Opinion: Restoring the right to serve on juries for people with felony convictions

As the first formerly incarcerated person elected to the New York state Legislature, I am charged with making law that betters the lives of New Yorkers, but I cannot participate in the civic duty that is jury service. As a young man, I made mistakes, served my time and turned my life around. But I have seen firsthand how the system continues to punish people long after they’ve completed their sentences. It denies them jobs, housing and the fundamental right to serve on a jury. 

That’s why I am proud to sponsor the Jury of Our Peers Act, a bill that would expand civic participation rights by ending New York’s permanent bar on jury service for anyone with a past felony conviction. 

At a time when democracy itself is under attack, we cannot afford to uphold laws rooted in exclusion, particularly when inclusion would make our justice system fairer. The right to a fair trial depends on a jury that reflects our communities. But because of racial disparities in policing and arrests, New York’s felony juror ban has denied too many defendants – particularly Black and brown New Yorkers – the right to have their case considered by jurors that share their lived experiences. The Jury of Our Peers Act is critical in ensuring that defendants are provided with their right to a fair and diverse jury, as well as ensuring that those who have served their time can take part in strengthening our democracy. 

Currently, New York permanently bans anyone with a felony conviction from jury service, placing our state behind the majority of other states and out of step with a growing movement to end felony juror bans. Currently, 26 states and Washington, D.C., have less restrictive jury exclusion rules than the Empire State. In 2021 both Florida and Louisiana – states not traditionally known for progressive criminal justice policies – ended lifetime bans on jury service.  Other states, including Indiana, North Dakota, Iowa, Maine, Colorado, Illinois and Washington automatically restore jury rights upon release from incarceration or have no legal exclusions for incarcerated individuals. 

In 2021, New York restored the right to vote to people with felony convictions upon release from incarceration – and it is past time that jury eligibility be restored congruently. I see every day how our state’s felony juror ban disproportionately harms the community in which I live and that I was elected to represent. Across Manhattan approximately 40% of Black men are barred from jury service due to felony convictions. Decades of over-policing and over-incarceration have led to the systematic exclusion of Black New Yorkers from juries – weakening the very system meant to ensure fairness in our courts. 

As a result, public defenders routinely advise clients to take plea deals – not because they are guilty, but because they know that homogeneous juries spend less time deliberating, make more mistakes in analyzing the facts of a case and make decisions without consideration for their own implicit biases. For Black and Latine defendants, this means a fair trial is nearly impossible. 

Research confirms this reality: diverse juries deliberate longer, discuss more case facts and make fewer factual errors than all-white juries. There is evidence that people with felony convictions are no more or less biased than any other person, and in fact, may be even more thoughtful and deliberative jurors. 

Last year, Gov. Kathy Hochul vetoed a bill that would have restored the right to serve on a jury upon completion of sentence, citing administrative difficulties in identifying who was disqualified from jury service and in administering the law. The Jury of Our Peers Act that is now before the Legislature eliminates such concerns by restoring eligibility for jury service immediately upon release. This bill would allow any individual – whether they have a past conviction or not – to have their ability to serve as an impartial juror be individually assessed. 

Restoring jury service rights strengthens our legal system. More inclusive juries improve deliberations and build greater trust in verdicts. We recognized this principle when we restored voting rights for people with felony convictions in 2021, and we must do the same for jury service. New York must act now. We urge our colleagues in the Legislature to pass this bill again – and for the governor to sign it into law. Justice cannot wait.