Bill makes historic reforms to CORI and sentencing

(State House, Boston)  Legislation making broad changes to the state’s laws on sentencing of non-violent drug offenders and on access to criminal records, championed by Senator Cynthia Stone Creem (D/Newton), was signed into law by Governor Deval Patrick on Friday.  The final language of this landmark legislation emerged late last week from a House/Senate conference committee co-chaired by Senator Creem, just in time for approval by both houses before the end of formal legislative sessions on July 31.

The new law will expand access to criminal histories, known as CORI, to all employers and housing providers, while also reducing the length of time for which an offense will appear on an applicant’s record.  As long as an individual does not re-offend, a felony will disappear from his CORI report after 10 years, and a misdemeanor after 5 years – down from 15 and 10 years, respectively, under current law.  The law prohibits the sealing of certain records, including those of level 2 or level 3 sex offenders.  CORI reform also prohibits an employer from asking about criminal convictions on an initial application – to help a qualified ex-offender get his foot in the door – but allows the question to be raised later in the process.

In keeping with CORI reform’s goal of improving an offender’s chances to successfully return to society after completing a sentence, the new law makes a limited number of non-violent drug offenders eligible for parole for the first time.  They would still have to convince the Parole Board that they deserve to be released early, and anyone whose offense involved violence, minors, or directing others as part of an operation would be specifically barred.  At the same time, all offenders would become eligible for employment and training programs geared to prepare them to be productive upon release.  Sentencing reform in particular has been a legislative priority of Senator Creem for years.

“I am enormously pleased that my years of work toward these reforms have finally culminated in success,” said Senator Creem, who is also the Senate Chair of the Judiciary Committee.  “We are entering a new era, when people will have a better opportunity for a second chance to rebuild their lives.”

In addition to these changes, the bill gives prosecutors the ability to pursue pre-trial detention on certain gun crimes, expands options for victims’ compensation, and grants sheriffs the authority to establish pre-trial diversion programs for qualified offenders.

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