A suspended execution of sentence, or SES, means the judge gives you a sentence and then holds it back. You go on probation instead. Say the judge hands down 5 years. You do not serve those 5 years while probation is going well. If your probation is revoked, you serve them.
People miss that last sentence, and it is the one that matters. With any plea offer, the first question is which of these two it is.
Missouri courts use two. SIS and SES sound almost the same. They are not. Choosing the wrong one can follow you for the rest of your life. If you are weighing an offer right now, that is work for a criminal defense lawyer in Kansas City, not a decision to make alone at the courthouse.
What a suspended execution of sentence (SES) means
With an SES, three things happen in order:
- You plead guilty, or a judge or jury finds you guilty.
- The judge says your sentence out loud. Two years, five years, whatever it is.
- The judge suspends that sentence and puts you on probation.
You walk out. You do not serve the time, as long as probation goes well.
But you have a conviction. It happened the moment the judge pronounced the sentence. It goes on your record, and it shows up on background checks. An SES is not a second chance at a clean record. It is a chance to stay out of jail.
People hear “suspended” and think the case goes away. It does not.
What a suspended imposition of sentence (SIS) means
With an SIS, the judge stops one step earlier.
You still plead guilty or are found guilty. But the judge never says a sentence at all. No number. Nothing is imposed. You go on probation.
Finish probation and no conviction is entered. The case closes without one.
An SIS is worth more than an SES to most people. Prosecutors know that, which is why they do not hand them out freely.
SIS vs SES: the difference that decides it
| SIS | SES | |
|---|---|---|
| Does the judge say a sentence? | No | Yes |
| Is it a conviction? | No, if you finish probation | Yes, right away |
| Public on a background check? | No, once probation is done | Yes |
| If probation is revoked | Judge picks a sentence then, from the full range | You serve the sentence already given |
| Can you say “no conviction” on a job form? | Usually yes, once complete | No |
Read the revocation row twice. It cuts both ways.
An SES caps your risk. You already know the worst case, because the judge already said it. An SIS leaves the number open. If your probation is revoked on an SIS, the judge sentences you then. It can be anything in the range for that charge. On a felony that range can be long.
So the better deal on paper is not automatically the better deal for you – it depends on the charge and your odds of finishing probation.
An SIS is not the right answer for everyone. It is not for you if you are likely to pick up a new charge during probation. On an SIS the sentence is still open. A revocation then exposes you to the full range for the offense. On a felony that can be far longer than the number an SES would have locked in.
How long does probation last? Under Section 559.016, a felony term runs 1 to 5 years and a misdemeanor term 6 months to 2 years. The judge picks the exact term. It can end sooner: a judge may discharge you from probation at any time, with no minimum served first, if your conduct and the interests of justice support it, under Section 559.036. Many people on state-supervised probation also earn 30 days off for each full month with no violation, under Section 217.703 – but that credit is not automatic. You need three things: probation and parole division supervision, no lifetime-supervision status, and a qualifying offense – a class D or E felony, or any charge under chapter 579, Missouri’s controlled-substance chapter. Some offenses are excluded outright even if you comply: second-degree involuntary manslaughter, second-degree domestic assault, and any chapter 571 weapons felony. A chapter 571 felony can still qualify if the sentencing court reviews what happened and finds you eligible anyway.
What the law actually says
Both options come from the same place: Section 557.011 of the Missouri Revised Statutes. For a felony or misdemeanor, it gives a judge five choices: imprisonment under chapter 558, a fine under chapter 560, an SIS, an SES, or a period of detention as a condition of probation under Section 559.026. That detention starts at 48 hours. For a misdemeanor it can run up to 30 days or the maximum term, whichever is shorter. For a felony it can run up to 120 days. Either way, it is served in an appropriate local institution. An infraction only gets three of those – a fine, an SIS or an SES, never imprisonment. An organization gets a fourth option on top of its three: “any special sentence or sanction authorized by law.”
Almost nobody writing about SIS and SES names the statute. Both are simply items on that one list of what a judge is allowed to do.
What happens if your probation is revoked
Revocation is where SIS and SES split hardest, because the two carry different worst cases.
On an SES, the sentence is already there. Revocation can mean you go and serve it.
On an SIS, there is no sentence yet, so the judge sentences you at that point, anywhere in the range.
Either way, revocation is not automatic. There is a hearing. You can be represented at it, and you should be.
A middle path exists that many people have never heard of. Section 559.115 creates it. A Missouri judge can send someone to the Department of Corrections, or DOC, for a 120-day program. The judge can then bring them back and release them on probation. Many lawyers and older articles call it shock incarceration, or the 120-day callback.
Section 559.115 was amended twice in 2026, and its current text does not use the words “shock” or “general population” anywhere – the two placements it actually names are a “structured cognitive behavioral intervention program” or an “institutional treatment program,” the drug-treatment track. Older sources describing “shock incarceration” may not reflect this current wording. The DOC picks which one, at its sole discretion, based on its own assessment and available bed space – not the judge and not you. Only the circuit court, on its own motion, can grant probation this way, and only within 120 days of the day you arrived at the DOC – not after. The court must follow the DOC’s recommendation unless it finds probation is not appropriate. If it rejects that recommendation, it must hold a hearing within 90 to 120 days of your delivery to the DOC. At the end, the judge decides whether to release you on probation.
