Pennsylvania ‘Clean Slate’ Law to Seal 30 Million Criminal Cases from Public View

The ‘Clean Slate’ law, passed in Pennsylvania in June of 2018, will see its first massive impact on Pennsylvania criminal court records over the next year.

From The Morning Call:

“Aimed at reducing the stigma that people with criminal records face while looking for jobs, education and housing, Pennsylvania’s Clean Slate law expands criminal record sealing to more types of offenses.

Starting Friday, an automated computer process will begin wiping cases from public databases. These include charges that were dropped or where individuals were found not guilty, as well as summary convictions and other nonviolent crimes that occurred more than 10 years ago.

Pennsylvania’s Clean Slate law is the first in the nation to automatically seal some criminal records via technology. The courts have a full year – until June 27, 2020 – to finish sealing all of the cases.”

The sealing of eligible cases does not, however, mean an expungement of past criminal convictions from a person’s record. While the cases will no longer be visible to public entities like Landlords and potential employers, all sealed case information will still be available to the police and law enforcement agencies. This as well means that all such eligible criminal cases will be hidden from view on all publicly-accessible case record systems in Pennsylvania.

The full text of the ‘Clean Slate’ law can be found HERE.

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