Criminal justice reform advocates rallied at the Connecticut State Capitol on Wednesday to call on Governor Ned Lamont (D) to uphold the state’s Clean Slate law.
Connecticut passed its Clean Slate law in 2021. It was supposed to automatically erase misdemeanors after seven years and certain low-class felonies after 10 years to make it easier for people with criminal records to find work and housing.
After some delay, Governor Ned Lamont announced in December that thousands of convictions would be erased at the beginning of 2024.
But as of now, advocates say more than 100,000 people are still waiting to have their records expunged.
Reverend Philippe Andal is the co-chair of Congregations Organized for a New Connecticut (CONECT), the organization that planned a rally at the Capitol to demand the law be upheld.
“We are joined by people today for whom justice has yet again been delayed, as they still have not received the expungement that our state promised them over two years ago,” Andal said. “And we know that there is really no such thing as delayed justice, there is really only denied justice”
Andal was alongside nearly 70 advocates in Hartford who called on the governor to clear the backlog of cases.
During the rally, clergy members washed the feet of six justice-impacted people on the steps of the Capitol. Andal said it’s especially symbolic during Holy Week — the final week of Lent that memorializes the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
“On this holiest Wednesday in the year of our Lord 2024, we as the people of faith in this state, we refuse to be Judas any longer, we will not sell our brothers and our sisters out,” Andal said. “And so now the state of Connecticut, Governor Lamont, and all of the criminal justice agencies in this state, you have a choice to make too. Your religious community has chosen not to betray those with records. And you have a choice today not to be governor Pontius Pilate, under whom our creed says Christ suffered.”
Adam Osmond said he was wrongfully convicted of a misdemeanor charge. He is still waiting to have his record expunged.
“I find it hard to believe that the state, with all its resources, would struggle to implement a law,” Osmond said. “Clean Slate bill should be implemented real quick. This is not just about recertifying and past errors, it's about enabling individuals who transform their lives to move forward without a shadow of discrimination.”
In a statement to WSHU, the state Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection said the delay is due to aging data systems and poor data quality.
Advocates called on Lamont to hire additional staff to fix the computer systems, create and fund a Clean Slate office to field questions, and simplify the relevant appeals forms. They also asked the administration to give regular updates on their progress.
Those demands were delivered in a letter to the governor by clergy members and advocates. Andal prayed over the letter and its messengers before they entered the Capitol building.
“Holy, righteous and just God, in every age when your humans have sinned against their brothers and sisters, you've sent forth holy prophets and mighty messengers, with a word of justice and correction for those in power,” Andal prayed. “We pray now in this moment during this holy time, that you would send forth these on behalf of those who have been denied justice for far too long.”
A state spokesperson told WSHU an estimated 65,000 people will have their convictions erased in the coming weeks, and all eligible erasures dating back to 2000 will be finished in the next 12 months.
Lamont’s budget proposals for fiscal year 2025 include funding for four additional staff at the Department of Correction to handle the backlog of cases.