The same section also blocks probation or parole entirely while a case is on appeal – from the moment the trial transcript is filed until the appellate court rules. The 120-day program is not a cure, and it is not available in every case. Missouri bars probation entirely for some crimes under this same section – second-degree murder, rape offenses, child molestation, and a predatory sexual offender finding are named specifically. But where it applies, it exists, it is written into Missouri law, and in the right case it is the difference between four months and four years.
If your case is on the Kansas side
Kansas City sits on a state line, and that line matters more than almost anything else on this page.
SIS and SES are Missouri terms. They come from Missouri statutes and they apply in Missouri courts. Say you were arrested in Johnson County, Wyandotte County, Overland Park or Olathe. Your case runs under Kansas law instead. The words on your paperwork will be different.
Kansas uses its own sentencing structure, including a grid that ties the offense level and criminal history together, and its own diversion agreements. A Kansas diversion is not a Missouri SIS. They are different things that people constantly treat as the same.
Every article we found on SIS and SES ignores Kansas entirely. In a metro where you can cross the state line in ten minutes, that is a real gap. So the first question we ask is which side of the line your case is on.
A DUI or DWI plea usually ends in one of the two sentence types above. The charge itself works differently either side of the state line – see DUI laws in Missouri and Kansas.
What stays on your record, and what does not
An SIS keeps a conviction off your public record. It does not erase the case.
The record still exists. It becomes a closed record under Section 610.120. The general public cannot pull it. A named list of agencies still can:
- Criminal justice agencies, for criminal-justice employment or facility access
- Law enforcement, issuing or renewing a security guard or private investigator license
- The Department of Revenue, for driver’s license decisions
- The Department of Public Safety, for crime-victims’-compensation claims
- The Department of Health and Senior Services, for licensing care facilities
- Federal agencies, doing the same kind of screening
If you are ever charged again, the court knows it is there.
Two more things worth knowing before you sign anything:
- An SIS is not something you can collect. No statute caps it at one, but a prosecutor can still see an old SIS in the closed record. Use it up on a minor charge and it may not be offered on a serious one.
- Expungement is a separate process under Section 610.140, capped at two felonies and three misdemeanors in a lifetime, and its waiting periods run on their own clock. An SIS is not an expungement, and an SES may still be eligible for expungement later depending on the offense.
If a job application, a professional license, immigration status or a firearms question is part of your situation, say so early. Those answers change the advice, and they change which plea is worth taking.
Common questions
Is a suspended imposition of sentence a conviction in Missouri?
No, not if you complete probation. With an SIS the judge never imposes a sentence, so no conviction is entered. If your probation is revoked, the judge can then sentence you and a conviction follows.
Does an SES show up on a background check?
Yes. An SES is a conviction from the moment the judge pronounces the sentence, and it appears on standard background checks. This is the main practical difference between an SES and an SIS.
Which is better, SIS or SES?
An SIS is usually better for your record because it avoids a conviction. An SES is more predictable, because you already know the exact sentence you would serve if probation is revoked. The right one depends on your charge and your risk of revocation.
Can you get an SIS more than once?
No law limits you to one. But a closed SIS record stays visible to prosecutors and courts, and they will see it when they weigh a new offer. Spending it on a minor charge can leave you without it later.
What is the 120-day callback in Missouri?
Section 559.115 of the Missouri Revised Statutes creates it. A judge sends you to the Department of Corrections for 120 days, then decides whether to bring you back and place you on probation. Missouri amended this section in 2026. Its current text names the placements as a “structured cognitive behavioral intervention program” or an “institutional treatment program” for drug treatment – not the “shock incarceration” language older sources use.
Do SIS and SES exist in Kansas?
No. SIS and SES are Missouri terms. A Kansas case runs under Kansas sentencing rules and uses diversion agreements, which work differently. If you were arrested on the Kansas side of Kansas City, the terms on your paperwork will not match this page.
Can an SIS be expunged?
Expungement is a separate process with its own eligibility rules and waiting periods. An SIS already keeps the case off your public record once probation is complete, which is not the same as expungement. Whether any given case can be expunged depends on the offense.
Before you accept a plea offer
If someone has offered you SIS or SES, that offer already has a number attached. It also carries consequences you may not have been told about. Those are far easier to deal with before you sign than after.
Is a lawyer worth it for a plea that keeps you out of jail? It depends on what the plea does to your record – and that cost often surfaces too late.
Everything above explains how Missouri sentencing options generally work. Nothing here is legal advice about your case, and no outcome is promised. Talk to a lawyer about your own charge before you decide anything.
We opened this firm in Kansas City in 2020, and we take cases on both sides of the state line. I am the partner who handles criminal defense here, and the firm lists my credentials on its profile of Rico Robinson. My partner Suzanne Hale Robinson handles personal injury, and we also take family law matters.
You do not have to take our word for any of that. We have been a BBB Accredited Business with an A+ rating since August 2021, and Kansas City Magazine named us Winner, Best Law Firm/Lawyer in Best of Kansas City 2021.
To talk about a plea offer, call 816-605-1734 or set up a free consultation. An attorney reads what you send and answers within 24 hours, and the first consultation does not commit you to anything.
