Crystal Mason v. State of Texas
What's at Stake
Crystal Mason thought she was performing her civic duty by filling out a provisional ballot in the 2016 election. She didn’t know it would land her a five-year prison sentence, upending her family and the life she had built. At the time, Ms. Mason was on federal supervised release, a preliminary period of freedom for individuals who have served their full time of incarceration in federal prison. Ms. Mason didn’t know, and nobody told her, that the state considered her ineligible to vote while on supervised release. Because her name didn’t appear on voter rolls, she filed a provisional ballot, consistent with federal law. The state never counted her ballot but has still sought to send her to prison for an innocent mistake.
Summary
The State of Texas prosecuted Crystal Mason for the crime of “illegal voting,” which bars someone who “votes or attempts to vote in an election in which the person knows [they are] not eligible to vote.” Ms. Mason cast a provisional ballot in the 2016 election while under federal supervised release, which Texas claims makes her ineligible to vote. Her provisional ballot was never counted, and Ms. Mason cast it on the suggestion of a pollworker. She did not know that the state considered her ineligible to vote at the time but was still convicted in March 2018 and sentenced to serve five years in state prison.
As Ms. Mason has said: “I thought I was performing my civic duty and followed the election process by filling out a provisional ballot.”
The ACLU and ACLU of Texas began representing Ms. Mason in 2019 in her appeal of her conviction along with the co-counsel the Texas Civil Rights Project, Kim T. Cole, and Alison Grinter. In March 2020, the Court of Appeals for the Second District of Texas at Fort Worth affirmed Ms. Mason’s conviction. She then appealed the ruling before Texas’s highest criminal court.
In May 2022, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals agreed that the state’s election code requires prosecutors to prove that a voter realizes they are ineligible to cast a ballot to be criminally liable for “illegal voting.” The court sent Crystal Mason’s case back to the Court of Appeals for further review and in April 2023, the Second Court of Appeals heard arguments on remand. This appeal is still pending.
Legal Documents
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05/02/2023
Post Submission Letter Brief -
02/10/2023
Mason Reply on Remand -
11/22/2022
State's Brief on Remand -
10/14/2022
Brief on Remand -
12/17/2021
STATE’S RESPONSE TO APPELLANT’S SUPPLEMENTAL BRIEF -
12/07/2021
APPELLANT’S SUPPLEMENTAL BRIEF -
07/23/2021
APPELLANT’S REPLY BRIEF -
07/07/2021
STATE’S BRIEF ON THE MERITS -
05/18/2021
APPELLANT’S BRIEF ON THE MERITS -
12/01/2020
APPELLANT’S PETITION FOR DISCRETIONARY REVIEW -
07/01/2019
APPELLANT’S REPLY BRIEF -
05/23/2018
Mason Amicus Brief -
05/11/2022
Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas: Ruling remanding Ms. Mason’s appeal to the Court of Appeals for additional proceedings -
03/19/2020
Mason appeals ruling
Date Filed: 05/02/2023
Affiliate: Texas
Download DocumentDate Filed: 02/10/2023
Affiliate: Texas
Download DocumentDate Filed: 11/22/2022
Affiliate: Texas
Download DocumentDate Filed: 10/14/2022
Affiliate: Texas
Download DocumentDate Filed: 12/17/2021
Affiliate: Texas
Download DocumentDate Filed: 12/07/2021
Affiliate: Texas
Download DocumentDate Filed: 07/23/2021
Affiliate: Texas
Download DocumentDate Filed: 07/07/2021
Affiliate: Texas
Download DocumentDate Filed: 05/18/2021
Affiliate: Texas
Download DocumentDate Filed: 12/01/2020
Affiliate: Texas
Download DocumentDate Filed: 07/01/2019
Affiliate: Texas
Download DocumentDate Filed: 05/23/2018
Affiliate: Texas
Download DocumentDate Filed: 05/11/2022
Affiliate: Texas
Download DocumentDate Filed: 03/19/2020
Affiliate: Texas
Download DocumentPress Releases
Texas’ Highest Criminal Court Agrees to Review Crystal Mason Case
Crystal Mason’s Legal Team Seeks Review By Highest Criminal Court in Texas
ACLU of Texas Comment on Court Ruling in Crystal Mason’s Appeal
Crystal Mason’s Legal Team Appeals Illegal Voting Conviction
ACLU, TCRP File Amicus in Tarrant County Voter Prosecution Case