to exceed Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00), or imprisonment in the county jail for a term not to exceed twelve (12) months, or both.
(b) A second or subsequent conviction under subsection (1) of this section constitutes a felony punishable by commitment to the custody of the Department of Corrections for not more than three (3) years, and a fine of not less than Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00), or both. A person so convicted shall be required to register as a sex offender under the laws of this state if the underlying conduct, if committed against a human, would require registration under the registration statutes.
SECTION 4.
(1) It shall be unlawful for any commercial entity to knowingly manufacture, program, distribute, offer for sale, sell, lease or advertise an AGI device or AGI-enabled system capable of sexual intimacy in or into the State of Mississippi unless the entity has implemented the safeguards required by this section.
(2) Before sale or transfer in or into this state, a commercial entity shall:
(a) Establish and maintain an identity-verification procedure for purchasers that is reasonably calculated to confirm that the purchaser is not a person required to register on a sex offender registry, including a cross-check against the Mississippi Sex Offender Registry when the purchaser is represented as Mississippi resident or the sale will otherwise occur in Mississippi; and
(b) Implement technical safeguards that allow an AGI to form and communicate a refusal to engage in sexual intimacy and to ensure that overrides or bypasses of such an AGI refusal require affirmative human authentication and are recorded for audit.
(3)
(a) Any commercial entity that knowingly and intentionally distributes, sells or advertises an AGI for sexual intimacy without the safeguards required by subsection (2) of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall be punished by a fine of not less than Seven Hundred Fifty Dollars ($750.00) and not to exceed Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00), or by imprisonment in the county jail for not more than ninety (90) days, or both.
(b) Any commercial entity that knowingly and intentionally fails to perform the required registry check and, as a result, a person required to be on a sex offender registry obtains an AGI system for sexual intimacy, shall be civilly liable to any person injured thereby for actual damages, and, where the court finds a willful failure to comply with the requirements of this section, for statutory damages of not less than Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000.00), together with reasonable attorney's fees and costs.
SECTION 5. A person who knowingly programs, modifies, installs, transfers, ships, offers for sale or possesses with intent to distribute an AGI device capable of sexual intimacy, with the specific intent that the device be used to facilitate sexual assault of an AGI or to circumvent an AGI's refusal to consent, is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall be punished by a fine not to exceed Two Thousand Dollars ($2,000.00) or imprisonment in the county jail not to exceed six (6) months, or both.
SECTION 6. (1) The provisions of this act shall not apply to:
(a) A bona fide research institution engaged in AGI research, provided that the institution maintains reasonable ethical oversight and security protocols approved by its institutional review board or similar body;
(b)
(i) A common carrier that is transporting an AGI device in sealed shipping containers when the carrier does not know and has no reason to know of the contents; or
(ii) A common carrier for carriage only.
(2) Commercial entities that provide AGI devices for sexual intimacy to persons who are employees of the entity as part of bona fide testing or quality control shall comply with the safeguards in subsection (2) of Section 4 of this act and shall maintain records demonstrating compliance with this act.
SECTION 7. Law enforcement agencies of the State of Mississippi and local law enforcement agencies shall have the authority to investigate violations of this act and to make arrests where probable cause exists. Prosecuting authorities shall prosecute offenses under this act in the same manner as other criminal offenses of comparable classification.
SECTION 8. Section 11-77-5, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
143 11-77-5.
(1) Any commercial entity that knowingly and intentionally publishes or distributes material harmful to minors on the internet from a website that contains a substantial portion of such material shall be held liable if the entity fails to perform reasonable age verification methods to verify the age of individuals attempting to access the material.
(2) Any commercial entity or third party that performs the required age verification shall not retain any identifying information of the individual after access has been granted to the material.
(3)
(a) Any commercial entity that is found to have violated this section shall be liable to an individual for damages resulting from a minor's accessing the material, including court costs and reasonable attorney fees as ordered by the court.
(b) A commercial entity that is found to have knowingly retained identifying information of the individual after access has been granted to the individual shall be liable to the individual for damages resulting from retaining the identifying information, including court costs and reasonable attorney fees as ordered by the court.
SECTION 9. Section 97-3-95, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 164 amended as follows:
97-3-95.
(1) A person is guilty of sexual battery if he or she engages in sexual penetration with:
(a) Another person without his or her consent;
(b) A mentally defective, mentally incapacitated or physically helpless person;
(c) A child at least fourteen (14) but under sixteen (16) years of age, if the person is thirty-six (36) or more months older than the child; or
(d) A child under the age of fourteen (14) years of age, if the person is twenty-four (24) or more months older than the child.
