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Restoring rights quickly is revisited

Gov. Crist now says he is open to excluding released felons whose crimes were violent.

By SHANNON COLAVECCHIO-VAN SICKLER
Published March 2, 2007

TALLAHASSEE - Gov. Charlie Crist vowed Thursday to keep working with the Cabinet to overhaul the Jim Crow-era rules that block released felons from voting and serving on juries.

To achieve his campaign promise of automatic restoration of civil rights for felons who have served their time, Crist said he would consider a change that differentiates between violent and nonviolent crimes - a move likely to get him the support he needs from two Cabinet members.

Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink, the only Democrat on the Cabinet, and Commissioner of Agriculture Charles Bronson said they would be more likely to support automatic restoration if it did not apply to people who committed crimes such as murder and rape.

"If they were nonviolent crime-related, I would have a better feeling for doing that," said Bronson.

"I think I would look at that," Crist said. "I'm trying to build a consensus among this Cabinet so we can have automatic restoration. I think we're getting close to an agreement."

Since his campaign for governor, Crist has vowed to pursue restoration of civil rights for felons who finish their sentences and probation and pay restitution to victims. Thursday marked the first time he distinguished between violent and nonviolent offenders.

The law barring Florida felons from voting dates back to shortly after the Civil War. To get the vote back, and to regain other civil rights such as serving on a jury, felons must petition the state after their release from prison.

It is a process choked with red tape, and the backlog of clemency cases is enormous. Cases can take years to resolve.

For many people, the delay keeps them from getting steady, well-paying jobs because the state requires civil rights for dozens of state occupational licenses and certifications such as nursing and contracting and construction.

"If they're out living in society and have done their time, it makes sense to trust them with their vote," said Mark Schlakman, program director at the Center for the Advancement of Human Rights at Florida State University. "And we need to remove these arbitrary barriers to post-incarceration employment."

The strongest resistance to Crist's proposal comes from Attorney General Bill McCollum, a fellow Republican.

Thursday, after a four-hour clemency hearing in which more than a dozen felons got their voting rights back, McCollum said he would not support automatic restoration for serious drug cases and other major crimes.

"Those who traffic in huge quantities of drugs are in the same category of murderers in my mind," he said. "I probably have different ideas than the governor does about the crimes that should be included."

Crist would need only two of the three Cabinet members to vote with him to implement automatic restoration. "I am going to keep pushing to get us where I think we need to be."

Staff writer Steve Bousquet contributed to this report. Shannon Colavecchio-Van Sickler can be reached at 850 224-7263 or svansickler@sptimes.com.

[Last modified March 2, 2007, 00:27:08]