New Jersey sued over expungement records delays

(The Center Square) — New Jersey has been hit with a lawsuit over lengthy delays in removing expunged charges from the criminal records of tens of thousands of people.

The lawsuit, filed in state Superior Court, alleges that the New Jersey State Police are two years behind in processing more than 46,000 expungement orders signed by judges, “illegally” disclosing criminal histories to potential employers, housing agents, licensing boards and others.

In the 38-page complaint, lawyers for the six unnamed plaintiffs said they cannot benefit from their expungements because the state police agency “takes many months, or even over a year, to process their court orders and expunge their records.”

“This means that potential employers and other organizations that run background checks learn about plaintiffs’ and class members’ criminal histories, in contravention of the court orders expunging those records,” they wrote. “Plaintiffs and many others have been denied jobs and other benefits due to the NJSP’s lengthy and unreasonable processing delays.”

The plaintiffs say the criminal records have haunted them long past their punishment, preventing them from getting jobs, housing or college.

They include a 71-year-old woman arrested for drug possession decades ago but got clean and now wants to work part-time as a substitute teacher to supplement her income, but can’t because of her criminal past.

Another is a 42-year-old business owner who wants to purchase a firearm to protect his home and business but can’t because of a teenage arrest for marijuana possession and a curfew violation.

Each of the named plaintiffs has worked diligently to overcome their criminal histories and reintegrate into society,” the lawyers wrote. Their stories demonstrate how the NJSP’s failure to process their expungement orders frustrates these efforts and undermines the statute’s goals.”

Unlike a sealed criminal record, which law enforcement can still view, expungement permanently removes charges from someone’s official criminal record.

New Jersey’s expungement law, which is nearly a century old, has been expanded over the years to allow for the removal of juvenile records and all but the most serious adult crimes.

In 2019, Gov. Phil Murphy signed a “clean slate” law that expanded expungements for people convicted of a slew of crimes but who stayed out of trouble for at least 10 years.

At the time, lawmakers earmarked $15 million for the state police to upgrade their computer systems to process the expungement requests as the courts approve them.

Despite the added funding, the plaintiffs’ lawyer alleges state police have failed to timely process orders to scrub the records of New Jerseyans who have been approved for expungement.

“The primary objective of the expungement statute is providing relief to the reformed offender who has led a life of rectitude and disassociated himself with unlawful activity,” they wrote. “Through this extensive delay, the NJSP deprives the class of successful expungement petitioners of their statutory right to have their documents sealed within a reasonable time.”