The Crime Report (https://thecrimereport.org/category/corrections/prisoner-reentry/)
As hundreds of former Florida felons celebrated their new voting rights, Republican legislators drafted a bill that could prevent those convicted of attempted murder from benefiting from a new voting measure.
California, where an estimated eight million people have criminal records, could become the first state that automatically scrubs rap sheets of people whose records qualify.
Matthew Charles of Nashville, who was released under the new First Step Act, couldn’t rent a town home because of his criminal history and lack of credit. Kim Kardashian-West is paying his rent for five years.
Alice Johnson, an inmate whose life sentence was commuted thanks in part to Kim Kardashian West, has a book deal, along with deals for film and television rights. Johnson’s “After Life: My Journey From Incarceration to Freedom” comes out May 21. Johnson was a Trump guest at the State of the Union address.
Dozens of felons have cast ballots in Iowa elections in violation of state law, yet just a handful have been prosecuted, reports the Des Moines Register. Two of those who were charged say election officials urged them to vote.
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds is proposing a constitutional amendment restoring voting rights to convicted felons, citing “the beauty of grace” and second chances. If approved, the proposal would overturn a ban on felon voting imposed by former Gov. Terry Branstad.
The Homecoming Project in Alameda County, Ca., matches prisoners being released after long sentences with homeowners and renters who want to take part in the experiment. A nonprofit pays the former inmates’ rent for six months.
Some 30 states and the District of Columbia passed laws or enacted statutes aimed at helping people with criminal records overcome barriers to reintegrating with civilian society last year, according to the Collateral Consequences Resource Center.
Many of the more than 1.4 million individuals convicted of felonies are set to register as voters Tuesday, but Gov.-elect Ron DeSantis and some legislators are seeking to delay implementation of the measure approved by voters last November.
Finding gainful employment is the most effective deterrent to falling back into a life of crime, studies show. Felons have long been some of the last candidates in the hiring pool. The Wall Street Journal tells the stories of three who found work.