Wednesday, February 16, 2005
Time served, but no vote
About 1.5 million convicted felons who have completed their sentences are still denied the right to vote, according to a report released today.
Unlike the District of Columbia and 34 states, including California, where voting rights are automatically restored to convicted felons who have completed their sentences, 14 states severely restrict — or even prohibit — onetime prisoners from casting ballots.
Former prisoners in those states can apply to have their voting rights restored, but few have the means to navigate the cumbersome and confusing processes to do so, says the report by the Sentencing Project, a nonprofit group that studies criminal justice issues.
Alabama, Florida, Iowa, Kentucky, Nebraska and Virginia disenfranchise individuals with a felony conviction; eight states — Arizona, Delaware, Maryland, Mississippi, Nevada, Tennessee, Washington and Wyoming — prohibit voting based on specific criteria, such as the type or number of convictions.
Story.
posted by chris at 4:17 PM
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