Subject: [stop-polabuse] Fwd: ACLU Challenges Illegal Disfranchisement
Of American Indian Voters In South Dakota
Date: Fri, 12 Feb 2010 23:39:08 -0800
From: Michael Novick <antiracistaction_ la@yahoo. com>
To: stop-polabuse@ yahoogroups. com
>
>"Felony disfranchisement laws in South Dakota
>have a disproportionate impact on American
>Indians, who represent the majority of those
>convicted of felonies at the federal level"
>
>=========== ========= ========= ========= ========= ========
>
http://www.aclu. org/racial- justice-voting- rights/aclu- challenges- illegal-disfranc hisement- american- indian-voters- south-d <http://www.aclu. org/racial- justice-voting- rights/aclu- challenges- illegal-disfranc hisement- american- indian-voters- south-d>
>
>ACLU Challenges Illegal Disfranchisement Of
>American Indian Voters In South Dakota
>
>February 8, 2010
>
>FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
>CONTACT: (212) 549-2666; media@aclu.org <mailto:media% 40aclu.org>
>
>SIOUX FALLS, SD The American Civil Liberties
>Union filed an amended class action lawsuit in
>federal court today to restore the voting rights
>of American Indians who were illegally
>disfranchised in the 2008 presidential election.
>The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court
>for the Western District of South Dakota on
>behalf of Kim Colhoff, Eileen Janis and others,
>who attempted to vote in the election but were
>improperly removed from the voter rolls due to
>felony convictions. Because state law only
>disfranchises individuals sentenced to prison
>and both women were just sentenced to probation,
>election officials unlawfully took away their voting rights.
>"Felony disfranchisement laws in South Dakota
>have a disproportionate impact on American
>Indians, who represent the majority of those
>convicted of felonies at the federal level,"
>said Robert Doody, Executive Director of the
>ACLU, South Dakota Chapter. "Worse still, it's
>clear that confusion regarding the South Dakota
>felony disfranchisement laws has resulted in
>legitimate voters, even those who haven't been
>incarcerated for felony convictions, being
>purged from the rolls or denied the ability to
>register to vote or cast their ballots."
>
>The lawsuit charges that South Dakota officials'
>illegal disfranchisement of individuals with
>felony convictions has had a disproportionate
>and negative impact on American Indian voters
>who are overly represented in South Dakota's
>criminal justice system. The lawsuit also
>contends that the removal of individuals' names
>from the state and county voter registration
>lists based on felony convictions for which they
>were sentenced only to probation violates their
>rights to equal protection and due process under
>the federal and state constitutions, the Help
>America Vote Act, the National Voter
>Registration Act and Sections 2 and 5 of the
>Voting Rights Act. The lawsuit names Secretary
>of State Chris Nelson, Shannon County Auditor
>Sue Ganje and members of the state board of elections as defendants.
>
>The ACLU originally filed the lawsuit in
>February 2009 on behalf of Colhoff and Janis.
>The amended lawsuit filed today represents a
>class of individuals in South Dakota with felony
>convictions who were denied the right to vote
>despite the fact that they were never incarcerated.
>
>Colhoff and Janis, both residents of Pine Ridge,
>South Dakota, registered to vote for the first
>time in 1974 and 1984, respectively, and
>remained on the voter rolls until early 2008,
>after they were each convicted of a felony
>offense and sentenced to five years probation
>but no jail time. Despite the fact that South
>Dakota only disfranchises those sentenced to
>prison, Colhoff and Janis were removed from the
>voter rolls without any notice and denied the
>right to vote at their polling places when they
>attempted to vote in the 2008 presidential
>election. In front of several other voters,
>election officials refused to allow Janis to
>cast either a regular or provisional ballot.
>
>"I will never get the chance to go back and make
>my voice heard," said Janis. "It deeply disturbs
>me that my right to vote was taken away because
>of administrative incompetence. No one should be
>denied a ballot just because election workers
>don't understand the rules. It's really hard not
>feeling like a second-class citizen when one of
>my most fundamental rights has been stolen from me."
>
>"What happened to our clients represents the
>tragedy that occurs when election officials do
>not know how to administer the law," said Nancy
>Abudu, senior staff attorney with the ACLU
>Voting Rights Project. "Not only did election
>administrators take away their constitutional
>rights, but they robbed them of the opportunity
>to participate in this historic election."
>
>Attorneys on this case are Abudu, Bryan Sells
>and Laughlin McDonald of the ACLU Voting Rights
>Project; Doody of the ACLU, South Dakota
>Chapter; and cooperating attorney Patrick Duffy.
>
>A copy of today's proposed second amended
>complaint in Janis v. Nelson is available at:
>www.aclu.org/ racial-justice- voting-rights/ janis-v-nelson- second-amended- complaint- pending-court- approval- requesti
>
>An ACLU report providing a historical overview
>of systemic discrimination against American
>Indians, limiting their ability to participate
>in local, state and national elections, can be
>found at:
www.aclu.org/ votingrights/ minority/ 41203pub20090930 .html
>
>More information about the ACLU Voting Rights
>Project is available at:
www.votingrights. org