Florida Supreme Court rules convicted felons must pay fees before voting
[NOTE: Persons required to register still can not get their voting rights back]
Florida’s Supreme Court ruled Thursday that convicted felons must pay all fees related to their sentences before voting. The court decided in its ruling that “all terms of sentence” includes not only terms of a person’s imprisonment and supervision, but also fines and other obligations imposed as part of a punishment.
Two-thirds of those whose voting rights would have been restored, will not be able to vote until they pay their fees. In many cases, that will mean never.
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Three of the sitting judges were appointed by Christ: Canady, Polston, and LaBarga, one by Snott: Lawson, and one by DeSatanist: Muniz.
DeSatanis’s other two appointees, serving less than one year, Lagoa and Luck, already left for greener pastures. So there are two vacancies which will again be appointed by DeSatanist.
https://www.floridasupremecourt.org/Justices
Thanks JZ…
I was missing the ‘Other Two’….yes Satan has returned to the Governor-Hood!…
thanks again for the Missing Two Pieces of the Legal Puzzle!!!
And thank you, TheTruthHurts. My commentaries come from the heart and reflect what I believe in my heart to be true. It bothers me that we have such unforgiveness within our legislative ranks…the place where it is most needed. Greed lies in the hearts of those who are in the position to take advantage of others. One consolation…one day they will all be held accountable and the unforgiveness they have shown others will be heaped upon their continence. My father was a chief petty officer. I have never seen such pride in one person as I saw in him the day I graduated from the Naval Academy.
It would be interesting to find out with what Political Party each Justice is affiliated…..There is not much info on this….
And As someone has said numerous times……
“SORNA changed a Legal System that WAS based on “Beyond a Reasonable Doubt” and transformed it into a system of “Reasonable Suspicion.” ANY INDIVIDUAL IS CAPABLE OF HARMING SOMEONE ELSE AT SOME POINT IN THE FUTURE. NO Psychologist, Psychiatrist, Politician, Social Worker, Judge, Justice Official or Corrupt Law Enforcement Officer can predict the future!”
Felons who return to society should not be able to vote if they don’t pay their fines because they always have the means to pay the fines. As soon as a felon gets off at his bus stop from prison, he is greeted by teams of employment recruiters competing for the privilege to place him in one of many high paying jobs. In fact, if he is lucky enough to be black, companies will offer him premium pay, just to meet the quotas. Any felon not working is just lazy since it is so easy for felons to find work.
What? I am wrong on this? Maybe first restricting RSO, then all felons is a way to take some bite out of the civil rights movement. Back in the 1960s “Poll Taxes” were allowed so that poor folks of which most of the black population were included, could not vote since they could not afford the tax. Then those “Do-Gooders” came along and decided blacks and the poor whites SHOULD be able to vote and the 24th amendment was ratified in 1964. “Let’s just call a ‘tax’ a ‘fee’ and the blacks and poor whites won’t know the difference,” says lawmakers in 2020. “Since felons are predominantly black, and because felons have trouble making money to pay the big fines assessed, this way we can keep this pool of people from disturbing our plan to keep them poor forever. Since felons can’t vote, who is going to object if the cost of prison phone calls goes way up so that families of prisoners can buy “perks” for officers, like free I-phones to tip the scale for a less competitive phone contract! Here is an article on how Florida’s prison phone contract was rigged at the expense of prisoner’s families: https://www.muckrock.com/news/archives/2019/feb/01/prison-phones-securus-lawsuit/
U.S. Constitution – Amendment 24
Amendment 24 – Poll Tax Barred
1. The right of citizens of the United States to vote in any primary or other election for President or Vice President, for electors for President or Vice President, or for Senator or Representative in Congress, shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any State by reason of failure to pay any poll tax or other tax.
The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.
Notes for this amendment:
Proposed 8/27/1962
Ratified 1/23/1964
That’s what this court had to decide— whether outstanding fines and fees represented a poll tax.
Roger, when I first started to read your commentary I thought you had ‘gone off the deep end’. Thank God you hadn’t. Have you got feeling back in your ‘tongue and cheek’ yet? Good commentary and evaluation. For politicians to maintain control they must maintain an underclass that they believe to be ignorant…stupid…and incapable of action. And they can’t let them vote or they would find out otherwise. Keep up you comments. I enjoy reading them. We need to get more of our thoughts out into the public.
Anybody surprised by this decision? Voter suppression is alive and well in Floriduh in 2020.
This is a check in the win column for the conservative Republican faction of the Florida House. They were able to find a legal loophole to continue to deny the power of the ballot box to a large group of Florida voters. I believe that their actions are motivated out of a fear of a new large voting block in Florida that’s not predominantly older, affluent, and conservative Republican. Restoring full voting rights to a significant block of citizens that did not have them before will bring more than just those voters to the polls. They will bring friends and family that possibly didn’t vote before but now see how critical their voices are and they want them heard. Nothing would scare the conservative right Republicans more.
What Bs… all they have to do is pay what they own and they can vote. Yep sounds like something a Democratic would say. The criminal is the real victim here and everything should be free. Why shouldn’t they have to finish paying their debt to society? They didn’t care about voting when they broke the law. I’m a criminal and should be on your side but am not. We are the ones who created victims and are not victims ourselves. I’ve been dealing with the registry since it went into law in Florida and hate the things I’ve had to endure. But the sad truth is I wouldn’t have to deal with one day of it if I didn’t break the law. Have enough fortitude to be honest with yourself. So tell me again how the hell are we the victims. What’s next your gonna want soda straws outlawed? The truth will set you free Democrat!
Did you kidnap, rape and murder a child? If the answer is “no” and all you did was break a law regarding age of consent laws (even tho teens DO consent as did I when I was a teen with an older woman) or looked at an illegal image or any other non-life threatening “crime”, then you should not have to endure jack shit what the registry scheme was originally intended for. If you don’t have a Jason Wetterling or Megan Kanka case, you should have just been able to serve your punishment and move on. Period. But even streaking or skinny dipping can land a person on the registry. Oh my gosh! What a threat to public safety those issues are, eh?
I’m only on your side against Democrats in your argument. But both political sides wouldn’t dare try to abolish something they’ve already brainwashed the general public into relying on.
Keep in mind, the fines may be way to high to pay for years. Did your school not require you to read, “To Kill a Mockingbird?” Were you absent the day the teacher showed the movie? Some folks actually DID NOT commit a crime. There are over 3000 counties in the US. What if you happened to live in the county with one of the highest conviction rates that also has the absolute highest money payouts for wrongful convictions? You could be innocent, can prove it, but can’t get a fair trial! You may ask for a speedy trial guaranteed by the US Constitution. The prosecutor can even say to the judge that there is not enough evidence to convict you. But after sitting in jail for years (awaiting your ‘speedy trial’) it may be tempting to take a guilty plea and go home rather than wait another year to go to court in hopes that somehow, you can get to court once you are out of jail. So some people committed no crime and are frustrated they can’t vote to solve the problems!
In the US one can be convicted of a crime with no evidence and no victim. Public opinion, myth, and paranoia are enough for a conviction.