Gov. Tom Wolf signs law that opens the door to giving ex-criminal offenders a 'clean slate'
Pennsylvania is now blazing a new trail in criminal justice that will automatically seal an ex-offender's record of lower-level non-violent crimes from public disclosure for someone who has been conviction-free for 10 years.
Gov. Tom Wolf on Thursday signed the bipartisan-backed legislation, referred to as the "Clean Slate," in front of lawmakers who championed the bill as well as advocates who worked for several years to make this change in state law happen.
The impetus behind the bill is to remove the stigma that can stand in the way of someone getting a job, housing, college admission or loans if they had convictions for a summary offense and some misdemeanor, served their sentence, and have lived on the right side of the law for a decade.
"This legislation is an incredibly important piece of my administrations commitment to helping formerly incarcerated or arrested individuals get their lives back on track and stay away from past actions," Wolf said.
Read more: https://www.pennlive.com/politics/index.ssf/2018/06/gov_tom_wolf_signs_law_that_op.html