Mississippi Tobacco 21 Age Restrictions Statute

It shall be unlawful for any person, or retailer, to sell, barter, deliver or give tobacco products to any individual under twenty-one (21) years of age unless the individual under twenty-one (21) years of age holds a retailer's license to sell tobacco under Section 27-69-1 et seq. It shall be an absolute affirmative defense that the person selling, bartering, delivering or giving tobacco products over the counter in a retail establishment to an individual under twenty-one (21) years of age in violation of this article had requested and examined a government-issued photographic identification from such person establishing his age as at least twenty-one (21) years prior to selling such person a tobacco product. The failure of a seller, barterer, deliverer or giver of tobacco products over the counter in a retail establishment to request and examine photographic identification from a person under twenty-one (21) years of age prior to the sale of a tobacco product to such person if the individual is not known to the seller, barterer, deliverer or giver of the tobacco product to be over the age of twenty-one (21) years, shall be construed against the seller, barterer, deliverer or giver and form a conclusive basis for the seller's violation of this section.