Jael Myrick of the East Bay Community Law Center said the group has helped people whose license applications were rejected simply because they had been arrested, without ever being convicted.
SAN FRANCISCO—California Governor Edmund G. Brown signed Senate Bill 393 on October 11, the Consumer Arrest Record Equity (C.A.R.E.) Act, to seal arrest records and halt barriers to employment and housing for individuals arrested, but never convicted of a crime. The CARE Act, which was signed into law by the governor, was authored by State Senator Ricardo Lara (D-Bell Gardens) and was sponsored by San Francisco District Attorney George Gascón. The law goes into effect January 1, 2018.
“Our clients are routinely denied jobs and licenses based on non-conviction arrests,” said Sarah Crowley, Director of the Clean Slate Practice at the East Bay Community Law Center. “This bill’s expanded sealing remedy will help ensure that people are not penalized for criminal justice contacts that have no bearing on their ability or character.”
On October 25, 2016, advocates of the Back on the Road Coalition filed suit against the Department of Motor Vehicles to stop the unlawful practice of driver’s license suspensions for failure to pay a traffic fine.
DMV Policies Violate Californians’ Constitutional Rights and Jeopardize Employment Opportunities, according to the East Bay Community Law Center & Social Justice Law Project
Oakland, Calif., February 24, 2016 — A new lawsuit filed today charges the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) with a widespread practice of illegally retaining and reporting the criminal history records of upwards of 1 million Californians.
In April 2005, the East Bay Community Law Center (EBCLC) hosted a “Clean Slate Summit” at Laney College in Oakland. Organized by EBCLC leaders Tirien Steinbach ’99 and Margaret Richardson ’03, the event drew more than 900 people
East Bay Community Law Center Executive Director Tirien Steinbach says the new law, which passed in November, helps bridge a disconnect between old values and modern technology.
It’s well-known that private background checks frequently contain misinformation. At the East Bay Community Law Center in Berkeley, California, our Clean Slate Practice sees hundreds of clients each year who have a criminal record and are seeking employment. From a decade of experience, we know that private background checks produced by CRAs are riddled with an unacceptably high number of errors.
