Tallahassee, Fla. – Following the adoption of new clemency rules at today’s meeting of the Florida Board of Executive Clemency, Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried, a member of the Florida Cabinet and Clemency Board, offered the following statement:
“This Governor continues denying rights to a deserving Floridian in Desmond Meade on the basis of a long-ago military dishonorable discharge, but had no issue with appointing a Chief Administrative Judge who had been discharged for poor conduct from the Navy.
This hypocritical grandstanding underlies the fact that today’s changes to Florida’s clemency rules, while an improvement, will still needlessly leave thousands of Floridians without their civil and voting rights. These rules were proposed late at night and were approved on a rushed-through vote, despite my offering several simple amendments that would have dramatically improved them.
While the automatic restoration of civil rights that I’ve called for the past two years is crucial, doing so without a pathway for indigency disenfranchises thousands of Floridians who cannot afford fines and fees to the government. As I suggested, a simple affidavit of indigency with documentation would allow Floridians back their rights as they work towards payment.
The confusing, arbitrary waiting periods of up to ten years could have been simplified by my proposal of reducing all waiting periods to five years, but this too was not considered by the Governor. And eliminating the Restoration of Alien Status serves no purpose towards helping immigrants who lose their legal status post-felony regain their rights.
While incremental progress is better than none, this Clemency Board will continue to impede the civil and voting rights of Florida’s citizens at a historic rate. It goes against what Floridians voted for in both Amendment 4 and in us as the elected leaders of our state.”
