Two years ago, nearly two dozen individuals with a past felony were arrested by Florida’s Election Police and accused of voting illegally. The charges were eventually dropped but now these same people have been charged again because of an appeals court decision. These people never intended to vote illegally and are now asking the Florida Supreme Court to weigh in.
Just recently I thought how quiet the state had become over what should be an embarrassing issue. But determined to not look bad in the eyes of voters, our state continues to push to imprison people who are not a threat to society, while real crimes continue unthwarted.
The crazy thing is that Florida law permits felons to vote if the felony conviction (other than murder/sex offense) did not occur in Florida. That is why President Trump was permitted to vote in Florida because his felony convictions occurred in New York.
Agree with what @EdC said above 100%.
Gov Ronnie is wrong is in this matter, knows it, but cannot back out without bad optics back on him and those he appointed. If the FLSSC opines the appeals court decisions stays, then he should do the honorable thing, pardon all of those who have been impacted by this due to the poor system in place and those who allowed it to happen.
May he never get to the steps of the White House in an elected capacity to reside there for any terms.
People like Governor DeSantis complain bitterly about “weaponization” of the Department of Justice for political reasons! This roundup was clearly grandstanding by the governor to punctuate his, and others, assertions of massive (and unproven) voter fraud in the 2020 election. Former felons are an unsympathetic group in the eyes of the public and make easy targets to create the impression of fighting for law, order and public safety.
Those who were charged are considered throwaway persons by many. But they are Americans who made a mistake, paid for it and are doing their best under extremely difficult circumstances to reintegrate into society. Apparently they have committed no other crime except being unaware of a voting law. Yes, yes, yes, I know that ignorance of the law is no excuse. However, the fault in this case lies with the registration system that allowed their registrations to be approved despite their status as former felons.
What I just wrote goes double for former sex offenders. They are not considered as persons to be thrown away; they have already been tossed out.