ORLANDO, Fla. _ As many as 775,000 former felons in Florida will not be able to vote if they haven't paid all fines, fees and restitution, a federal appeals court ruled Friday, overturning a lower court's decision that they could go to the polls this year.
In a 6-4 decision, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta determined that the fines and fees placed on felons are not a "poll tax" as described by federal Judge Robert Hinkle in his May 26 decision.
Hinkle made his ruling in a lawsuit challenging a law designed to carry out Amendment 4 restoring felons' right to vote. The case could have a major impact on the outcome of the Nov. 3 presidential election in swing state Florida.
Hinkle agreed with the ACLU, Campaign Legal Center and other voting rights groups that the requirement to pay those costs before being allowed to vote was unconstitutional.
But in his written decision, Chief Judge William Pryor ruled that "the fees and costs in this appeal are penalties, not taxes."
The ruling is a victory for Gov. Ron DeSantis, who appealed Hinkle's ruling to the full 11th Circuit Court after being rejected by a three-judge panel.
The six judges who ruled to overturn Hinkle's decision were appointed by Republican presidents, and the four dissenting judges were appointed by Democrats.
In his dissent, Judge Adalberto Jordan wrote, "Incredibly, and sadly, the majority says that Florida has complied with the Constitution. So much is profoundly wrong with the majority opinion that it is difficult to know where to begin."
Jordan stated that Hinkle's ruling that Florida showed a "staggering inability to administer" any plan to determine how much ex-felons owed was "an understatement."
But in a separate response to the dissenters, Pryor wrote: "Our duty is not to reach the outcomes we think will please whomever comes to sit on the court of human history. ... (W)e must respect the political decisions made by the people of Florida and their officials within the bounds of our Supreme Law, regardless of whether we agree with those decisions."
