Appeals Court Improperly Restores Voting Rights to Convicted Felons in Florida

February 19, 2020 3:12pm

This is a terrible decision by the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals. If this decision is not overturned, the ONLY proper remedy is to throw out the results of the Amendment 4 vote and remove it from the Florida Constitution.

Florida voters approved 2018's Amendment 4 which very clearly restored voting rights to felons "after they complete all terms of their sentence including parole or probation." That quote is directly from the ballot. "All terms" means ALL TERMS. And those terms include payment of fines, fees, restitution, etc.

If the courts subsequently decide that "all terms" doesn't (or can't) include payment of fines, fees, and restitution, then a re-vote with new ballot language that properly describes the amendment's criteria is necessary.

I'll address this in greater detail this Saturday on The Mike Bates Show.*

https://www.tallahassee.com/story/news/2020/02/19/court-florida-cant-bar-felons-vote-over-fines-fees/4806809002/?fbclid=IwAR13QuCYomPgQT5pYHxm8NOBJ_jrKBDeHg8cz0-qodQt510JQO259nBwYKI

* Updated at 7:07am on 2/22/2020: I didn't get to this topic on this morning's program, so I'll be sure to address it next week.