To the editor:

So there are a half dozen or so individuals employed by the largest employer in Lawrence who have felony convictions? The last time I checked, we still restored civil rights in Kansas, and those convicted must work somewhere.

At the end of 1998, I retired from the Department of Corrections. There are a lot of folks who happen to be convicted who pose no significant threat to the public. If they are employed and have a strong work ethic they are less likely to reoffend and again become a burden on the general fund.

Our Constitution abolished bills of attainder and we never established outlawry in this country. Prohibition from employment would be, in effect, such a violation of our basic founding law.

Earl L. Haehl,

Lawrence