Lest you think the recent changes to state criminal-record laws—known as the Criminal Offender Record Information, or CORI, system—don’t affect you, consider this: until recently, a criminal record was generated any time a person was arraigned in criminal court, regardless of the outcome. That means someone who was later found innocent, or later had the charges dropped, still had a record, which could be accessed by potential employers, landlords, student-loan officers and other in a position to make important decisions about his or her future.
The criminal-justice reform bill passed by the Legislature and signed by Gov. Deval Patrick earlier this summer contains a number of key changes, including the elimination of non-convictions on a CORI report. The bill also shortened the time it takes to have a previous conviction sealed—10 years for felonies; five for misdemeanors—a change that advocates argued will allow people to move forward from past bad decisions. In addition, it banned employers from asking about criminal records on initial job applications (employers can ask the question later in the hiring process), in the hope that applicants won’t be automatically eliminated from contention because of their past.
Even with these hard-won (and, to many activists, not far-enough reaching) changes, navigating the CORI system can be a challenge. On Thursday, Sept. 2, the Springfield Health Disparities Project will host a free CORI application system, where volunteer attorneys, law students and notaries will answer questions from members of the public, including how to get copies of their criminal records, how to correct errors on their records, and how to get records sealed.
The event will take place Sept. 2 from 5 p.m. to 7:30p.m. at 640 Page Blvd. in Springfield. For information call 413-654-2888 or 413-204-9224.
Useful information about the CORI system can also be found at MassResources.org.
