Governor Signs “Second Chance” Act

By Cash Michaels

If you have a nonviolent criminal record in North Carolina with misdemeanors and low-level felonies, and you’ve served your full prison sentence and paid all your fines, you can now have those bad marks expunged, thanks to the Second Chance Act.

Governor Roy Cooper signed the long-awaited bill into law last week, giving many nonviolent offenders who have paid their penance, indeed, a fresh start and second chance at rebuilding their troubled lives.

The new law automatically expunges criminal charges that are dismissed or disposed “not guilty” after Dec 1, 2021 and allows individuals to petition for expungement of all nonviolent misdemeanor convictions after 7 years of good behavior after Dec 1, 2020.

Ex-offenders who also committed low-level, nonviolent crimes between the ages of 16 and 18 years of age qualify for expungement.

The “clean slate” measure, Senate Bill 562, was introduced in April 2019 by a bipartisan coalition of state senators headed by former Sen. Floyd McKissick (D-Durham). It passed the Senate unanimously, went over to the House where it stalled until last month when that body also passed it unanimously, then back over to the Senate where it was passed again on June 16th, and signed by the governor on June 25th.

“We can give people who make amends for past mistakes the opportunity to clear their records. This bill offers that opportunity and a path to good jobs and a brighter future,” said Gov. Cooper.

The bill was supported by both the NC NAACP and conservative groups like Americans for Prosperity.

One of the law’s strongest proponents was Dennis Gaddy, executive director of Community Success Initiative (CSI), a nonprofit re-entry program for ex-offenders who have served their time and are looking to start their lives over again crime-free and more productively.

Gaddy, once a successful businessman who made some bad choices years ago, and served time in prison, has led CSI for 15 years, and has helped hundreds of former offenders find stable work.

He says the Second Chance Act now makes it easier for ex-offenders to build productive lives.