A #Texas appeals court reversed the conviction of #CrystalMason, a Black woman, who had been sentenced to 5 yrs in prison on a charge of illegally voting in 2016, acquitting her in a case that #CivilRights attys cast as part of a broader fight for #VotingRights.
Mason voted w/a provisional ballot in 2016 but did not know she was ineligible to do so. The ballot WAS NOT COUNTED, but she was convicted in 2018.
#Texas 2nd Court of Appeals Judge Wade Birdwell ruled that there was not enough evidence to show #CrystalMason had known she was ineligible to vote.
The case had been seen as an example of a #GOP-led crackdown on alleged [BS] voter fraud in TX, & Mason’s attys framed it as an attempt at intimidating other voters, particularly people of color & those returning from prison, by making an example of Mason. #law#ElectionLaw#VoterIntimidation#VoteSuppression#BlackVotesMatter#democracy#VoteBlue
#CrystalMason, a fmr tax preparer, had served a prison sentence for fed tax fraud after pleading guilty to inflating her clients’ tax returns in 2012 & was on supervised release in 2016.
She didn’t know that made her ineligible to vote when she cast a provisional ballot at her polling place in #Texas. She went to vote w/her family & was told by a poll worker that she wasn’t on the rolls but could fill out a provisional ballot. #law#GOP#VoterIntimidation#BlackVotesMatter#democracy#VoteBlue
She had no idea she would soon be indicted on a charge of illegal voting. She later said that she would not have jeopardized her freedom by submitting a ballot & would have left the polling place if she’d known she wasn’t allowed to vote. #Election workers checking provisional ballots — as is routine — later determined Mason was ineligible, so her ballot was never counted.
#SouthCarolina to use #CongressionalMap deemed #unconstitutional #SCOTUS heard arguments on the redistricting case in Oct but has yet to rule🤬, essentially running out the clock for the #2024election. A #federal#court ruled Thurs that time had run out to draw a new congressional district in #SC & said the state could use its existing map even though it had earlier determined that map was unconstitutional.
The panel of 3 judges last year concluded that #SouthCarolina’s #Republican-led #legislature “exiled” 30k #BlackVoters from the district to make it safer for a #White#GOP incumbent, Rep #NancyMace. #SC appealed, & both sides asked #SCOTUS to expedite the case to ensure a final ruling was in place well ahead of #election season. The justices heard arguments in October but have yet to rule.
Last yr the panel…found the map illegally split neighborhoods in the #Charleston area to make #NancyMace’s race easier. The new lines constituted a #RacialGerrymander that “exiled >30k African American citizens from their previous district,” the panel found.
In arguments before #SCOTUS in Oct, attys for #SouthCarolina argued that lawmakers had not relied on race to draw maps in violation of the #Constitution. Rather, they used #political info to decide…, they said.
During arguments, a majority of the #SupremeCourt appeared inclined to reinstate the lines the state had wanted. 5 months later, the justices have yet to rule. Both sides had asked the justices to rule by Jan.
By hanging onto the case, #SCOTUS effectively allowed the clock to run out for the #2024election.
The decision from U.S. District #Judge Steve Jones likely ensures that #Republicans will maintain their 9-5 advantage among the state's 14 seats in the U.S. #House of Representatives.