Clifton Maurice Ingram fills out the paperwork needed to secure his right to vote. (Photos by Florence M. Howard)

Tennessee Coordinator of Elections Brook Thompson said there has been a significant increase in the number of ex-felons seeking to have their rights restored. “The number of people is larger than it has been in the past,” he said.

Clifton Maurice Ingram, 47, and Eric Johnson, 31, are among the local residents who have begun the process, which is far easier and less costly today than in the past.

Last week, Ingram stopped procrastinating, and picked up a Certificate of Restoration form at the Shelby County Election Commission. Next, he took it to the Probation and Parole Office to get the required signature in the State Office Building at 170 N. Main, and returned it to the Election Commission. After a short wait for verification, his voter registration application was “signed, sealed and delivered.”

“I did what they told me to do,” said Ingram, who lost him voting rights in 2006 when he accepted a felony charge and probation for a non-violent crime instead of going to court.  He said he’d heard last year about changes to get their voting right back but he had kept “putting it to the side.”  

Johnson, like Ingram, lost his right to vote after sentencing by a judge on two counts of reckless endangerment involving a weapon. While his case meandered through the criminal justice system from 2001 to 2005, he was able to vote.  In fact, he voted in the 2004 Presidential Election.  His legal problems were the result of being “in the wrong place at the wrong time,” Johnson said. A computer systems graduate from Vatterott College, he is now going to school and “trying to get my life back on track.”  

With the November presidential election less than two months away, Johnson walked into the Memphis Branch NAACP office on Sept. 16 to get help getting his voting rights restored.  

NAACP Executive Director Johnnie R. Turner said that he was one of 30 people who showed up to take advantage of a joint assistance program offered by the NAACP and the Ben F. Jones Chapter of the National Bar Association (NBA).  

Clifton Maurice is seeking to secure the right to vote.

Johnson said that if he hadn’t been watching the news last week he wouldn’t have known that he could get his rights back for free.  He said when Mayor Herenton ran for re-election last year – he went to a lawyer to start the process that would have him cost $750: $500 for the lawyer and $250 for court costs.  

Phyllis Aluko, an attorney with the Shelby County Public Defender’s office, said the county has a disproportionate number of convicted felons. It is unclear why. Johnson said that a jury voted one of the charges against him a misdemeanor but the judge upgraded it to a felony.

The ease with which he became entangled in the criminal justice system has been a lesson, he said, for his 10-year-old son and other family members.

‘Different States, Different Laws’

Misdemeanors do not carry the penalty of disenfranchisement from citizenship and voting rights.  According to the ACLU, an estimated 5.3 million Americans are prohibited from voting because of a felony conviction. In 10 states a felony conviction can result in a lifetime ban from voting for some people, including Kentucky and Virginia where ex-felons are permanently disenfranchised.  In 15-20 states, prisoners, parolees and probationers may be allowed to vote.  Also, there are 20 states where ex-felons can vote as soon as their sentence is completed.   

Tennessee has three election laws regarding felony convictions and is one of eight states where some ex-felons can vote. It was necessary to obtain a lawyer and go to court to have voting rights restored in Tennessee if you were sentenced before Jan. 15, 1973 or after May 18, 1981. (Individuals convicted of a felony between Jan. 15, 1973 and May 17, 1981 never lost their voting rights in Tennessee.)   Now, most those ex-felons can get it done without going to court and by having the voting rights restoration form signed by the probation and parole board or Department of Corrections, whichever is deemed the appropriate party by law.

As voting rights restoration was simplified in Tennessee, a new twist was added.  Ex-felons must be current in all child support obligations to be eligible. While Ingram was able to get his rights restored in one day because he only needed certification that he had completed probation and there were no child support issues, individuals with multiple convictions may need expert assistance.  

‘Free Assistance’

A certification of restoration must be completed for each felony conviction and some individuals may not know where their sentencing or release papers are or may find the paperwork confusing, Aluko said.  So, assistance from an attorney would be helpful in avoiding bureaucratic missteps and delays.  

She and other NBA members are offering free assistance and inviting other attorneys to join in this effort.  In addition, Aluko is conducting a free seminar for attorneys interested in helping ex-felons get their voting rights restored in time for the presidential election.   

The Ex-Felon Voting Rights Seminar will be held Thursday, Sept. 18, 2:30-4:00 p.m. in the Criminal Justice Auditorium at 201 Poplar. Continuing Legal Education (CLE) credit is available.

Those interested in having their rights restored should stop by the Shelby County Election Commission at 157 Poplar Ave. or visit the NAACP office at 588 Vance Ave.  

Voting restoration forms are also available on online at http://state.tn.us/sos/election/restoration.htm.