Court upholds Mississippi voting ban on people convicted of felonies

Appeals Court Upholds Mississippi Lifetime Voting Ban for Some Felony Convictions

A federal appeals court has upheld Mississippi’s lifetime ban on voting for individuals with certain felony convictions, saying that the question of restoring their voting rights is a decision for state legislators, not the courts. In a full-bench opinion delivered on July 18, the U.S. Court of Appeals of the Fifth Circuit ruled 13–6 to affirm that it is constitutional for states to disenfranchise some voters over felony convictions. At the cent…

Court upholds Mississippi’s lifetime voting ban for certain felony convictions - Washington Examiner

A federal appeals court upheld Mississippi’s lifetime voting ban for those with certain felony convictions on Thursday. A majority of judges on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit ruled that Section 241 of the Mississippi Constitution, which disenfranchises those convicted of certain felony offenses, does not violate the U.S. Constitution. Holding Section 241 unconstitutional would be “at odds with the Supreme Court’s and other courts’…

Mississippi's lifetime ban on felons voting upheld by federal 5th Circuit

Mississippi can continue to impose a lifetime ban on voting for people convicted of certain felonies, including some non-violent felonies, the full panel of the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Thursday. The opinion of the full panel reverses an August 2023 ruling by a three-judge panel of the 5th Circuit finding the lifetime ban unconstitutional because it inflicted cruel and unusual punishment. The full panel said a lifetime ban on voti…

Federal appeals court upholds Mississippi's Jim Crow–era felon voting ban

On review, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit has upheld Mississippi's lifetime felon disenfranchisement law, which ranks among the harshest in the nation, and reversed a panel decision last year that found it violated the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution. The 5th Circuit ruled in a 13–6 decision Thursday that Mississippi's disenfranchisement scheme was not punishment, and even if it was, it wasn't cruel or unusual. To find otherw…

Court validates Mississippi's lifetime ban on felons voting

A U.S. appeals court on Thursday upheld Mississippi's lifetime ban on voting for people convicted of certain felonies, saying the policy was not a cruel and unusual punishment.

Court upholds Mississippi voting ban on people convicted of felonies

A federal appeals court on Thursday overturned a ruling by a three-judge panel of the 5th Circuit related to Section 241 of the Mississippi Constitution, which permanently disenfranchises voters convicted of a set of crimes.  The full-court 5th Circuit panel held 13-6 that Section 241 does not violate the U.S. Constitution.  “Holding Art. XII, Section…