Connecticut is finally caught up on criminal erasures under its Clean Slate law, after years of delays.
The law was passed in 2021. It was supposed to automatically erase misdemeanors after seven years and certain low-class felonies after 10 years. Erasures were supposed to start at the beginning of 2023, but old computers slowed the process down considerably.
Now, all 170,000 people who were eligible have had their records erased, according to the state. That amounts to nearly 350,000 cases.
Rick Green is with the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection, which is in charge of overseeing the program.
“When the legislature passed this law, people hadn't taken into account how complicated a process this was,” Green said. “To erase criminal records that may lie in literally dozens of different law enforcement agencies, from your local police to courts to the correction department. So it was a substantial job.”
Erasures are now happening automatically, on a rolling basis as people become eligible. Connecticut is one of 13 states to have a substantial Clean Slate law, and has been credited with having one of the most progressive in the country.
Green credited advocates for working with the state throughout the process.
“People were very upset when we weren't able to quickly follow through with a timeline that the legislation had envisioned, you know, justifiably so,” Green said. “One of the positives of all of this is that DESPP worked very closely with the advocates in the community who had been raising questions about the problems. So there was a very good relationship.”
At a press event in March, Governor Ned Lamont and advocates celebrated the full rollout of the law. Among them was a woman asked only to be identified as Miss Smith. She was one of many Connecticut residents who waited longer than expected to see her record erased.
But Miss Smith said the feeling was worth the wait.
“I didn't know what it felt like not to have that weight on my shoulders,” Miss Smith said. “I carried it for so long. It has started to feel like me, like that's just who I was, a woman with a record, but that's not who I am.”
Now, advocates say they’re focused on making sure people know their records have been erased. Green said they hope to have a system set up by the end of this year, a portal that will be free to use.
However, “given our record here of struggling sometimes, I don't think we should be held to that exactly, but that seems to be on track,” Green said.
Additionally, DESPP is working to match people who have had their records erased with jobs and workforce training.
See if you qualify for erasure under the Clean Slate law here.
