People convicted of crimes may be sentenced to prison. On release, technically, they're free again. The catch is that they have a criminal record that will likely follow them everywhere they go. When does the sentence end? For most people, the answer is never. Some 70 million Americans have some sort of criminal record. Twelve states have passed laws allowing low-level convictions to be expunged from records if certain requirements are met. In recognition of Second Chance Month, USA Today asks, should everyone get a chance at a clean slate? “It’s such a big deal because one in three Americans have an arrest or conviction on their record, and that's a lot of people,” says Sheena Meade of the Clean Slate Initiative, which is working to get all 50 states to offer automatic record clearance.
Meade says, “That's a lot of people from our communities, a lot of people in our faith community, our neighbors, our loved ones, and we know that if a person have an arrest or a conviction, it's harder to reintegrate back into society because over 94% of employers require background checks. You have over 72% of universities and colleges that also screen out applicants through background checks. Also, there are barriers with landlords.” The first state that passed Clean Slate was Pennsylvania. To this date, millions of people have been able to clear their records, varying from low-level misdemeanors to low-level felonies. " We know that folks who have dealt with drug addictions, which is definitely a health issue, sometimes (amassed} offenses during a time of addiction," Meade said.