AS NUMBER OF JOBLESS INCREASES, NUMBER OF THOSE IN NEED OF GOVERNOR'S PARDON INCREASES

The jobless crisis brings another dimension to the discussion: those with criminal records, whether a felony conviction or a simple misdemeanor arrest, are going to have a tougher time getting a job. In Illinois, people with misdemeanor arrests can generally expunge or seal their records from the general public view. But, in Illinois, felony convictions (besides a special type of probation given to a select class of drug or prostitution offenders) are permanently on your record...unless...the Governor grants you a pardon, otherwise known as executive clemency.

Background checks are becoming more and more prevalent. Employers are using the background check as a tool to easily weed out potential employees. Recent studies show that there are six applicants per one job opening. If you have a criminal record, the employer is probably very likely to toss you from the pile and move on to the other applicants.

In Illinois, Governor Blagojevich left approximately 2500 pardon petitions on his desk when he was tossed from office. Since Governor Quinn has stepped in, almost a year ago, he has granted just 18 pardons. Keep in mind, the backlog has grown even more - the Illinois Prisoner Review Board hears cases four times a year. So I bet there are at least an additional 500 stacked up for Governor Quinn.

That doesn't mean you shouldn't ask for a pardon if you need one. Hey, you don't get unless you ask. Or, you can always retain me and I'll do the asking for you!

In April 2009, Governor Quinn called the backlog "shameful" and vowed to start answering the petitions. But, since then, he has only granted 18.

People need pardons, especially in this poor economic time. Many people think a pardon is just for the serial killer or child rapist who served time in prison. Not true! Did you know that if you ever pleaded guilty or were found guilty of a felony and were sentenced to probation -- besides a few exceptions -- you are a convicted felon and you need a pardon if you want a cleared record! We must change the way society thinks about a pardon. The majority of my clients are seeking a pardon for a stupid mistake they made in their early 20's. Now, 10, 20, 30 years later, the person wants to move forward in their life and the felony probation keeps popping up on a background check.

Those who made a mistake should not have to pay for it for their entire life.

Our Governor, and governors across the country, can send a signal to society by granting pardons - We must be a more forgiving and less punitive society. Those who can prove rehabilitation should be entitled to eventually wipe their slate clean and leave the past in the past.

I cannot explain the feeling I get when I see the pain in an entire family's eyes, just because of a loved one's mistake. I cannot explain the feeling I get when I see a client who regrets making a stupid decision and has lost so much confidence because he cannot get a job. One of my clients recently applied for over 50 jobs in 8 months. Each time, his felony theft from over 10 years ago pops up.

Pardons are not just for the "underbelly" of society. You would be surprised to know most people in need of a pardon look just like you and me.

The Governor is the only person who can grant a pardon. He has a specific, enumerated power given to him; therefore, he must act on those requests. It is unfortunate the the Illinois Prisoner Review Board continues to do their job: they hear countless cases, stories, reasons, etc. from countless petitioners and countless parents. Unfortunately, all they can do is "recommend" denial or granting and then move onto the next case. Governor Quinn must start acting on that "shameful" backlog.

www.xpunged.com and www.tamaraholder.com

FINALLY! NEW ILLINOIS GOVERNOR QUINN MAKES GRANTING PARDONS A PRIORITY!

Gov. Pat Quinn (David Carson - stltoday.com)Today, Gov. Pat Quinn pardoned 11 people; these are the first pardons of our new Governor.  Thank you, Gov. Quinn! Article here.

The pardon power is an enumerated power of the Governor; it is a function of Government.  The issue here is not whether one agrees/disagrees that a person should be pardoned for a criminal indiscretion of the past; instead, the issue is that the Governor has the sole power to pardon and that power must not be blatantly ignored.  If a Governor is totally against pardoning any person, then the Governor must deny all pardons; the Governor cannot simply ignore the requests. On the other hand, if the Governor is not entirely against granting pardons, and a petitioner  has a compelling case for being pardoned, then the Governor must make a decision and either grant or deny the pardon.  Essentially, a Governor shall not allow pardon petitions to sit indefinitely without a decision, one way or another.

Ex-IL Governor Blagojevich promised many people he would make decisions on pardons. He lied. Instead, he allowed approximately 2500 pardons to pile up on his desk for the 6 years that he was in office.  People's lives were in limbo as they waited, hoped and prayed for an answer. As of April 2008, he had only granted 67.  He then granted about 24 more.  Regardless, he granted a total of less than 100 pardons - that is embarassing.  And according to the IL Prisoner Review Board last April, Blagojevich had approximately 1500 on his desk.  According to Gov. Quinn, there are an additional 1000; he stated there is a backlog of over 2500!

