A federal judge said Wednesday he intends to lay out a process for the state to allow voting by felons who cannot afford to pay court-ordered “legal financial obligations,” after Florida elections officials failed to develop a procedure.
U.S. District Judge Robert Hinkle’s comments came at the end of an eight-day trial in a voting-rights lawsuit challenging a state law that requires felons who have served their time in prison to pay legal financial obligations — fees, fines, costs and restitution — to be eligible to cast ballots.
The law, passed by the Republican-controlled Legislature last year, was aimed at carrying out a 2018 constitutional amendment restoring voting rights to felons “who have completed all terms of their sentences, including parole and probation.