The Apache County sheriff and registrar were hit with a lawsuit on Thursday after nearly a year of not responding to requests for public records about how eligible inmates inside the prison could access their votes. rice field.
The Arizona Coalition to End Prison-Based Deprivation is studying electoral access among voters at correctional facilities. The Coalition’s partner, the Center for Election Law, asked all 15 Arizona sheriffs and record officers in March what voting procedures were in place for those in prison, and They began demanding public records to understand how many prisoners voted.
The coalition prepared a report in July using the information received. However, not all sheriff’s offices and counties have responded to requests for public records. The Campaign Legal Center continued to request public records, and using that information he produced a report on the August primary and his November general election.
The Campaign Legal Center and the American Civil Liberties Union in Arizona sent out a petition last week warning of potential lawsuits because they have not received records from four registries and three sheriffs.
Dana Paikowski, Equal Justice Works Fellow at the Campaign Legal Center, said the lack of transparency or responsiveness to requests has always been an issue for almost a year. .
“It has hampered the Coalition’s ability to conduct this very important surveillance and advocacy work to serve voters in prison,” she said.
Maricopa and Yuma county sheriffs and registrars responded to the request. The Pima County Registrar’s Office told the group they would be notified when the records were available.
However, Apache County did not comply with the request, according to Arizona’s ACLU.
The case was filed in Apache County Superior Court by the Campaign Legal Center and the ACLU of Arizona.
The county did not immediately respond to the Arizona Republic’s request for comment.
Disqualification in County Jail
Voter disenfranchisement while in prison is common across the country, including in Arizona, advocates say.
One of the biggest reasons voters can’t vote in prison is that officials don’t understand the law. prison policy.
The Arizona Secretary of State’s office said in it the election process for prison inmates. 2019 Election Procedure Manual first time. The county must coordinate with registrars, sheriffs, public defenders, and others to plan and conduct elections.
Not everyone imprisoned in Arizona loses their voting rights once in detention.
Many people in prison are awaiting trial and have not been convicted of felonies. Therefore, they are eligible to vote.
according to 2016 report by The Sentencing ProjectAt the time, Arizona prisons had an estimated 13,970 people incarcerated, of whom only 1,341 were ineligible to vote due to felony convictions.
“I think it’s important to remember that when we’re talking about the group of people most likely to be incarcerated, we’re talking about voters who have historically been disproportionately marginalized.
People of color, low-income or uneducated are disproportionately imprisoned and may face voter suppression.
People convicted of misdemeanors retain their voting rights.
Voting rights of convicted persons are restricted
according to sentencing projectArizona is one of the 11 states with the strictest laws restricting the voting rights of convicted people.
When people are convicted of felonies and put in Arizona prisons, lose one’s right to vote while they were in custody. Their civil rights may be restored when released.
In 2016, 6.1 million people in the United States were disenfranchised due to felony convictions.
An estimated 221,170 people are ineligible to vote in Arizona because of felony convictions. According to the Sentencing ProjectOf that population, 25,492 are black.
If you have only one felony conviction, your civil rights will be automatically restored once your probation or compensation payment is complete.
A person who has committed two or more felonies must petition the court of first instance that sentenced them to have their civil rights restored. A judge will decide whether the person’s petition should be granted.
People sentenced to life probation cannot have their rights reinstated.
Lawsuit Against Apache County
Since March 30, the Campaign Legal Center has sent three public records requests to the Apache County Sheriff’s Office and Registrar’s Office.
Court records show that county officials gave no explanation as to why the documents were being withheld.
“The Apache County Sheriff’s Office and Apache County Recorder’s Office have escaped public scrutiny for too long,” the lawsuit said. It is necessary to ensure that the record is submitted immediately.”
ACLU attorney Jared Keenan said Arizona’s public records law is important because it allows officials to know what they’re doing and hold them accountable.
“Time and again, the ACLU has seen government agencies completely ignore their obligations to produce public records in a timely manner, undermining public trust in those agencies,” he said.
In its report on in-prison voting protocols, the Coalition provides ratings for each county. We gave Apache a ‘C’ rating in our July 2020 report, but not in our September report. This is because the county does not provide public records.
In a July report, the Coalition said Apache County had strong voting and voter education tools, but lacked a meaningful registration process.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2019 estimate, the county’s population is 75% Native American, 22.3% White, 0.6% Black, and 0.5% Asian.
Findings in Maricopa County
The Coalition’s July 2020 report documented the story of a man imprisoned in Maricopa County Jail in 2018. According to the man, he did not receive an absentee ballot that year. The Records Office told the Republic in August that primary and general election ballots had been mailed to prisons.
Leading up to the 2020 election, the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office and the Office of the Registrar have undertaken a new initiative to spread awareness about voter eligibility and prevent events from the previous year.
However, the Campaign Legal Center and the ACLU continued to receive complaints from inmates who tried to vote in the 2020 election year.
Several inmates claimed MCSO officials denied them pens. Arizona requires you to complete the voter registration form with a pen if you are completing it offline. The top of the form explains that a pen is required.
A sheriff’s office spokesperson said inmates are not allowed to use pens due to safety concerns. When confirmed, a notice was sent to staff on how to allow inmates to use the pens in a “safe environment.”
The Elections Bureau told the Republic on Thursday it had not received any complaints from inmates regarding the general election.
According to the ACLU, one inmate described the voter registration process as “obstructing.” Before he was finally registered, he had to fill out his three registration forms.
In March, a free phone line was created to connect inmates to early voting centers within the Office of Elections. Inmates can call if they need special assistance or have questions.
Inmates said it took weeks to inquire about their voter registration status. According to the inmate, when he was on the phone with an elections office employee, an MCSO official had him hang up and said the call had to be made earlier in the day.
According to the ACLU, some inmates have reported that MCSO officials provided false information about voter eligibility or directed them to non-existent voting information.
The Records Department told The Republic in August that it provides prison information that is downloaded to inmates’ tablets. It was the same teaching materials and resources that were offered to the general public.
Thinking About Arizona’s Legal System? Reach Out to Criminal Justice Reporter Lauren Castle Lauren.Castle@gannett.comFollow her on Twitter. @Lauren Castle.
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