Wolf Signs Bill To Allow For Expansion Of Criminal Record Sealing
By Tony Romeo
HARRISBURG, Pa. (CBS) -- Governor Wolf today signed into law legislation that will make it easier for some non-violent offenders to have their criminal record sealed.
Governor Wolf has signed a bill that will allow people who have committed minor offenses like retail theft or disorderly conduct to have the record sealed if they have remained arrest free for seven to ten years. Often those records remain a lifelong impediment to employment and other opportunities. The governor says he gave people second chances when he was hiring for his family business.
"And it did two things for me. It broadened the potential talent pool that I was interviewing employees in. And it also gave me some really good employees because so often, the thing that they were charged with – the minor offense that was on their records – was truly something that was irrelevant to what I needed them to do in my company."
The governor and sponsors of the legislation also say the new law will relieve the burden on the state pardons board which is flooded with cases involving low-level offenders.
