Overcriminalization significantly undermines human flourishing and social well-being by harming the family, social networks, and social citizenship. Additionally, it prevents capable men and women from utilizing their creative capacities in the marketplace. This creates vast issues involving relations with family while incarcerated and reintegration into society after release. On the economic side, draconian cash bail systems undermine justice through basing someone's ability to attain pre-trial release upon their wealth, not their actual threat to society.
“Yet today, as Conarck reported, unpaid labor is still an integral part of the Florida prison system. About 3,500 unpaid prisoners make up work crews used around the state by cities, counties, educational institutions and the Florida Department of Transportation. Inmates work long hours in the heat in exchange for some time off their sentences. They get limited rest breaks and food, risk injuries and face punishment if they refuse to work.“
Gainesville Sun
June 4, 2019
Read More“The biggest sticking point was whether the financial requirement undermined the amendment's intent to end the disenfranchisement of more than 1 million felons who have completed their sentence and returned to society. The bill's sponsor, Rep. James Grant, R-Tampa, said the measure clarifies the meaning of the language of the ballot proposal approved in November and is consistent with the media campaign that promoted its passage.“
Tallahassee Democrat
April 24, 2019
Read More“Formerly incarcerated citizen pledge: ‘I take responsibility for my choices and incarceration. I am accountable for my education, employment and successful reentry. As a formerly incarcerated citizen, I pledge to break the cycle of crime, violence and incarceration in my family and community’.“
Florida Times-Union
March 31, 2019
Read More“‘I think that it is our moral duty as people and as leaders to take a stand against what is wrong, even if it is supposedly legal,’ she told the Phoenix. ‘Because we understand that just because it’s legal doesn’t mean that it’s right. And it’s not right for us to profit off the labor of incarcerated people’.“
The Florida Phoenix
February 1, 2019
Read More“Giving formerly incarcerated people the right to vote is a great first step in helping these men truly get a second chance. If we don’t take these other steps, we will inevitably see more crime and victims, and more ruined lives of the less dangerous ex-felons who should be welcomed back into American society.“
Florida Sun Sentinel
November 8, 2018
Read More“The problem is Florida’s strict guidelines for who can and can’t get financial aid make no provision for people who have turned their lives around; they do not take into consideration how long ago the offense occurred and treats convicted murderers the same as it treats those convicted of some lesser crimes, such as burglary.“
Tallahassee Democrat
September 22, 2018
Read More“States set their own eligibility rules. Most deny reimbursement to victims who refuse to cooperate with law enforcement or who were committing a crime that contributed to their injury or death. States with bans—which also include Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Rhode Island and North Carolina—go one step further, scouring the victim’s past.“
The Marshall Project
September 13, 2018
Read More"Leon County judges were intentionally trying to unconstitutionally detain defendants, Hinkle said, but he believed that they and prosecutors were operating in step with what has historically been done."
Tallahassee Democrat
August 23, 2018
Read More"It’s one thing to make it legal for people to vote again, and another to ensure they know about it. Voters and even local officials may not realize what’s changed."
The Marshall Project
August 1, 2018
Read More"Even though there is a modicum of evidence that public registries may have some deterrent effect on potential offenders, any benefit is more than offset by the increased recidivism risk from those who are publicly listed. Public registration exacerbates known criminogenic risk factors (like poor housing, unemployment, social isolation and poverty), and larger public registries appear to result in more rather than fewer sex crimes."
The Appeal
July 20, 2018
Read More"The Florida Department of Corrections has spent the past 15 years impounding issues of Prison Legal News to keep inmates from being tempted to act on ads for prohibited services they might see in the publication."
Courthouse News Service
May 21, 2018
Read More