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North Carolina federal judge finds felony disenfranchisement law is unconstitutional

JURIST

A federal judge in North Carolina found on Tuesday that the state’s 147-year-old voting law is unconstitutional. US District Judge Loretta Biggs found that a state law, which prevents convicted felons from casting a vote, violates the Equal Protection Clause and the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the US Constitution.

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Disqualified voters challenge Virginia’s felony disenfranchisement provision

JURIST

Three Virginia citizens disqualified from voting due to felony convictions joined a nonprofit organization to file a lawsuit Monday in federal court against Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin and several state elections officials. The action challenges the felony disenfranchisement provision of the Virginia Constitution.

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Pennsylvania Supreme Court to decide constitutionality of mandatory life imprisonment for felony murder

JURIST

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court announced Friday that it will hear an appeal from Derek Lee, a man convicted of second-degree murder who is challenging the state’s law requiring mandatory life prison sentences for those found guilty of the offense who did not intend to kill.

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US Supreme Court declines to hear case regarding jury size in felony trials

JURIST

Six states in the US allow for trials before six or eight-person juries in felony cases: Arizona, Connecticut, Florida, Indiana, Massachusetts and Utah. The post US Supreme Court declines to hear case regarding jury size in felony trials appeared first on JURIST - News.

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Washington state expands voting rights for individuals with felony convictions

JURIST

Washington Governor Jay Inslee signed a bill into law Wednesday expanding voting rights for persons with felony convictions. HB 1078 automatically restores voting rights for people with felony convictions once completing a sentence of total confinement through the Washington Department of Corrections.

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The Unfinished Business of Felony Murder

The Crime Report

In 2017, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court abolished key aspects of its “felony murder rule,” the common law doctrine that made everyone involved in a felony that resulted in death guilty of first-degree murder—guilty even if they personally inflicted no violence and never intended to hurt anyone. The Rest of the Iceberg.

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“5th Circ. skeptical of ban on gun purchases by people facing felony charges”

HowAppealing

skeptical of ban on gun purchases by people facing felony charges”: Brendan Pierson of Reuters has this report. And Avalon Zoppo of The National Law Journal reports that “ Judge Frustrated Over Lack of Historical Analysis in Gun Rights Case.” “5th Circ. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit via this link.

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