Mississippi Advisory Opinions July 28, 1994: AGO 94-0424 (July 28, 1994)

Advisory Opinion Text

Jeffrey Holliman, Esquire

Attorney for Forrest County Board of Supervisors

Post Office Box 1310

Hattiesburg, Mississippi 39403

RE: ARMED LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS VOTING

Dear Mr. Holliman:

Attorney General Mike Moore has received your letter of request and has assigned it to me for research and reply. Your letter states:

“The Forrest County Election Commissioners and Sheriff request your official opinion concerning on-duty law enforcement officers entering the polling place to vote while in possession of their issued firearms. The Election Commissioners report that they have been told at seminars on election laws that no one may enter the polling place to vote while armed, including law enforcement officers. Some law enforcement officers in the past have been denied entry to the polling place unless they disarmed, and some have refused to disarm and forfeited their opportunity to vote.

Please advise (1) whether Mississippi law or Federal law expressly prohibit a law enforcement officer from entering a polling place to vote while in possession of his issued firearm, and (2) whether the Election Commission or poll workers may prohibit a law enforcement officer from entering the polling place while in possession of his issued firearm?

Mississippi Code Sections 23-15-895 and 97-13-29 concerned armed men at a polling place, but don't appear to specifically address the situation. Your opinion on this issue will be appreciated.”

Mississippi Code Annotated § 23-15-895 (Revised 1990) provides in part:

“. . . . It shall be unlawful for any candidate or a representative named by him in writing, to appear at any polling place while armed or uniformed, nor shall he display any badge or credentials except as may be issued by the manager of the polling place.”

Section 97-13-29 provides:

“It shall not be lawful for any military officer or other persons to order, bring, or keep any troops of armed men at any place within a mile of the place where any general or special election is held, unless it be for the purpose of quelling a riot or insurrection, in the manner provided by law, or for the purpose of defense in time of war; and whoever shall violate the provisions of this section shall, on conviction, be punished by imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding one year, or by fine not less than five hundred dollars, or both; and if the offense shall be committed with intent to influence such election, the person convicted thereof shall be punished by imprisonment in the penitentiary for a term not exceeding two years.”

In response to your first question, it is the opinion of this office that neither the prohibitions of the above quoted statutes nor any other State statute make it illegal for a uniformed and/or armed law enforcement officer to enter his polling place for the purpose of casting his vote. A law enforcement officer who is a candidate or who has been appointed to act as a pollwatcher may not act as such while in uniform or armed.

In the past there have been complaints against the practice of uniformed and/or armed law enforcement officers voting on the basis that some voters perceive it as creating an intimidating atmosphere. There have been some suggestions that, to avoid such perceptions, the manager/bailiff may request that law enforcement officers secure their weapons in their vehicles or elsewhere before entering the polling place. However, as indicated above, we are not aware of any statutory requirement that they do so. Therefore, in response to your second question, it is our opinion that an armed or uniformed law enforcement officer may not be denied entry to a polling place for the sole purpose of casting his vote.

Sincerely,

Mike Moore Attorney General

Phil Carter Assistant Attorney General.