CHARLOTTE, N.C. — It started with frustrations with the judicial system for Daquan Peters as he served his time in prison, and those frustrations have followed as he tries to make a new life outside bars.
"I was sentenced to 262 months in prison," Peters said. "I'm home, I've been working, I've been doing everything I'm supposed to do."
And yet, Peters doesn't feel like a full citizen, a part of the community.
Earlier this month, a North Carolina appeals court temporarily blocked the enforcement of a ruling that declared people with felonies can vote while still serving their probation or parole sentence.
The ruling impacts more than 50,000 North Carolinians.
The North Carolina State Board of Elections informed local county election officials they could still take voter registration forms from people with felons serving probation or parole, but they could not approve and grant them the ability to vote.
Peters said the back and forth in the courts is frustrating and confusing.
"People don't know legal terminology," Peters said. "All they hear is people on probation can't vote. These are just more barriers and hurdles that are placed in front of us."
If a felon is caught voting when he or she is not supposed to, they could face more legal trouble. Peters said this situation is causing many people like him to ask questions and become even more frustrated.
"I feel as long as I'm paying taxes, as long as I'm abiding the law, as long as I'm not causing harm in my community, I should be able to vote," Peters said.
It's possible the ruling could be overruled by the North Carolina Supreme Court. Justices got a motion earlier this month, asking to take over the case and hear broader appeals.
"I'm not a monster," Peters said. "I'm not an animal. I'm not any of these things that they're saying that I am. Why is it that they don't want us to be able to vote? There's no logical reason why they could come and tell me I can't vote other than I'm on probation. Why is that? Because you don't see me as being a citizen. You don't see me as being a human being, you don't see me as a full human being."
The clock is ticking for the court to make a decision for the thousands of voters stuck in limbo.
Eligible voters have until April 22 to register to vote by mail or on primary election day.
Voters can still register to vote in person during early voting from April 28 to May 14.