https://github.com/codeforboston/clean-slate
https://github.com/codeforboston/clean-slate
code-for-boston criminal-justice expungement record-sealing
Last synced: 3 months ago
JSON representation
- Host: GitHub
- URL: https://github.com/codeforboston/clean-slate
- Owner: codeforboston
- Created: 2021-01-20T02:07:49.000Z (over 5 years ago)
- Default Branch: main
- Last Pushed: 2022-01-05T15:25:39.000Z (over 4 years ago)
- Last Synced: 2025-10-08T18:50:53.631Z (8 months ago)
- Topics: code-for-boston, criminal-justice, expungement, record-sealing
- Homepage:
- Size: 3.91 KB
- Stars: 4
- Watchers: 9
- Forks: 1
- Open Issues: 17
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Metadata Files:
- Readme: README.md
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README
# Clean Slate
_Expungement with Citizens for Juvenile Justice, Code for Boston, and legal aid services._
**Expungement:** "Having a criminal record expunged means that the record will be permanently destroyed so that it's no longer accessible by the court or any other state, municipal, or county agencies." - https://www.mass.gov/expunge-your-criminal-record
_Note: Expungement is different than sealing_
## What’s Wrong
If you ever got convicted of a crime or arraigned, even if it turns out someone made a mistake, you’ll have a criminal record. Anyone that does a background check, like an employer, sees that you have a criminal record and that’s the end of it. You lose out.
**Even something false or small can stop you from getting honest work, housing, education, and other opportunities.**
Massachusetts expungement laws were created in October of 2018, but almost no one can qualify and applying is hard. Sometimes it’s even a bad idea to expunge your records and people don’t know.
[Citizens For Juvenile Justice](https://www.cfjj.org/) is working with [Code for Boston](https://www.codeforboston.org/) (a civic tech volunteer organization) and legal aid services in the Boston area to tackle this problem on a project called Clean Slate.
## Who We Need
We need members of the community, legal professionals, community advocates, project managers, designers, technologists, and people passionate about criminal justice reform to help us understand what’s wrong with what we have and to try to make it better.
## Get Involved
- Join the [Code for Boston slack](https://communityinviter.com/apps/cfb-public/code-for-boston) and talk to us on the #clean-slate channel.
- Contact us by [filling out our interest form](https://forms.gle/FZrBfNjC6JNtsQXP7).
- Look at what we’ve done so far - we’re collecting what we learn in shared folders and some separate repositories.
- Our [shared folders](https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1EiEt97817QzZNip9X5yrsXAdPCqUdF0M?usp=sharing).
- This repo's [wiki](https://github.com/codeforboston/clean-slate/wiki), which contains notes on the policy impact data analysis efforts.
- An online [juvenile sealing app](https://github.com/knod/docassemble-juvenilesealing) that's currently under development.
## Our Goals
1. Make it easier for folks to apply for expungement.
1. Show what parts of the law are stopping most people from expunging their records.
1. Digitally organize to advocate for changes to the law.
## More Resources
[Huge document about both expungement and sealing](https://www.gbls.org/sites/default/files/2019-04/know-your-cori-rights-041819.pdf) (See item #14) created by [Greater Boston Legal Services](https://gbls.org/).