Meade, originally convicted of drug crimes and, later, of aggravated assault and possession of a firearm, received a letter the same year the 2011 changes went into effect telling him he had to wait at least another year to petition to have his rights restored — more than five years after he had first applied.
He said he abandoned his effort and instead focused his efforts on revamping the system, pointing out that some people have waited more than a decade just for a hearing to have their rights restored.
“We know that the vetting of the applications could take upwards of 10 years and even then the decision of whether to restore someone’s civil rights is purely arbitrary and you can get denied for no reason at all,” Meade said. “It was really discouraging, so when I looked at it with my options, I knew that a better option would be to change current policies.”
Meade earned a law degree from Florida International University in 2014 but is unable to apply for a license to practice law until he has his rights restored.
