From Community Legal Services (https://clsphila.org/):
NOTE: Passage of this legislation was a priority for the Council’s Public Witness last year—we are pleased that it is moving on the path to full implementation.
Community Legal Services is pleased to provide an update on implementation of the Clean Slate Act in Pennsylvania. You can download the report here.
On June 28, 2018, Governor Tom Wolf of Pennsylvania signed Act 56 of 2018, more commonly known as the Clean Slate Act. With its signing, Pennsylvania became the first state in the nation to enact automated sealing of criminal records by technology. Instead of expunging or sealing cases one by one with the filing, adjudication, and processing of petitions, millions of cases will be sealed by algorithms. Automated sealing will permit Pennsylvania to close the large “second chance gap” between those eligible for expungement or sealing and those who actually benefit, by allowing cases to be sealed in a volume not possible in the absence of technology.
The Clean Slate Act provides that automated sealing will begin on June 28, 2019. Sealing of the inventory of millions of eligible cases will be completed by June 27, 2020. With fewer than four months until June 28th, the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts (“the Courts”) and the Pennsylvania State Police (“the State Police”) are on target for successful implementation of automated sealing by the onset date.
Meanwhile, Phase 1 of the Clean Slate Act, which expanded eligibility for sealing in Pennsylvania to most misdemeanor convictions, started on December 26, 2018. Phase 1 implementation marked the kick-off for public awareness of the Clean Slate Act around the state, featuring the following.
- The creation of the Clean Slate Screening Project, through which hundreds of volunteer lawyers are screening records and providing advice to the more than 7,500 Pennsylvanians who have signed up for assistance.
- The establishment of MyCleanSlatePA.com as a statewide resource.
- A press conference by Governor Wolf that generated statewide press about Clean Slate.
At present, Community Legal Services (CLS) and its many partners are working to insure the best and fullest possible implementation of the law. The issues that we are working on include the following.
- Insertion of missing data, such as grading information, into the Courts’ database.
- Resolution of court fines and costs that prevent sealing of convictions.
- Extending the implementation of Pennsylvania’s sealed cases to FBI background checks.
Finally, CLS has published numerous resources explaining the Clean Slate Act, leading to better understanding of the law among lawyers, court personnel, policy makers, and the public.
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