Dear friend:
This week, we found even more problems with Governor McAuliffe's executive order restoring voting and jury rights to 200,000 felons.
McAuliffe promised that the order was only for felons who had completed their prison sentences and supervised probation. However, he apparently didn't think about the convicted violent sexual offenders who are being held under civil commitment lockdown in Virginia's state rehab center in Nottoway County. The facility is not a prison, and according to the local prosecutor, 176 of the felons are no longer on supervised probation. What does that mean? Well, according to McAuliffe's order, that makes them potential voters and jurors. Read the article here.
(For reference, in 2011 the Nottoway County School Board election in the district was decided by 97 votes. I suppose the McAuliffe thinks politicians should schedule campaign stops at the facility.)
This follows on last week's investigation showing that the Governor's restored list is riddled with mistakes, and includes murderers still in prison, fugitives on the run, and even a felon who was deported to Peru. All of these problems only emphasize why in the past, restoration has always been done on an individualized basis after case-by-case review.
At this point, not even Governor McAuliffe can go back in time and modify his order. However, our court case challenging the Constitutionality of the executive order will be heard at a special session of the Virginia Supreme Court on July 19. If you would like to read the court filings, you can do so by clicking here.
Sincerely,
Rob Bell
Delegate, 58th District | |
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