Starting in July 2023, the new law will seal the record of about 230,000 Californians who have served time in prison — according to the criminal justice reform group Alliance for Safety and Justice.
This will include, prior offenders, who have completed their sentences and kept clear - of the justice system - for four years – and any Californians whose arrests didn’t lead to a conviction.
Exceptions to the measure include sex offenders and violent felonies, such as murder, kidnapping or rape.
The law will not erase a person’s criminal record. Background checks will still disclose criminal histories.
In the past few years, a nationwide movement known as “Clean State” has pushed to clear, or seal eligible offenses from public view, to limit discrimination and lost opportunities for ex-felons.
The bill’s author, State Senator María Elena Durazo said to The Los Angeles Times, “about 75 percent of formerly incarcerated individuals are still unemployed after a year of their release.”
She added in a statement, “we cannot continue to pour billions of dollars into rehabilitative services while at the same time - exclude people from positively contributing to their communities.”
The state’s largest law enforcement labor organization, the Peace Officers Research Association of California, said in a statement that criminals “will have less deterrent to commit another crime.”
