Florida Governor Ron DeSantis vetoed a criminal reform bill on Tuesday that had been unanimously approved by the state’s local legislators, a political movement whose cause is still unknown, according to The Hill news portal. .
The legislation, The Hill reported, is tentatively named House Bill 605, and would reform a Florida statute regarding the expungement of criminal records and histories.
Currently, the current law prevents individuals from erasing their criminal history, unless the interested party seeks to erase a criminal record that has been classified for 10 years. Additionally, individuals who have previously received an expungement of their criminal records may not request a new expungement.
These two aspects are precisely the ones that were going to be addressed by the bill that was vetoed by Governor DeSantis.
According to The Hill, the bill was intended to establish a new possibility of expunging criminal records for crimes committed by convicts who were tried as minors.
David Smith, a Republican state representative from Florida, first introduced the bill.
Smith declared, according to The Tampa Bay Times, that he believed that the erasure of criminal records would allow people to work to the best of their abilities, and that this measure would address the workforce shortage in the state.
“I am committed to good justice reform, giving deserving Floridians a second chance,” Smith told The Tampa Bay Times.
Despite this, Smith indicated to The Hill that it is not planned for local legislation to block the veto, for the moment, but that he will work together with the governor’s staff to improve certain points of the bill and that it can be approved on next year.
According to sources consulted by NBC News, Governor DeSantis issued the veto as a political maneuver to portray himself as a presidential candidate firmly committed to law and order.
In fact, according to The Hill, DeSantis assured that, if elected president, he would urge the United States Congress to eliminate the First Step Act, a regulation approved by former President Donald Trump that reduced the minimum sentences for those guilty of crimes and offers facilities for well-behaved prisoners.
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