Document Type

Article

Publication Date

Summer 2025

Abstract

Tens of millions of Americans with publicly accessible criminal convictions face significant collateral consequences that affect their employment, housing, and family life, which not only harm these individuals but also limit society’s access to their skills, productivity, and participation. In response, policymakers have enlarged the scope and enhanced the accessibility of criminal-record expungement laws. Little is known, however, about how individuals perceive, navigate, and take advantage of these new, broader laws. This Article presents findings from a large-scale survey of 1,439 expungement applicants and recipients in Detroit, conducted in partnership with Project Clean Slate (PCS), a city initiative assisting residents with expungement. We complement our quantitative survey results with administrative data from PCS and detailed interviews with PCS staff and other experts on various aspects of criminal records and expungement in Michigan. Our study explores how individuals learn about expungement and eligibility criteria, their motivations for seeking record relief, the challenges they face in the process, and how, if at all, they overcome these barriers. Our results reveal both the successes and limitations of the petition-based expungement process, including positive evaluations of the process but also barriers to awareness and procedural difficulties that prevent many eligible individuals from obtaining relief. Despite generally positive experiences among PCS clients, challenges such as state-level administrative errors, process delays, and uncertainty about the visibility of expunged records persist. While the recent move in some states toward automated expungement represents progress, petition-based expungement remains crucial in most jurisdictions, requiring continued efforts to improve access and reduce burdens. Our findings contribute to ongoing policy discussions by highlighting the role of legal services, advocacy organizations, and local governments in making record relief more effective and equitable.

Comments

©2025. The Ohio State University. Reproduced with permission.

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