A PROPOSED AMENDMENT TO THE
STATE CONSTITUTION COULD BE A
GAME CHANGER IN FLORIDA.
RESTORING THE VOTING RIGHTS OF
CONVICTED FELONS.
LAST WEEK THEY SECURED THE
NUMBER OF REQUIRED SIGNATURES,
AND VOTERS CAN NOW DECIDE IF
THEY WANT IT TO HAPPEN IN
NOVEMBER.
JOINING US NOW TO LOOK AT
IMPACT FOR CONVICTED FELONS.
GOOD MORNING, EVAN.
LOOKING AT THE NUMBERS HERE.
UNITED STATES TOTAL 6.1 MILLION
AFFECTED FELONS WE ARE TALKING
ABOUT.
IN FLORIDA, 1,686,000.
THAT'S ONE IN FIVE EVERY
CONVICTED FELON IN THE UNITED
STATES.
ONE ARE ONE OF THREE STATES WHO
HAS TO APPLY DIRECTLY TO THE
GOVERNOR TO HAVE YOUR RIGHTS
PUT BACK IN PLACE.
THAT COULD SHIFT AN ENTIRE
ELECTION.
NOT THE 2018 ELECTION COMING
UP, BUT IT WILL DIRECTLY AFFECT
THE 2020 PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN.
WHEN YOU SAY AFFECTED
FELONS, WHAT DO WE MEAN?
NOT ALL WILL HAVE THEM
RESTORED?
PEOPLE ELIGIBLE UNDER
CERTAIN STATE LAWS, IN FLORIDA
WE DON'T HAVE THE MECHANISM
YET.
THAT'S WHAT THE LAW IS
PROPOSING TO DO THEY HAVE
IDENTIFIED THE PEOPLE, BASED ON
THE PROPOSAL WHO WILL QUALIFY,
WHEN AND IF THE LAW PASSES.
CERTAIN TIMES OF FELONIES?
CORRECT.
THERE'S BEEN A LONG TUG OF
WEAR GOING BACK TO WHEN CHARLIE
CRIST WAS GOVERNOR.
WHAT'S THE CURRENT PROCESS?
IT'S IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND
WHAT FELONIES WE ARE TALK
ABOUT, ALL FELONY IN THE STATE
OF FLORIDA.
THIRD DEGREE INCLUDING
SHOPLIFTING OVER $300, PASSING
A BAD CHECK.
SOME PEOPLE HAVE THEIR LICENSE
SUSPENDED AND THEN TAMPERING
WITH A CRAB TRAP IN FLORIDA.
ANY ONE OF THOSE COULD STRIP
YOU OF YOUR VOTING RIGHTS.
THE PROCESS NOW, FILL OUT AN
APPLICATION, GOING TO THE
GOVERNOR'S BOARD, BUT CHARLIE
CRIST TRIED TO RELAX THE LAWS
UNTIL 2011 WHEN GOVERNOR SCOTT
CAME IN.
HE UNDID THAT, IMPOSED NEW
WAITING PERIODS.
5 YEARS FOR A NONVIOLENT FELONY
AND 7 FOR OTHER FELONIES.
IT'S BACKLOGGED.
THE JUSTICE CENTER SAID IN
2015, 15,000 WERE PROCESSES,
AND 20,000 MORE WERE WAITING.
WHAT WILL CHANGE WITH THE
NEW AMENDMENT?
HERE'S THE AMENDMENT ITSELF,
AND THIS IS FROM THE PETITION,
AND BASICALLY YOU CAN SEE THE
WORDING THERE.
ANY DISQUALIFICATION FROM
VOTING RISING FROM A FELONY
CONVICTION, VOTING RIGHTS SHALL
BE RESTORED UPON ALL TERMS.
SIMPLY PUT F YOU DO -- IF YOU
DO YOUR TIME, YOUR CONVICT WILL
BE ALLOWED.
THE VOTERS HAVE TO DECIDE IF
THEY WANT EVERYONE HAVING THEIR
VOTING RIGHTS RESTORED.
