The Disenfranchisement of Ex-felons

by Hull, Elizabeth A.; Conyers, John, Jr.

• ISBN13: 9781592131846
• ISBN10: 1592131840
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2006-02-28
• Publisher: Temple Univ Pr

Summary

In fourteen states some or all former prisoners who have completed their sentences, their paroles, and the terms of their probation are prohibited from voting. This short book provides an overview of the history, nature, and consequences of denying ex-felons the right to vote. Readers learn of state practices, the arguments that have been used in court houses, legislatures, and the press to justify disenfranchisement, and the attempts to remedy the situation through recourse to state and federal governments. Elizabeth Hull enumerates the disproportionate effect of these policies on African-Americans and the ways current criminal justice practices cause those effects. The book contains an Appendix on the 2004 election.

Author Biography

Elizabeth A. Hull is Professor of Political Science at Rutgers University, Newark.

Table of Contents

Foreword	ix
John Conyers, Jr.
Acknowledgments	xiii
Introduction	1	(15)
The History of Disenfranchisement Laws	16	(8)
The Toll on Minority Communities	24	(6)
Collateral Damages and Clemency	30	(13)
Justifications for Disenfranchisement: Pragmatic, Principled, and Philosophical	43	(12)
Reform: Interest Groups and Strategies	55	(13)
State Reforms	68	(13)
Voting: Constitutional and Civic Concerns	81	(15)
Constitutional Challenges and the Voting Rights Act	96	(18)
Cruel and Unusual Punishment and International Law	114	(13)
The Political Consequences of Disenfranchisement	127	(11)
Thinking the Unthinkable	138	(11)
Afterword	149	(6)
Notes	155	(42)
Selected Bibliography	197	(14)
Index	211