![]() ![]() It also made the filing fee discretionary with the court clerk, and required courts to both notify defendants of the availability of expungement and give reasons in writing if they deny this relief. Tennessee expanded eligibility for petition-based expungement from misdemeanors and Class E felonies to include Class D and C felonies. (This study follows on the heels of an inconclusive report from an executive working group charged with a similar study task in 2018.) South Dakota reduced the waiting period of its automatic sealing law (applicable to non-conviction records and some misdemeanors) from ten years to five. At the same time, Vermont authorized a broad legislative study of its expungement laws, including the prospects for automation, to be completed by the beginning of the next legislative session. Vermont took another step toward automation following last year’s automatic marijuana expungement law, by authorizing automatic expungement of motor vehicle-related violations. In other legislative developments, Maryland authorized automatic expungement of non-conviction records after a three-year waiting period, and established a work group to study partial expungement of charges not resulting in conviction. All three of these important new laws are described in greater detail later in this post. Continuing the trend toward automatic expungement, Connecticut enacted a major “clean slate” bill authorizing automatic “erasure” of most misdemeanors and many felonies. Alabama and Virginia both authorized petition-based expungement of adult conviction records for the first time, with Virginia making relief for some misdemeanors and non-convictions automatic. Three states enacted particularly significant new record relief schemes. (An earlier post noted new occupational licensing laws in 2021, and subsequent ones will describe significant extensions of the right to vote so far this year, and summarize the more than 100 record reforms enacted to date.) Further details of the laws mentioned below can be found in the relevant state profiles from the Restoration of Rights Project. The only closely comparable period is the first six months of 2018, when 11 states enacted major reforms limiting consideration of criminal records in occupational licensing. ![]() This post hits the highlights of what may well be the most extraordinary six-month period in the extraordinary modern period of criminal record reform that begin in 2013. Three of these states authorized sealing of convictions for the first time, seven states passed laws (or enrolled bills) providing authority for automatic sealing, and a number of additional states substantially expanded the reach of their existing expungement laws. In just the first six months of 2021, 25 states enacted no fewer than 51 laws authorizing sealing or expungement of criminal records, with another 5 states enrolling 11 bills that await a governor’s signature. This year is turning out to be another remarkable year for new record relief enactments. National Inventory of Collateral Consequences of Conviction (NICCC).Relief from Sex Offense Registration Obligations.Criminal Record in Employment, Licensing & Housing.Expungement, Sealing & Other Record Relief.Loss & Restoration of Firearms Rights under Federal Law.Loss & Restoration of Civil/Firearms Rights. ![]()
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