30 Felons Get Early Christmas Gift: Voting Rights Restored

TAMPA, FL — Thirty Hillsborough County residents received the Christmas gift they had hoped for since the November 2018 general election — the restoration of their right to cast their ballot in an election.

As part of a joint effort between the advocacy group Florida Rights Restoration Coalition and Hillsborough County Clerk of the Courts Pat Frank, the 30 residents — all convicted felons — had their right to vote restored.

In November 2018, 65 percent of Florida voters passed a constitutional amendment — called Amendment 4 — to restore the voting rights of 1.7 million felons in Florida starting Jan. 8, 2019. It's a right that all but three states automatically restore once a convicted felon has fulfilled his or her sentence.

As Florida felons long denied the ability to vote flocked to register at election offices around the state, the Florida Legislature dashed their hopes by passing a bill requiring felons to first pay all fines and court costs before their voting rights could be restored.

The Legislature's decision was a major disappointment for people such as Tampa resident Ronnie Raddish, who hadn't been able to vote since 2006 after being convicted on drug and grand theft charges.

"Once you pay your debts to society, you should automatically get your rights back to vote," Raddish said during a press conference at the Hillsborough County Courthouse.

But Raddish and others fighting for the restoration of their voting rights found a champion in Hillsborough County State Attorney Andrew Warren.

On Dec. 17, Warren announced that felons who want their voting rights restored but are unable to pay the fees they owe could submit applications to have their cases considered on an individual basis.

Last month, after a federal judge ruled that a person’s inability to pay the financial terms of a sentence cannot be a basis to deny voting rights, Warren worked with the Hillsborough County Clerk of Courts, Office of the Public Defender, the 13th Judicial Circuit Administrative Office of the Courts and the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition (FRRC) to create a process to ensure that the inability to pay outstanding fines and court costs is not a roadblock for anyone seeking to have voting rights restored.

"We will continue working to make sure that we don’t have two classes of citizens: those who can afford the right to vote and those who cannot," Warren said. "The notion that Amendment 4 is available only to those who can afford it is unfair, unacceptable and un-American."

He noted that 1.7 million disenfranchised voters represent more than 10 percent of Florida's voting-age population.

"Voting is the cornerstone of our democracy, and restoring the dignity and opportunity for returning citizens to vote will increase public safety and reduce the likelihood of reoffending," he said.

With the assistance of Warren and other state attorneys, the FRRC announced five days before Christmas that it was paying more than $270,000 in fees and court costs to help nearly 200 residents of Hillsborough and eight other Florida counties become eligible to vote. The funding came from donations raised for an Amendment 4 Finds & Fees Review fund, according to Neil Volz, political director for the FRRC.

In Hillsborough County, Frank reduced the fees owed by the 30 felons by 40 percent, and then the FRRC paid the remaining $32,000 owed.

Cecilia Washington, who was convicted on fraud charges, was among the people whose fees were paid through the fund.

"I'm so grateful," she said during the press conference. "I'm about to cry because, you know, who does something like this for someone like me?"

The FRRC said this is just the first group of applicants whose fees have been paid.

"One year ago, while celebrating the victory of Amendment 4, we made a commitment to stand with each of the 540,000 returning citizens who faced financial obstacles," Volz said. "This week was a demonstration of that commitment."