In Illinois, a person seeking a pardon, clemency or reprieve must first petition the IL Prisoner Review Board.  After the petition has been submitted, the petitioner has an opportunity for a hearing where he makes his case before the Board as to why he should be pardoned. Then, the Board makes a confidential recommendation to the Governor, whether they think the person should be pardoned.  Lastly, the petition sits in the hands of the Governor and awaits final denial or approval.  By law, the Governor is not required to make a decision within any period of time.  (That should be obvious! Blagojevich allowed thousands to pile up on his desk.) Thus, the petitioner must wait and wait and wait for a decision. There is nothing one can do to get an answer.  The person cannot even re-petition the Governor if no decision has been made.  The only time a person can re-petition is if the person is denied and he waits a year after denial and files again.

We need to pardon people who made a mistake and have since rehabilitated themselves.  I am not talking about the convicted murderer who has a lengthy, violent past.  Not all felons are those who have done time in prison.  Many are people who made a stupid mistake as a kid and were given probation.  At the time, they did not know that their mistake would follow them for life, even though they did not go to jail.  Keep in mind, in IL, once a felon, always a felon, unless you are granted a pardon. 

Thank you, Governor Quinn, for making decisions on yet another matter that ex-Governor Blagojevich refused to handle.  By granting the 11 pardons, you have restored the lives of not just 11 people but of 11 people's families and their communities.

www.xpunged.com and www.tamaraholder.com

MINORITY STUDENTS ARRESTED AT FAR HIGHER RATES = YOUTH FINGERPRINTS PERMANENTLY ENTER FBI SYSTEM

The ACLU reports that arrests of minority students in the Hartford, Connecticut area are on the rise.

According to the report, students in West Hartford and East Hartford are arrested at school at a rate far out of proportion to their numbers. During the 2006-07 school year, for example, black and Hispanic students together accounted for 69 percent of East Hartford's student population, but experienced 85 percent of its school-based arrests. In West Hartford during the same year, black and Hispanic students accounted for 24 percent of the population, but experienced 63 percent of the arrests.

We must stop criminalizing our youth.  Obviously, those who bring guns to school should be removed from campus.  But that's not what is going on here.  The school is having the police arrest students for bringing tobacco on campus or for minor school fights. 

Children are now being placed in our criminal justice system at a time when their behavior can still be modified.  Tolerance and education must be a priority over punishment.
Parents and school officials alike must understand the PERMANENT nature of arresting a child.  Once their prints are in the system, they are not removed.  Just because the child is a "juvenile" at the time of arrest, that does not mean the record is destroyed once the child turns an "adult."  How can we be ok with putting our children's fingerprints into the FBI system at 13 years old?

There must be another way...REMEMBER, ONCE YOU ARE ARRESTED & FINGERPRINTED, YOUR PRINTS PERMANENTLY REMAIN IN THE SYSTEM UNLESS YOU SEEK AN EXPUNGEMENT.  THERE IS NO AUTOMATIC DESTRUCTION, EVEN IF THE CASE WAS DISMISSED!

www.xpunged.com and www.tamaraholder.com

HAVING AN ARREST ON YOUR RECORD CAN LEAVE YOU JOBLESS!

** FIRST, LET'S LOOK AT OUR ARREST RATES IN AMERICA **

According to arrest data of 2004 by  FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting:

• The number of arrests in the U.S. for all criminal offenses (except traffic violations)  was APPROXIMATELY 14 MILLION.  (The U.S. population was approximately 291 million) - THAT'S APPROXIMATELY 5% OF OUR POPULATION EVERY YEAR!  YES, 5% OF OUR POPULATION IS ARRESTED EVERY YEAR!!  Imagine how many people in the entire country have been arrested in the past 40 years - the total number must astounding.
  

• 70.8 percent of arrestees were white, 26.8 percent were black, and 2.4 percent were of other races (American Indian or Alaskan Native and Asian or Pacific Islander).
• Whites were most commonly arrested for driving under the influence (893,212 arrests) and drug abuse violations (821,047 arrests). Blacks were most frequently arrested for drug abuse violations (406,890 arrests) and simple assaults (288,286 arrests). (See Table 43.)

** NOW, LET'S LOOK AT THE UNEMPLOYMENT RATE **

Politicians Pressed to Revive Anemic Economy: The unemployment rate has jumped to a five-year high of 6.1 percent - 84,000 jobs were lost in August.  The numbers released by the Labor Department on Friday (9/5/08) were worse than economists anticipated.  "I suspect that hitting over 6 percent (unemployment) will end this silly discussion of whether we are in a recession or not," said Lawrence Mishel, president of the Economic Policy Institute, a research group based in Washington. "It doesn't matter whether we are technically 'in a recession,' according to someone's definition, when we see hours of work being cut, unemployment rising like this and jobs disappearing every month."

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, said Congress will take up a second economic stimulus bill this month that is likely to include money for infrastructure projects, aid to states, energy assistance for the poor, an increase in food stamps and an extension of jobless benefits.  "With the unemployment rate at a five-year high, it is clear that we must take immediate action to strengthen our economy," Pelosi said Friday. Congress reconvenes Monday to consider the stimulus package and a major energy bill.

