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The Cycle of Poverty and Crime: It’s Time to Break the Wheel
Historical opinion article about 2018–2019 reforms. Current legal guidance appears below.
Current Voting Eligibility After a Felony Conviction
Updated September 30, 2026. Amendment 4 does not make every person with a felony conviction immediately eligible to vote. Under section 98.0751, restoration generally requires completion of all terms of sentence, including incarceration, supervision, and qualifying court-ordered restitution, fines, and fees. Murder and felony sexual offenses, as statutorily defined, are excluded from this automatic-restoration route.
The financial requirement concerns qualifying obligations in the sentence, not every later-added collection charge. The statute also recognizes specified court-approved ways to complete or modify obligations; conversion to a civil lien alone does not satisfy it. Eligibility must be checked against all relevant convictions and sentencing records.
Submitting a registration form or receiving a voter card does not itself establish legal eligibility. If uncertain, obtain sentencing and payment records and seek advice from qualified counsel and the appropriate election officials before registering or voting. Knowingly false registration information can have criminal consequences.
In November, the public overwhelmingly supported an amendment to the Florida Constitution that would restore the voting rights of felons. It was an important step forward in our never-ending quest for liberty and justice for all. But don’t break out the champagne just yet. This spring, state lawmakers passed a law requiring felons to pay restitution, and all the fines and fees connected to their offense before they can cast a ballot.
Some people are calling this a modern-day poll tax, and a reincarnation of the Jim Crow laws that kept so many black people from participating in civic life in the early to mid 20th century. Since a disproportionate number of felons in our state are African American, this is a serious concern.
Regardless of a felon’s race, this new law is just another sad example of the way our laws perpetuate the cycle of poverty. Most crimes are committed not by people who are bad, but by people who are desperate. We would see a lot less crime if everyone had the means to support themselves, provide for their families, and treat their addictions.
Nickel and diming people as they struggle to get their lives back in order and participate in civil society is not a good idea. We see this play out all the time when it comes to minor traffic tickets that lead to drivers license suspensions and even prison time.
While it is true that driving is a privilege, not a right, living in the Miami area without a license is basically impossible. Yet many people wind up behind bars because they were unable to pay the fines and fees tied to minor motor vehicle offenses.
Here’s how it works. A person is pulled over for a minor offense like not wearing a seatbelt (Side note: you should always wear a seatbelt!). The person doesn’t pay the fine, it goes to collections, still no payment, and eventually, the DMV suspends his or her license.
Driving With a Suspended or Revoked License
Under section 322.34, the driver’s knowledge, reason for the suspension, prior convictions, and any habitual-traffic-offender designation matter. A violation without the required knowledge may be a civil moving infraction; knowing violations can be misdemeanors or felonies under the applicable subsection.
Every third offense is not automatically a felony. The current statute generally treats a second or subsequent knowing violation as a first-degree misdemeanor, while specified third-or-later violations tied to DUI, chemical-test refusal, death or serious-injury traffic offenses, or fleeing/eluding may be felonies. Habitual-offender, commercial-driving, injury-related, and specified financial-suspension provisions require separate analysis. A lawyer should review the actual driving record and charging subsection.
It’s time to re-think the ways we punish people for crimes, and consider the unintended consequences. In the meantime, our firm will continue to defend the rights of people accused of crimes, and advocate for people who are trying to put their lives right after a conviction. The cycle of poverty and crime is real, so we must all do all we can to break the wheel.
Posted in: Voting Rights