* WARNING: THIS IS AN UNOFFICIAL, INTRODUCTORY COPY OF THE BILL.
THE OFFICIAL COPY CONSIDERED BY THE CITY COUNCIL IS THE FIRST READER COPY.
INTRODUCTORY*
CITY OF BALTIMORE
COUNCIL BILL R
(Resolution)
Introduced by: Councilmember Kraft
A RESOLUTION ENTITLED
A COUNCIL RESOLUTION concerning
Title
In Support of State Legislation - House Bill 10 - Criminal Procedure - Expungement of Police Records - Arrests Without Charge - Automatic
FOR the purpose of supporting this legislation that would entitle a person who is arrested or confined by a law enforcement unit, and is released without being charged to automatic expungement of all police records relating to the arrest, and would repeal existing provisions that require written notice for expungement of specified records, as well as provisions prohibiting a person from requesting expungement before a statute of limitations expires; urging the Honorable Chair and Members of the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee and the Honorable Chair and Members of the Baltimore City Delegation to the 2007 Maryland General Assembly to support passage of the legislation; and petitioning the Governor to sign the measure into law.
Body
Recitals
This legislation that passed through the Maryland House of Delegates on March 6, 2007, with a vote of 130-9, seeks to automatically expunge arrest records in cases in which criminal charges were not brought. This bill is more significant than ever considering that, according to the Maryland Criminal Justice Information System, approximately 21,000 people were arrested and released without charge in Maryland last year. The issue then becomes that these citizens have arrest records, but were never charged with a crime and are potentially innocent of any wrongdoing.
Under the current law, people must apply for expungement and sign a waiver of legal claims against the arresting agency. This bill would not only make the expungement process more convenient for citizens, but would also cut down on the costs and bureaucratic red tape that the expungement process creates. Since these records would be automatically expunged, more officers would spend their time fighting crimes, rather than filling their time dealing with the process of filing expungement paperwork and waiting for the process to be completed before the expungement can take place.
In addition to saving valuable officer time, this legislation would provide that the citizens of the State of Maryland need not worry that a false arrest or an arrest in which criminal charges were unable to be brought will not mar the record of the citizen for any significant period of time. These arrest records can affect a person's ability to find employment, a place to live, or receive bank loans. Even if a person is wrongfully arrested, his or her arrest record can follow him or her around until he or she has the record expunged, which as the law stands right now, is a process that can be difficult and time consuming. By changing this process, these innocent citizens will be able to have their police records permanently and automatically expunged with 30 days and will not have to worry about writing requests, court orders, or appellate reviews. This will help those citizens who may not be familiar with the justice system expunge their arrest records and allow them to go on living their lives, without worrying about having to expunge the blemish from their records.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF BALTIMORE, That this Body supports this legislation that would entitle a person who is arrested or confined by a law enforcement unit, and is released without being charged to automatic expungement of all police records relating to the arrest, and would repeal existing provisions that require written notice for expungement of specified records, as well as provisions prohibiting a person requesting expungement before a statute of limitations expires; urges the Honorable Chair and Members of the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee and the Honorable Chair and Members of the Baltimore City Delegation to the 2007 Maryland General Assembly to support passage of the legislation; and petitions the Governor to sign the measure into law.
AND BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Honorable Chair of the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee is respectfully requested to include this Resolution as part of the Committee record of support for legislative proposals to pass House Bill 10 regarding the Expungement of Police Records in the Maryland State Senate.
AND BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution be sent to the Governor, the Mayor, the Honorable Chair and Members of the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee, the Honorable Chair and Members of the Baltimore City Delegation to the 2007 Maryland General Assembly, the Executive Director of the Mayor's Office of State Relations, and the Mayor's Legislative Liaison to the City Council.
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