New project could help Centre County residents erase convictions from their records. How it works
Criminal justice reform advocates launched an organization Friday that’s aimed at helping certain people in Centre County effectively wipe convictions from their record, giving them an opportunity to live unfettered.
The Pardon Project of Centre County is one of about a dozen affiliated with the Pennsylvania Association of Pardon Projects. The organization trains volunteers to assist people with pardon applications, an emerging cornerstone of the state’s criminal justice movement.
April is recognized nationally as Second Chance Month.
“When folks think about, ‘Well, they just want to get somebody who is convicted of a crime off,’ it’s not that simple,” state Rep. Scott Conklin, D-Rush Township, said. “... Each individual is interviewed. Just to get to the interview process — to be in front of these individuals — it takes a lot of work and they’re filtered through to make sure that these individuals are those individuals that are deserving of it. And they are.”
Convictions can handicap people from obtaining employment, housing, licenses and more. A pardon represents total forgiveness. Applications can be filed at no cost and without a lawyer once someone serves their sentence, including probation.
The antiquated, paper-based process often takes several years to complete — Lt. Gov. John Fetterman is trying to change that — and requires a handful of court documents that can be burdensome to track down.
The Pardon Project — a coalition of lawyers, elected officials and others — aims to streamline and simplify the process. Volunteers will be trained to help people with their application.
“This is an economic development package,” organization co-founder and State College Borough Council member Gopal Balachandran said. “People who are able to get pardons are able to give back to their communities, they are able to get higher paying jobs and they are able to get jobs that — right now — they are barred from getting as a result of their criminal records.”
Only tens of people living in Centre County file pardon applications annually, Penn State adjunct law professor Sharon Barney said. She founded the organization alongside Balachandran and Krista Henry.
But the state Board of Pardons is processing more applications than ever as awareness has increased. Governor Tom Wolf has issued nearly 2,000 pardons during his tenure.
More than 80% of people who earn a hearing in front of the five-member board see their application granted.
“We need to be looking at second chances, not just about benefiting the people who have criminal convictions, but benefiting all of us,” board Secretary Celeste Trusty said. “It benefits taxpayers, it benefits all of us as neighbors.”
This story was originally published April 22, 2022 at 4:45 PM.