Law seeks to provide more opportunities to nonviolent, minor offenders

Have you ever been denied a job or housing opportunity because you have a nonviolent, dated criminal record?

A new Pennsylvania law, signed by Gov. Tom Wolf on Tuesday, seeks to change that.

The law aims to expand legislation regarding the sealing of nonviolent criminal records from the public.

Senate Bill 166 allows individuals who have served their punishment and remained free of arrest or prosecution for seven to 10 years, for nonviolent misdemeanors, the opportunity to petition the court for their record to be sealed from public view.

In a press release, Wolf stated that this new law “is a commonsense, positive and unprecedented step to help Pennsylvanians with minor or dated criminal records have a fighting chance at opportunities for gainful employment.”

Wolf also explained that “the United States is the world leader in incarceration and” that “a criminal record often carries a lifetime of consequences that often lead to poverty or re-incarceration.”

Crimes like DUIs would be protected under this law.

Just check the Centre County Prothonotary website and you’ll see thousands of records for individuals convicted of DUI.

Individuals like these, who remained free from prosecution for seven to 10 years, would be able to petition the Centre County District Attorney’s Office to remove the records from public view.

But it may come with its own set of limitations.

“The record, as I understand the legislation, would only be sealed from the public. Criminal justice entities would have the same access to the record, which means the commonwealth can use the record for the same lawful purposes it always has,” said Chief Public Defender David Crowley.

And Crowley is right. The bill states that “this act allows certain criminal records to be sealed, meaning that law enforcement and state licensing agencies will continue to have access to those records.”

Crowley also stated that his “office has long recognized the devastating effects on employability that accompany even an old minor criminal record. We successfully petition for the expungement of criminal records in more than 200 cases each year where our client has either been found not guilty or successfully completed the county’s ARD program.”

Centre County District Attorney Stacy Parks Miller says she supports the bill on the basis that it gives nonviolent, deserving people a second chance.

Nonetheless, she said that it can be burdensome on manpower in the District Attorney’s Office.

“This release valve on ‘pardon’ requests just shifts those people seeking relief over to the courts for resolution and we will become a party to the request. When expungement eligibility was expanded, we practically had to dedicate an entire person to handling the petitions and still do,” said Parks Miller.

Parks Miller also stated Tuesday that many departments, like hers, also “found themselves in the same position. The legislature often forgets about increasing manpower when they change procedure. Overall, the purpose behind the bill is important, people deserve to move forward after a one time nonviolent mistake. Notably, the District Attorneys Association supported this bill as well.”

Crowley expressed concern over the follow-through of this new law.

“I cannot think of a way ‘better sealing’ of criminal records would impact our representation of a client in a criminal court proceeding,” said Crowley.

Crowley also expressed concern over the financial burden convictees may face when attempting to petition the commonwealth.

“Unless the court starts appointing us to these cases, I believe that people seeking expungement/sealing under the new law will either have to hire private counsel or file the petitions on their own,” he said.

Nonetheless, the law did receive praise from Carmel Martin, executive vice president for policy at the Center for American Progress.

On Tuesday, Martin issued a press release applauding legislators and Wolf for “taking this important step to enable people with minor records to have a second chance. Having even a minor criminal record can present lifelong barriers to the basic building blocks of economic security and mobility, such as employment and housing, and can stand in the way of successful re-entry and participation in society.”

This story was originally published February 16, 2016 at 11:07 PM with the headline "Law seeks to provide more opportunities to nonviolent, minor offenders."