Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania Gives Ex-Criminals Chance for Clean Slate

People who served their time in Pennsylvania and have spent years crime free can now petition to get a clean slate.

Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf signed a bill Tuesday morning that allows individuals who have served their punishment for nonviolent third- and second-degree misdemeanors and avoided arrest or prosecution for seven to 10 years to petition the court to get their record expunged.

"This legislation proposes that the commonwealth join a growing number of states that have expanded their expungement laws to reduce the period during which a minor criminal record can punish people," said a news release from the Wolf Administration. "This legislation would benefit not just former offenders, but Pennsylvania as a whole, by countering high rates of recidivism, relieving an overburdened pardon system, and providing an opportunity for ex-offenders to join our workforce."

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