“The most important thing is to tell people to go out and vote.”
Gov. Rick Scott
In Florida, the above quotation is in stark contrast to reality. Thanks to actions by Scott, one in 10 Floridians cannot do what he states is “the most important thing.” They are not allowed to vote.
Florida has become the disenfranchisement capital of the country. An estimated 1.4 million Floridians have been permanently stripped of their right to vote – far more than any other state. Nor can they serve on a jury or run for office. Forever is a long time. But time and common sense have a way of changing things.
On Nov. 6, Florida voters have the opportunity to change things by voting “yes” on Amendment 4. If this amendment passes with 60 percent of the vote, voting rights will be restored to Floridians with felony convictions who have completed all terms of their sentence, including parole, probation and restitution. Excluded are individuals convicted of violent crimes, such as murder and sexual offenses. They are specifically not included in this amendment and will continue to be banned from voting.
Currently, Florida is one of only three states that takes away a former felon’s right to vote forever. The only way to get that right back is to wait five years to petition for a clemency hearing. Then there’s years of waiting just to get the hearing. The League of Women Voters, which supports this amendment, found that since Scott became governor, fewer than 3,000 former felons have gained back their right to vote.
So what constitutes the kind of felony that would be affected by this amendment? Since violent acts, such as murder and sexual assault are excluded, examples that are included, according to CriminalDefenseLawyer.com and Law Street Media, are fraud and other white collar crimes, vandalism, receiving stolen property, DUI, selling pot to a minor, auto theft and the application of the “three strikes you’re out” law.
Theft of an item worth $300 is a felony, and so is driving with a suspended license. If you have medication in an unlabeled container in your car, that too, if convicted, constitutes a felony. In some states, speeding over a certain limit is a felony, and when that convicted person moves to Florida, they lose their right to vote – even if the offense isn’t a felony here.
Surprise! Like many states, Florida has some strange laws on the books. PolitiFact Florida found a few. It’s a felony to buy or possess with intent to sell marijuana, to tamper with an odometer, to release a helium balloon or “molest” a lobster trap! (conjures up weird visuals but that’s the wording of the law). These are felonies. And committing them and being found guilty results in disenfranchisement.
Many felonies are drug/marijuana-related, and in this case, justice rarely is blind. As Michelle Alexander wrote in The New Jim Crow, if you’re white and can afford a lawyer, it’s much more likely that you can get the case dismissed versus spending years behind bars.
A recent study by the Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability found that almost half of Florida’s prison population was incarcerated for non-violent crimes and 60 percent of them were first time offenders. Of these, 50 percent were drug-related offenses.
Most people assume that committing a felony requires a jail sentence, but that’s not the case. Judges can require community service or restoration of stolen property in lieu of prison, but if the offense is a felony and the offender is found guilty, it remains on the books – prison or not.
So why go through the effort of garnering more than 700,000 signatures to get this proposed amendment on the ballot? As counterintuitive as it seems, it’s to take this issue out of the realm of politics completely. When Republican Charlie Crist was governor, most former felons were able to have their rights restored. When Scott became governor, he and his Cabinet reversed the policy.
Voting rights are too important to be a political football dependent on who’s occupying the governor’s mansion. Now, the power is in the hands of the people – where it belongs.
It makes no sense to continue punishment once all court-decreed requirements have been met. A lifetime of second- or third-class citizenship that prevents full engagement in society isn’t good for anyone. Nov. 6 gives voters the opportunity to change that for 1.4 million fellow Floridians.
For more information go to https://secondchancesfl.org.
