Expungement for New York
The era of perpetual punishment must end: New York State needs an expungement law.
With very limited exclusions, criminal convictions are a matter of public record in New York State forever, even though in most cases they tell us nothing about a person, including whether that person is likely to be “risky” or “dangerous.”
This can create lifelong barriers to employment, education, housing, and civic involvement, no matter how much they have done to create positive change in their lives.
The legislation we are fighting for would:
Expungement for New York
Every New Yorker deserves full participation in their community. The permanency and resulting stigma of a criminal record means far too many have been stripped of this basic human right.
In most cases, criminal convictions are a matter of public record in New York forever. This can create lifelong barriers to housing, employment, and civic involvement no matter how much time has passed or how much work a person has done to create positive change in their lives. This is wrong. Criminal records should not be how we assess a person's character.
New York’s new sealing law, C.P.L. §160.59, is a first step but more must be done. First, relief needs to be made available to many more people, not just those people in the limited circumstances the law now provides. Second, relief needs to be meaningful, and for this to happen we need legislation that expunges – erases – criminal records rather than simply limiting the kinds of people who can see them, which is what sealing currently does. This is not an impossible dream. With the growing support for marijuana legalization have come intense discussions about expunging past marijuana convictions. We can expand these discussions – and our mandate – to convictions for other crimes as well, particularly those that are old and stale.
As a New Yorker, I take great pride in our state’s history as a progressive leader. Let’s make the promise of full participation in society real for all New Yorkers, and give everyone across our state a true opportunity to move beyond past mistakes while building our state’s workforce, economy, and community.
Thank you for your support on this issue.
The era of perpetual punishment must end: New York State needs an expungement law.
With very limited exclusions, criminal convictions are a matter of public record in New York State forever, even though in most cases they tell us nothing about a person, including whether that person is likely to be “risky” or “dangerous.”
This can create lifelong barriers to employment, education, housing, and civic involvement, no matter how much they have done to create positive change in their lives.
The legislation we are fighting for would:
- Make expungement relief available to as many people as possible, including those with multiple convictions and those with “violent” convictions;
- Make the passage of a specified amount of time since a person’s most recent conviction the only eligibility requirement; and
- Make applying for expungement an administrative process, where expungement is automatically granted as long as the eligibility requirements are met.
Expungement for New York
Every New Yorker deserves full participation in their community. The permanency and resulting stigma of a criminal record means far too many have been stripped of this basic human right.
In most cases, criminal convictions are a matter of public record in New York forever. This can create lifelong barriers to housing, employment, and civic involvement no matter how much time has passed or how much work a person has done to create positive change in their lives. This is wrong. Criminal records should not be how we assess a person's character.
New York’s new sealing law, C.P.L. §160.59, is a first step but more must be done. First, relief needs to be made available to many more people, not just those people in the limited circumstances the law now provides. Second, relief needs to be meaningful, and for this to happen we need legislation that expunges – erases – criminal records rather than simply limiting the kinds of people who can see them, which is what sealing currently does. This is not an impossible dream. With the growing support for marijuana legalization have come intense discussions about expunging past marijuana convictions. We can expand these discussions – and our mandate – to convictions for other crimes as well, particularly those that are old and stale.
As a New Yorker, I take great pride in our state’s history as a progressive leader. Let’s make the promise of full participation in society real for all New Yorkers, and give everyone across our state a true opportunity to move beyond past mistakes while building our state’s workforce, economy, and community.
Thank you for your support on this issue.
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