A Minnesota appeals court on Thursday stepped in to protect voting rights recently granted to felons under a new law, undoing a judge's effort to strip two convicts of their right to vote.
The Minnesota Court of Appeals found Mille Lacs County District Judge Matthew Quinn had no authority to find the new law unconstitutional.
The law, which took effect in July, says people with felony convictions regain the right to vote after they have completed any prison term.
In his orders, Quinn concluded the Legislature’s passage of the law did not constitute the kind of “affirmative act” he said was needed to properly restore a felon’s civil rights.
So he said he now has a duty going forward to “independently evaluate the voting capacity” of felons when they complete probation.
Persons:
Matthew Quinn, Quinn, ”, Donald Trump, Joe Biden
Organizations:
Minnesota
Locations:
Minnesota, Mille Lacs