(LibertySons.org) – When a jury convicts someone of a felony, the defendant loses most of their constitutional rights. In most states, that includes losing the right to vote either permanently or at least while incarcerated. Many restrict voting rights while on probation and parole as well. In the case of Mississippi, prisoners convicted of specific felonies can only regain the right to vote through a specific act of the state legislature and a signature from the governor. This regulation has faced challenges in the court in the past few years. Now, an appeals court has weighed in on the matter.
On July 18, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit upheld a lifetime voting ban for individuals with certain felony convictions. The 13-to-6 majority of the court’s full panel held that Article XII, Section 241 of the Mississippi Constitution didn’t violate the US Constitution, as claimed by six Mississippi citizens permanently disenfranchised under Section 241.
All six plaintiffs fulfilled the terms of their sentences, and the lower court certified the suit as a class action. The plaintiffs challenged the Mississippi secretary of state’s authority to enforce Sections 241 and 253 of the state constitution and sought injunctive relief in the case.
The plaintiffs’ attorneys argued that the Mississippi Constitution violated the US Constitution’s First, Eighth, and Fourteenth Amendments. They claimed that permanent disenfranchisement from voting constituted the infliction of a cruel and unusual punishment on the plaintiffs. Similarly, they said the ban placed an impermissible burden on their right to vote — a breach of the US Constitution’s Equal Protection Clause.
The parties filed cross-motions for summary judgment, and the lower court ruled against the Mississippi secretary of state, holding that Section 241 didn’t violate the US Constitution. The district court certified its order for interlocutory appeal.
The district court transferred the matter to a three-judge panel from the Fifth Circuit. The lower court issued a favorable ruling for the plaintiffs after finding that Section 241 violated the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment as applied to the states under the Fourteenth Amendment.
However, the Fifth Circuit’s en banc panel reversed the ruling, fiding for the Mississippi secretary of state because it interpreted the Eighth Amendment as inapplicable to the plaintiffs’ case. The panel cited well-established US Supreme Court precedent upholding the states’ right to ban certain convicted felons permanently from voting.
The Fifth Circuit also held that categorically declaring Section 241 unconstitutional, even to a limited set of offenders, “would thwart” the ability of state legislatures to “determine” their voters’ qualifications and force the federal courts to make state-level legislative choices.
~Here’s to Our Liberty!
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