About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

22 Berkeley La Raza L.J. 407 (2012)
The Violence of Voicelessness: The Impact of Felony Disenfranchisement on Recidivism

handle is hein.journals/berklarlj22 and id is 423 raw text is: THE VIOLENCE OF VOICELESSNESS: THE IMPACT OF FELONY DISENFRANCHISEMENT ON RECIDIVISM Guy Padraic Hamilton-Smith* Matt Vogel** I. INTRODUCTION No class of men can, without insulting their own nature, be content with any deprivation of their rights. In 2010, nearly 5.3 million American citizens were unable to vote because 2 ,3 of a collateral consequence ftrom a felony conviction known as disenfranchisement. The political disenfranchisement of ex-felons is not accomplished through applying a provision within the United States Constitution or of any federal statute, but is instead administered at the discretion of state legislatures. In light of this state-by- state approach, there is considerable variation in how disenfranchisement is imposed throughout the country.5 The severity of disenfranchisement runs the gamut from allowing incarcerated prisoners to vote (Maine and Vermont) to prohibiting voting rights to those who complete their sentences.6 Even though disenfranchisement is a consequence of a felony conviction, courts have generally considered it to be * JD, May 2011, University of Kentucky. This author wishes to thank Professor Joshua Douglas of the University of Kentucky College of Law for his support and guidance throughout the process of writing this article as well as Associate Dean Mary Davis for her support of this project. This author also wishes to thank co-author Matthew Vogel for his invaluable collaboration, assistance, and insight into this topic. Finally, this author also wishes to thank the members of the Berkeley La Raza Law Journal for their excellent work throughout the editing process. ** PhD Candidate, SUNY at Albany, Department of Sociology & Research Scientist, Center for Human Services Research. This author would like to thank Ryan D. King for his invaluable feedback on earlier drafts of this article. 1. Frederick Douglass, Speech at Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society Meeting (1865). 2. The term collateral consequence refers to an effect of a criminal conviction that is separate and apart from the sentence imposed by a judge. Examples of collateral consequences include losing the right to possess a firearm, losing federal educational financial aid, and as this article addresses, losing the right to vote. 3. THE SENTENCING PROJECT, FELONY DISENFRANCHISEMENT LAWS IN THE UNITED STATES (2010), http://www.sentencingproject.org/doc/publications/fd bs fdlawsinusDecl 1.pdf (Disenfranchisement refers to the ability and process of states to remove the voting rights of individuals convicted of serious criminal offenses). 4. Id. (Discussion of policy differences between states as a result of activity at the level of state legislatures). 5. Id. 6. THE SENTENCING PROJECT, supra note 3.

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

Purchase Access

Contact us for annual subscription options:

Contact Us

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most