AN ACT TO RESTORE THE RIGHT OF SUFFRAGE TO ROBERT HENLEY OF NOXUBEE COUNTY, MISSISSIPPI.
Summary
House Bill 4149 is a private suffrage bill that restores the right to vote to Robert Henley of Noxubee County, Mississippi. The bill states that Henley lost his voting rights because of a 2002 embezzlement conviction in Lowndes County, for which he served a 60-month sentence under the supervision of the Mississippi Department of Corrections and was released in 2007.
The measure declares that Henley has since lived as a law-abiding and honorable citizen and therefore fully restores his right of suffrage. It is a narrowly tailored, person-specific act that takes effect immediately upon passage and does not create a general change to election law or felony disenfranchisement rules for other individuals.
Impact
HB4149 amends no general statutes and does not change Mississippi’s broader voter eligibility or felony disenfranchisement framework. Its legal effect is limited to restoring voting rights to a single named individual, Robert Henley, thereby removing his disqualification as an elector and allowing him to register and vote subject to the same rules that apply to other eligible voters.
Sentiment
The available record suggests a routine, noncontroversial suffrage restoration measure. There are no committee transcripts or recorded votes indicating debate, opposition, or amendment, and the bill passed the House as introduced. The language describing Henley as a law-abiding and honorable citizen indicates a favorable legislative view of his petition for restoration.
Contention
Because the bill is individualized, the main point of potential contention is the use of a special legislative act to restore voting rights to one person rather than a broader, automatic restoration process. In general, suffrage bills can raise questions about fairness, consistency, and whether the legislature should handle rights restoration case by case. However, no specific objections, opposing arguments, or named critics appear in the provided materials.