Ex-Felon civil rights restoration 'kind of a joke' to some

• Approximately 204,000 or 38.7 percent of the disenfranchised felons in Florida are African American men

The late Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall said a failure to restore the civil rights of ex-felons was a "hindrance to the efforts of society to rehabilitate former felons and convert them into law-abiding and productive citizens." Justice Marshall would have appreciated the relief and measured joy in State Senator Mandy Dawson's voice Tuesday. "After 14 years of this issue," she told The Boca News, "we finally have something -- and something is better than nothing." Under rule changes unanimously agreed to by Gov. Jeb Bush and the Cabinet, those convicted of non-dangerous crimes can apply for clemency if they were crime and arrest free for five years. Those convicted of violent felonies can have voting rights restored after 15 years by remaining crime free, the District 29 senator said. District 29 covers a long, slender piece of Eastern Palm Beach County, including portions of Boca Raton and Delray Beach. Some 75.2 percent of District 29 residents are either Black of Hispanic. For more than decade, Sen. Dawson has chaired the Committee To Restore Voter Dignity. "I was stunned to discover that military veterans who have subsequently been convicted of a felony comprise a significant portion of the disenfranchised population."[more]