Voting rights are insult to victims, families

The action by the Nebraska Legislature to overturn Gov. Dave Heinemann's veto of felon voting rights was a slap in the face for the many victims -- and their families -- of violent crimes.

The law will automatically restore felons' voting rights two years after they have served their sentence. It was introduced as a way to increase voter turnout.

An increased voter turnout is little consolation to a family who has lost a loved one to murder, a woman who has been raped, or a child who has been molested.

At the very least, the Legislature should have amended the bill to exclude felons involved in violent crimes.

A better action would have been to decrease the waiting period for the pardon process from the current 10 years to three, as suggested by Nebraska Sen. Tom Baker in his weekly legislative phone conference at the McCook Chamber of Commerce.

That action would allow felons to vote, but only after they proved they had changed their lives to a degree that they deserved to have those rights restored.

While the argument may be made that felons have paid their debt to society, the question arises: What is the cost of a life?

Whether a life is taken literally -- through intentional homicide or unintentional manslaughter -- or figuratively -- through rape, molestation or disfigurement -- the debt can never fully be paid.

An action being considered on the federal level would force states to automatically allow felons to vote. In the March 14 edition of Newsweek, columnist George F. Will decries the federal governments attempts to legislate state election laws.

To those liberals supporting the overturn of state election laws and allowing felon voting, he asks, "Would you want Congress to overturn state laws that say felons can never again own or use guns?"

Voting in this country is a right of every citizen of the U.S. However under the 14th Amendment of the Constitution, voting rights cannot be denied "except for participation in rebellion, or other crimes."

Nowhere in that Amendment does it mention the restoration of the voting rights once the felon "pays his debt to society."

While it may be too late for this legislative session, in the very near future, the Nebraska Legislature needs to re-examine its decision. It's the least they can do for the victims of violent crimes.