Ottawa County hosting event to help people clear old criminal convictions
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GRAND HAVEN — The Ottawa County Public Defender Office is hosting an expungement fair at the Grand Haven courthouse for residents who want to learn how to remove convictions from their criminal records.
Interest in the event was so high all available appointments for free consultation with an attorney filled up immediately after the office announced the event with a news release Monday, according to assistant public defender Patrick Kolehouse.
Michigan's bipartisan "Clean Slate" legislation, a package of bills signed into law in 2020, expanded eligibility for the types of convictions that can be expunged and cut down on waiting periods for people interested in petitioning to have their convictions expunged.
The legislation also instated an automatic expungement process, effective in 2023, for eligible, non-violent felonies and misdemeanors. Up to two eligible felonies will be automatically expunged after 10 years and up to four misdemeanors.
Expungement, in Michigan, seals records of past convictions from the public record, meaning the convictions no longer appear in background checks for employment or rental housing.
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Having a conviction expunged allows applicants for a job or housing to legally state on applications that they have never been convicted of the expunged crime. Records of expunged convictions remain available to law enforcement.
In 2021, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed another expungement bill into law that allows first-time drunk driving offenses to be cleared by a judge, as long as the offense did not result in a death or serious injury.
Until the automatic expungement law takes effect next year, people must petition a judge for their convictions to be sealed.
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At the Ottawa County event, people can take steps to start the legal process of expungement, including obtaining copies of their criminal record, having fingerprints taken, completing paperwork and scheduling court dates.
"In Ottawa County, we understand that some residents have made mistakes in their pasts, have served their sentences, and are on roads to better lives," Kolehouse said. "Criminal records can put obstacles in those paths for those residents and their families. We want to ease that burden so these residents can more easily find jobs, housing and other opportunities for better futures."
Crimes that are not eligible for expungement include crimes punishable by a life sentence, criminal sexual conduct, domestic violence, and traffic violations that caused a death or serious injury.
The expungement clinic, by appointment only, is Friday, April 29, at the Ottawa County courthouse, 414 Washington Ave., Grand Haven.
West Michigan Works! also offers free help for job seekers looking to clear old convictions from their records.
The agency can cover the cost of obtaining certified copies of one's criminal record, court filing fees and fingerprinting fees incurred in the process of an expungement petition.
The Michigan Attorney General's Office also supplies the expungement petition forms and checklists and information about setting aside convictions on its website.
— Contact reporter Carolyn Muyskens at cmuyskens@hollandsentinel.com and follow her on Twitter at @cjmuyskens.
This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Ottawa County expungement clinic to help people clear criminal record
