Ending Cost-Prohibitive Expungements

the ability to have one’s criminal record wiped clean, or expunged, can make the difference between being able to move forward in life versus staying stuck behind barriers to employment and housing.

Expungements are an acknowledgement that a person’s criminal history should not haunt them for life. States allow for expungement on different timelines and under different policies - but the underlying idea behind expungements is that a person should be able to move forward in their life with a clean slate. Having a criminal record can be detrimental to a person’s life, including hindering employment opportunities and encountering difficulty securing housing. People hold significant bias against a person with a criminal past - even if the events were years, or even decades, ago.

Some states, such as Louisiana, make it so expensive to get a record expunged that many people are not able to afford this benefit. This means that only those with wealth are able to put their past behind them and get their records cleared, while those who are unable to pay the high fees are left with a record that continues to haunt them.

Equal Justice Under Law is dedicated to fighting against this inequitable treatment of people solely based on wealth. We file class action lawsuits to fight against states charging exorbitant fees for expungement.