Support the Second Chance Act Today

As you all know, the Second Chance Act passed the Senate unanimously several weeks ago. The House has yet to take action.

 

Senate Bill 526 would allow people to petition the courts to shield certain nonviolent misdemeanor convictions - such as disorderly conduct, drug possession, prostitution, driving with a license and others - from public view after a three (3) year waiting period.  Law enforcement and certain entities that are required to access criminal background information would retain access to shielded records. Here’s a link to the bill text: http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/2015RS/bills/sb/sb0526T.pdf.

 

The House Judiciary Committee is considering amending the bill to allow for only ONE CONVICTION PER LIFETIME to be shielded. This will leave a lot of people in recovery who have criminal records from taking advantage of this law which is intended to help people obtain stable housing and employment, two things crucial for many people in their recovery.

 

PLEASE CONTACT THE HOUSE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE TODAY! If you live or work in a county represented by one of its members, please call their offices today to urge them to pass the Senate version of the Second Chance Act.

 

If you work and live in a county not represented on the committee, please call your own delegates and ask them to urge their colleagues on the committee to pass the Senate version of the Second Chance Act.

 

Here’s a list of the committee:

 

Vallario, Joseph F., Jr. (Chair)	Prince George’s County
Dumais, Kathleen M. (Vice Chair)	Montgomery County
Anderson, Curt	Baltimore City
Atterbeary, Vanessa E.	Howard County
Campos, Will	Prince George’s County
Carter, Jill P.	Baltimore City
Cluster, John W. E., Jr.	Baltimore County
Conaway, Frank M., Jr.	Baltimore City
Glass, Glen	Harford County
Kittleman, Trent	Howard & Carroll Counties
Malone, Michael E.	Anne Arundel County
McComas, Susan K.	Harford County
Moon, David	Montgomery County
Morales, Marice	Montgomery County
Parrott, Neil	Washington County
Rey, Deborah C.	St. Mary’s County
Rosenberg, Samuel I.	Baltimore City
Smith, William C., Jr.	Montgomery County
Sydnor, Charles E., III	Baltimore County
Valentino-Smith, Geraldine	Prince George’s County
Wilson, Brett	Washington County