Texas Appeals Court to Reexamine Crystal Mason's Voter Fraud Case

 

Texas's highest criminal court announced on Wednesday that it will reconsider the case of Crystal Mason, a Fort Worth woman who was sentenced to five years in prison for attempting to cast a provisional ballot in the 2016 presidential election, despite being ineligible to vote.

This announcement marks the latest development in Mason's nearly eight-year legal battle, which has drawn significant national attention due to the severity of her sentence. Mason, who was on supervised release for a federal tax felony at the time, was unaware that Texas law barred her from voting until she had fully completed her sentence. Her supervised release officer testified that they had not informed Mason of her ineligibility to vote.

Mason's provisional ballot, which she cast at the urging of her mother, was never counted. Prosecutors argue that Mason knew she was ineligible but attempted to vote regardless, a claim she has consistently denied. Voting rights advocates have pointed to Mason's case as an example of voter intimidation, particularly noting the disparity in punishments for similar offenses committed by white defendants.

The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals will be reviewing the case for a second time. In 2022, the court directed a lower court to reconsider its decision to uphold Mason's conviction. The lower court eventually overturned her conviction in March, but Tarrant County District Attorney Phil Sorrells decided to appeal the decision.

In his appeal, Sorrells contended that there was sufficient evidence to prove Mason understood she was ineligible to vote when she signed the affidavit on the provisional ballot. Mason, however, has maintained that she did not fully read the affidavit and would not have voted had she known she was ineligible.

The Court of Criminal Appeals has stated that it will make a decision without holding oral arguments. The timeline for the case's resolution remains unclear.

Mason expressed her desire for the case to conclude, stating, "While I am ready for this case to be over and for my acquittal to stand, I will continue to maintain my faith that justice will be done." Her legal team remains hopeful that the court will uphold her acquittal and protect the voting rights of all Texans.