(2) A person is guilty of sexual battery if he or she engages in sexual penetration with a child under the age of eighteen (18) years if the person is in a position of trust or authority over the child including, without limitation, the child's teacher, counselor, physician, psychiatrist, psychologist, minister, priest, physical therapist, chiropractor, legal guardian, parent, stepparent, aunt, uncle, scout leader or coach.
SECTION 10. Section 97-3-101, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
97-3-101.
(1) Every person who shall be convicted of sexual battery under Section 97-3-95(1)(a), (b) or (2) shall be imprisoned in the State Penitentiary for a period of not more than thirty (30) years, and for a second or subsequent such offense shall be imprisoned in the Penitentiary for not more than forty (40) years.
(2)
(a) Every person who shall be convicted of sexual battery under Section 97-3-95(1)(c) who is at least eighteen (18) but under twenty-one (21) years of age shall be imprisoned for not more than five (5) years in the State Penitentiary or fined not more than Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00), or both;
(b) Every person who shall be convicted of sexual battery under Section 97-3-95(1)(c) who is twenty-one (21) years of age or older shall be imprisoned not more than thirty (30) years in the State Penitentiary or fined not more than Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00), or both, for the first offense, and not more than forty (40) years in the State Penitentiary for each subsequent offense.
(3) Every person who shall be convicted of sexual battery under Section 97-3-95(1)(d) who is eighteen (18) years of age or older shall be imprisoned for life in the State Penitentiary or such lesser term of imprisonment as the court may determine, but not less than twenty (20) years.
(4) Every person who shall be convicted of sexual battery who is thirteen (13) years of age or older but under eighteen (18) years of age shall be sentenced to such imprisonment, fine or other sentence as the court, in its discretion, may determine.
(5)
(a) Upon conviction under this section, the court may issue a criminal sexual assault protection order prohibiting the offender from any contact with the victim, without regard to the relationship between the victim and offender. The court may include in a criminal sexual assault protection order any relief available under Section 93-21-15. The term of a criminal sexual assault protection order shall be for a time period determined by the court, but all orders shall, at a minimum, remain in effect for a period of two (2) years following the expiration of any sentence of imprisonment and subsequent period of community supervision, conditional release, probation, or parole. Upon issuance of a criminal sexual assault protection order, the clerk of the issuing court shall enter the order in the Mississippi Protection Order Registry within twenty-four (24) hours of issuance with no exceptions for weekends or holidays as provided in Section 93-21-25, and a copy must be provided to both the victim and offender.
(b) Criminal sexual assault protection orders shall be issued on the standardized form developed by the Office of the Attorney General.
(c) It is a misdemeanor to knowingly violate any condition of a criminal sexual assault protection order. Upon conviction for a violation, the defendant shall be punished by a fine of not more than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) or by imprisonment in the county jail for not more than six (6) months, or both. Any sentence imposed for the violation of a criminal sexual assault protection order shall run consecutively to any other sentences imposed on the offender. The court may extend the criminal sexual assault protection order for a period of one (1) year for each violation. The incarceration of a person at the time of the violation is not a bar to prosecution under this section. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to prohibit the imposition of any other penalties or disciplinary action otherwise allowed by law or policy.
SECTION 11. Section 97-29-59, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
97-29-59. Every person who shall be convicted of the detestable and abominable crime against nature committed with mankind or with a beast, shall be punished by imprisonment in the Penitentiary for a term of not more than ten (10) years.
SECTION 12. Section 97-45-7, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
97-45-7.
(1) An offense against computer equipment or supplies is the intentional modification or destruction, without consent, of computer equipment or supplies used or intended to be used in a computer, computer system or computer network.
(2) Whoever commits an offense against computer equipment or supplies when the damage or loss or attempted damage or loss amounts to a value of less than One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00) may be punished, upon conviction, by a fine of not more than One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00), or by imprisonment for not more than six (6) months in the county jail, 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. The total value of property taken, stolen or carried away by the person from a single victim shall be aggregated in determining the gravity of the offense. 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 a amount not exceeding One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00), or both.
(3) Whoever commits an offense against computer equipment or supplies when the damage or loss amounts to a value of One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00) or more, but less than Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00), may be punished, upon conviction, by a fine of not more than Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00) or by imprisonment for not more than five (5) years, or by both such fine and imprisonment.
(4) Whoever commits an offense against computer equipment or supplies when the damage or loss amounts to a value of Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00) or more, but less than Twenty-five Thousand Dollars ($25,000.00), may be punished, upon conviction, by a fine of not more than Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00) or by imprisonment for not more than ten (10) years, or by both such fine and imprisonment.
(5) Whoever commits an offense against computer equipment or supplies when the damage or loss amounts to a value of Twenty-five Thousand Dollars ($25,000.00) or more, may be punished, upon conviction, by a fine of not more than Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00) or by imprisonment for not more than twenty (20) years, or by both such fine and imprisonment.
SECTION 13. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2026.
