“A large percentage of Missourians who could to have their criminal records ‘expunged’ have not done so, despite the effects expungement — referred to as ‘clean slate’ — can have on earnings and opportunities.” “Baker noted many individuals whose records are not expunged struggle to get hired at all, leading to high rates of unemployment.” […]

On March 22, 2023, Vox Creative made the case for Clean Slate legislation based on Paper Prisons’ “second chance gap” research.

“There is a bill this legislative session that will provide that second chance to thousands of Oregonians. Senate Bill 698, or the “Clean Slate’’ act (sponsored by Sen. Manning), automatically expunges criminal records for people who are eligible. Current law states that individuals convicted of low-level offenses who have completed their sentence and then remained

“In 2021, I co-published a report with Paper Prisons about people in Connecticut with convictions. I also testified for the Clean Slate bill, passed in May 2021, which was supposed to erase the records of misdemeanor and low-level felony convictions after seven or ten years without any conviction. The law was supposed to take effect in January

“The Clean Slate Initiative works to expand and automate the sealing of arrest and conviction records after people have completed their sentence and remained crime-free for a period of time,” according to the organization’s website.” “According to the non-profit’s website, they have helped pass legislation to pave the way for over 7 million people who

“According to the ACLU of Oregon, about 42% of Oregonians with criminal records were eligible to have their records expunged in 2021 – about 300,000 people. But less than 10% of those eligible did, said Scott Sharp, an attorney with the Metropolitan Public Defender office in Portland. A forthcoming amendment to the bill would exclude all “person crimes”

“After being released, Griffin-Braaf faced a number of barriers as a result of his conviction for selling cocaine, including not being eligible to receive Federal Student Aid. That killed his college dreams. (Such aid would likely have been available to him today.)” “While Griffin-Braaf persevered, moving up from temp jobs and cleaning hotel toilets to

“Gov. Ned Lamont’s proposed budget includes $1.5 million in American Rescue Plan funds for the state’s delayed ‘clean slate’ effort. Clean slate — a series of laws expected to go into full effect on Jan. 1 until a delay was announced in early December  — will erase the criminal records of people with certain low-level convictions.

“The November election scrambled the politics of crime in Minnesota. Republican campaigns were hyper-focused on the issue, which followed years of rising violent crime and frequent — and at times sensationalist — media coverage. Democrats ran the table in November anyway.    A legislative session that many expected to focus on tougher criminal penalties and lots of

BY KAYODE CROWN “Over a decade ago ago, nine of Kimberly Harris’ acquaintances told the police she burglarized a neighbor’s house in Jackson, Miss. After her arrest, the police released her because “there was no evidence.” Her accusers later went to jail for “false accusation,” Harris, now 38 years old, told the Mississippi Free Press in