Louisiana won’t make more felons eligible for jury service

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Lawmakers in the Louisiana House have refused to make more convicted felons eligible for jury duty.

The House on Monday overwhelmingly voted down the proposal by Rep. Ted James, a Baton Rouge Democrat.

Louisiana currently bans convicted felons from serving on a jury if they haven't received a pardon. James proposed granting jury eligibility to people convicted of felony crimes who have been out of prison and off probation or parole for at least five years.

Only 26 members of the House voted for the legislation, while 62 voted against it.