RECORD CLEARANCE
[Last Edition: Spring 2022] SJSU Justice Studies students clear criminal convictions from records.
Many people are affected by their criminal history. More than 65 million adult Americans have a criminal record;1 in 4 adult Californians has an arrest or conviction record on file with the State (National Employment Law Project, 2012). With the help of volunteer attorneys and legal professionals, Justice Studies students have helped over 150 San José residents, including the homeless, clear their legal records.
The criminal justice system adversely and disproportionately affects Latinos and African-Americans in relation to their representation in the population The law limits how employers use criminal histories in employment decisions to protect civil rights
(Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 2012).
Clearing a Record Matters For…
*Jobs
*Housing
*Family Unification
*Public Assistance
*Dignity
*Fairness
Many people are unaware of the expungement remedies for which they are eligible. A recent RCP poll showed only 13% of the 182 inmates surveyed knew that the law requires courts to dismiss most jail convictions upon successful
completion of probation. Since 2010, the RCP has presented information regarding expungement law and procedure at 83 community education presentations with over 4050 people attending Since January 2012, the RCP has individually interviewed 348 people at Speed Screening sessions to advise them regarding their eligibility for expungement and appropriate next steps.
Record Clearance Project: Life-Changing for Students and Clients
Participants’ reflections on their RCP experience convey the power of the project to open new worlds of possibility.
When the judge said that she was granting the expungement [for my client], I could not help but cry a little. . . . I did not pursue this kind of internship for the thanks or gratitude, but to help someone change his life for the better. Mr. C was so happy that he had tears of joy, and his fiancée was so very proud of him . . . The feeling I had in my heart was something that I do not have words for . . . Knowing that I was able to help someone change the course of his life, better support his family, and give him a new sense of self is a chance of a lifetime. When the judge said that she was granting the expungement [for my client], I could not help but cry a little. . . . I did not pursue this kind of internship for the thanks or gratitude, but to help someone change his life for the better. Mr. C was so happy that he had tears of joy, and his fiancée was so very proud of him . . . The feeling I had in my heart was something that I do not have words for . . . Knowing that I was able to help someone change the course of his life, better support his family, and give him a new sense of self is a chance of a lifetime.
– Tanya DeBorba, RCP student
The RCP team accepted me as a client in July and began working on the petitions to expunge my record. Within a matter of weeks, I received an email with the written petitions. I went to court twice in September. At both court dates, the judges cleared my record without hesitation. They were impressed with the well-written petitions. The judges also mentioned they were happy to see that I turned my life around.
A month later, I was offered a job. They said I passed the background check. These are words I haven’t heard in a very long time.
-VN, a client served by RCP
Donate to the Record Clearance Project today by clicking on the image or going to: www.sjsu.edu/advancement/links/giving
Commendation from Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors
“Today the County of Santa Clara Board of Supervisors commended the San Jose State University Record Clearance Project, which provides support to the Probation Adult Services Division, the Public Defender Office, and the Office of the District Attorney, by assisting community members to clear eligible criminal convictions from their records.
Last month, the Project received the Dean’s Award from the University’s Dean of the College of Applied Sciences and Arts, in recognition of its significant accomplishments in community service and education.
“I would like to thank everyone who has been involved in this vital partnership,” said Supervisor George Shirakawa, President County of Santa Clara Board of Supervisors. “Because of your service to the community, ex-offenders have a chance at employment again, so they provide for their families and be productive. We appreciate your dedication and hard work.”” (Mitchell and Hinestrosa, 2012)
The Record Clearance Project was featured in The Metro:
“Norma Burns knows hard times. Her adopted parents abused her as a child, and from the time she was 4 years old until she became an adult, she says, she was raped multiple times.
“No one protected me,” Burns says.
Following the worst of these incidents, Burns came home to California and joined the army. The service offered some stability, yet not long after she joined the army, she started drinking and smoking crack.
“I was living with this gentleman, and I was basically in an abusive relationship,” Burns recalls. “It just so happened in that particular night, him and I got into an argument, an altercation, and in my struggle in trying to get away, I scratched him right above his eyebrow, like as long as your fingernail.”
Police took pictures for evidence. She had no visible injuries, but her bodybuilder ex-boyfriend did. Burns, 53, was placed in jail for eight months and forced to take a year of domestic-violence classes. A couple years went by after the fraud and assault charges, and Burns started to take steps to put her life back together, visiting the Center for Employment Training (CET) in 2006.
“While I was going there I had a police record, and I had asked them, ‘For the field of work that I’m getting into, can I actually get into that field with a record?’ They said, ‘Well, down the line, we’re going to have students come in from San Jose State. We’re going start a program here, to implement a program, to get your record expunged.’
“That was the turning point in my life,” Burns says. “I knew that I needed to slow down and get my life together”” (Ramalho, 2012).
Spartan Daily, SJSU’s newspaper, also covered the Record Clearance Project:
“Lozano said she will be attending SJSU in the fall to further study sociology and the Record Clearance Project “made it possible” for her to achieve her goals./p>
Several Record Clearance Project students and volunteers said being able to change the lives of clients is one of the program’s most rewarding aspects./p>
Hayman said the first time she exited the courtroom with her newly cleared client, they both cried./p>
She said it was an overwhelming feeling “knowing I helped her do that.”/p>
Stevenson said the Record Clearance Project gives people hope and second chances” (Hochmuth, 2013).
References
Hochmuth, Amanda. (2013, May 8). Record Clearance Projects Turns Convictions into Second Chances. Spartan Daily.
Retrieved from http://spartandaily.com/105278/record-clearance-project-turns-convictions-into-second-chances
Mitchell, Gwendolyn and Hinestrosa, Marina. (2012, June 19). County Applauds Partnership with San Jose State University Record Clearance Project.
Santa Clara County Office of Public Affairs.
Retrieved from http://www.sccgov.org/sites/opa/nr/Pages/County-Applauds-Partnership-with-San-Jose-State-University-Record-Clearance-Project.aspx
Ramalho, Lena (2012, November 21). Record Clearance Project at San José State. The Metro.
Retrieved from http://www.sanjose.com/news/2012/11/21/record_clearance_project_at_san_jose_state
Newsletters
Department of Justice Studies (2012, April). Advance, News from the San José State University Record Clearance Project. Spring 2011.
Retrieved from http://justicestudies.sjsu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/Advance-Spring-20111.pdf
Department of Justice Studies (2012, April). Advance, News from the San José State University Record Clearance Project. Winter 2011.
Retrieved from http://justicestudies.sjsu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/Advance-Winter-2011_Web.pdf