YOU MAY SEE PROSECUTORS AND LAW
ENFORCEMENT FROM COMING OUT
AGAINST THIS.
THEY CLEARED THE SIGNATURE
BALLOT REQUIREMENT LAST WEEK.
HOW MANY OTHER STATES HAVE
OUR CURRENT SYSTEM?
WHAT'S THE TREND IN THEIR
STATES?
IT'S INTERESTING.
BASICALLY SIX DIFFERENT MODELS
OUT THERE RIGHT NOW.
I PUT THE GRAPH TOGETHER
BECAUSE THESE ARE THE THREE
STATES.
FLORIDA, KENTUCKY, AND IOWA.
ACROSS THE COUNTRY LOOKING AT
OTHER STATES BEHIND US.
THE NEXT RESTRICTIVE IS ALABAMA
AND TENNESSEE WHERE THEY HAVE A
COMBINATION WHERE YOU CAN APPLY
FOR CERTAIN RESTORATION OF
RIGHTS FOR CERTAIN FELONIES.
TEXAS UP TO MINNESOTA, THEY
HAVE A COMBINATION WHERE IF YOU
FINISH YOUR SENTENCE, YOU CAN
APPLY, BUT IT'S NOT AUTOMATIC.
CALIFORNIA, NEW YORK, AND YOU
WILL START TO SEE THE AUTOMATIC
RESTORATION OF RIGHTS, AND
THAT'S THE MODEL THAT FLORIDA
WILL FOLLOW.
YOU'RE AUTOMATICALLY RESTORED,
AND A COUPLE OF STATES IF YOU
FINISH YOUR PRISON SENTENCE,
THE VOTING RIGHTS ARE BACK, AND
VERMONT AND NEW HAMPSHIRE, OR
VERMONT AND MAINE, EXCUSE ME,
YOU DO NOT LOSE THEM PERIOD.
RIGHT.
YOU CAN SEE ALL THE
DIFFERENT COMBINATIONS ACROSS
THE UNITED STATES, AND THIS IS
SOMETHING TRENDING FOR A LONG
TIME.
VOTING RESTRICTIONS OR YOUR
RIGHT TO VOTE BEING RESTRICTED
GOING BACK TO 1869 AND THE
CIVIL WAR, RIGHT AFTER THE
CIVIL WAR.
29 STATES ENACTED THE LAWS TO
STRIP THE CONVICTED FELONS OF
THEIR VOTING RIGHTS BECAUSE IT
DIVIDES ON RACIAL LINES FOR
AFRICAN AMERICANS AND OTHER
MINORITIES AS WELL.
CONVICTED OF MORE OF THE
FELONIES, SURE.
REALLY QUICK, WHAT'S YOUR
FEELING?
DO YOU THINK IT WILL PASS?
I THINK IT HAS A GOOD CHANCE
OF PASSING, BUT THEY NEED TO
PLAY THE POLITICS OF IT
CORRECTLY.
THEY NEED TO SHOW THERE'S NO
IRREPARABLE HARM.
THE SUPREME COURT STUDY FOUND
NOTHING WRONG WITH THE
AMENDMENT, AND THEY ALLOWED THE
PROCESS TO GO THROUGH.
THE ATTORNEY GENERAL DIDN'T
OBJECT, JUST ASKING FOR THE
IMPACT OF THE SUPREME COURT.
AS LONG AS THEY STRESS IT WILL
NOT COST MORE, AND NO ONE IS
GOING TO KILL AGAIN, THEY WILL
PLAY THE POLITICS, AND NOT
EVERY CRIME IS THE SAME.
PEOPLE WILL HAVE ARGUMENTS
AGAINST THAT, BUT THAT NUMBER,
770,000, THAT'S SIMILAR TO WHAT
MEDICAL MARIJUANA NEEDED IN
2014 AND AGAIN IN 2016, AND YOU
SAW IT FINALLY PASS IN 2014.
CERTAINLY SEEMS TO BE THE