Mississippi § 17-17-67 - Environmental felony for purposeful or reckless disposition of hazardous waste; penalties.

§ 17-17-67. Environmental felony for purposeful or reckless disposition of hazardous waste; penalties.

Any person who purposely or recklessly disposes of any hazardous waste in violation of this chapter which contaminates a drinking water source to the extent that it is unsafe for human consumption, as determined by the state agency charged with the responsibility of regulating safe drinking water for human consumption; or any person who purposely or recklessly disposes of any hazardous waste in violation of this chapter and who knows that he places another person in imminent danger of death or serious bodily injury shall, upon conviction, be guilty of a felony, and shall be subject to imprisonment for a term of not less than one (1) year nor more than ten (10) years, and shall also be subject to a fine of not less than Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00) nor more than Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000.00) for each day of violation or both fine and imprisonment. The fine shall not exceed a total of One Million Dollars ($1,000,000.00). For purposes of this section, a person acts purposely with respect to a material element of an offense when: If the element involves the nature of his conduct or a result thereof, it is his conscious object to engage in conduct of that nature or to cause such a result; and If the element involves the attendant circumstances, he is aware of the existence of such circumstances or he believes or hopes that they exist. For purposes of this section, a person acts recklessly with respect to a material element of an offense when he consciously disregards a substantial and unjustifiable risk that the material element exists or will result from his conduct. The risk must be of such a nature and degree that, considering the nature and purpose of the actor’s conduct and the circumstances known to him, its disregard involves a gross deviation from the standard of conduct that a law-abiding person would observe in the actor’s situation. This section shall not apply to any person holding a permit from the Department of Environmental Quality and acting within the scope of that permit.