** WHAT THE PUBLIC DOES NOT KNOW ABOUT THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN HAVING AN ARREST RECORD AND THE HIGH UNEMPLOYMENT RATE **

One doesn't need to worry about his arrest record affecting his ability to get a job if jobs simply are not available; however, the American public must understand that a simple arrest, EVEN IF DISMISSED, remains on your record (unless it is expunged) and will most-likely be revealed on a prospective employer's background check.  So, even if a job is available, many people will lose their opportunity for employment simply because a background check reveals an arrest.  Applying for a 12 jobs at a "job fair" can give many a false hope of employment if they cannot pass the final step of the job offer: passing the background check.

Don't fall into this trap: "Well, the case was dismissed so it doesn't matter."  WRONG!  Think of it this way: Would you want to hire a cleaning lady who was arrested for retail theft, even if the case was dismissed?  Or would you want your daughter dating a man who was arrested for domestic battery, even if the case was dismissed?  Granted, many people who have had a run-in with the law are not bad people and were simply wrongly accused, but most prospective employers don't want to take a risk on the person who has the ,"What happened was..." story.  The simple record of arrest, no matter the outcome, can send prospective employers running as far away from you as possible.

Or this one: "It was so long ago; I'm sure it fell off of my record."  WRONG!  Once you are arrested, your fingerprints go into a database at the State Police & FBI.  The arresting police keep your prints on file.  They don't throw away the records just because the case was thrown out or a certain number of years have passed by.  Think of it this way: You go to the Doctor's office because you think you broke your ankle.  He x-ray's your foot and finds no injury.  Just because he sends you home, that doesn't mean he erased the record of your visit to his office.

** CONCLUSION **

I feel comfortable assuming that the majority of Americans with arrest records, that 14 million per year, do not realize that their run-in with the law can affect their ability to get a job.  Can you imagine how many people have arrest records in this country?!?  During this time of lay-offs and firings due to a failing economy, I suggest you take a proactive approach in cleaning your record, if you've ever been arrested.  Don't get stuck in a position where you've lost a job, you must apply for a new job, and then your arrest record prevents you from getting the job.  (Keep in mind the expungement process in IL can take up to a year!)  Don't give employers another excuse not to hire you...make sure your record is squeaky clean as you prepare for the possibility of a background check!

If you have an arrest record in Illinois, call attorney/lawyer Tamara Holder at 312-981-1414.  Don't let your past criminal record define your future!  Expunge, seal or seek a pardon today!

www.xpunged.com and www.tamaraholder.com

PRISONERS MAKE PENNIES AN HOUR - MAJOR COMPANIES PROSPER FROM ESSENTIALLY FREE LABOR

Today's front page of Chicago's Sun Times discusses how our convicted-felon politicians are treated like everyone else; how they make just pennies an hour while behind bars. WARDENS DON'T CARE THAT YOU USED TO BE THE GOVERNOR:

     "Betty Loren-Maltese, former Cicero town president, says that, since she went to prison in 2003, she's cleaned pots and pans and washrooms, and buffed and waxed floors. Loren-Maltese also worked as a landscaping clerk in the Dublin, Calif., prison's greenhouse. Now in prison in Victorville, Calif., Loren-Maltese got $5.25 a month for her first job and has made 12 cents to 23 cents an hour for most of her prison duties."

But what is NOT discussed is the other side...WHO is paying the prisoners just pennies an hour?  The answer is major companies are getting essentially free labor in the prisons.  According to www.motherjones.com, In the 1990s, subcontractor Third Generation hired 35 female South Carolina inmates to sew lingerie and leisure wear for Victoria's Secret and JCPenney. In 1997, a California prison put two men in solitary for telling journalists they were ordered to replace "Made in Honduras" labels on garments with "Made in the usa." 

The list goes on: Starbucks, Boeing, Microsoft...numerous Fortune 500 companies PROFIT from the Prison INDUSTRY!Their thinking seems to be, "No need to export labor to China...it's cheaper to have our own American prisoners work for pennies."

The issue is not that prisoner's should necessarily make money while in prison.  Granted, they are being punished; however, I don't think it's the "American Way" for prisoner labor to be the new form of slave labor.

The issues are
1) What do we do with the working inmate's family as he or she is in prison, making pennies and hour? 
2) And what do we do with the working inmate's learned skills once he is released from prison?

Kurt Kamm of the American Chronicle recently wrote an article, Female Inmate Fire Camp in LA County, about Camp 13, a  prison camp in Malibu, CA where female inmates are paid just $2.70-4.60 to monitor the forest and to fight fires. He goes on to say,
     "I have been out in the field with these women. They are proud of their work and work hard at it. It can be exhausting. They are encouraged and complimented by the firefighters who supervise them. It may be the first time in their lives they are accomplishing something and are getting positive reinforcement.   While the work at Camp 13 clearly helps build the self-esteem of the inmates, it is unfortunate that two-thirds return to the prison system."

REALLY?  NO KIDDING!  But why is it that the recidivism rate is so high?  Are the inmates really bad people?  No.  The reason many return to prison is because when they are released, they cannot put on their resume that they were firefighters for LA County.  Instead, they must disclose their felony background which leaves them with little to no options for gainful employment.  Mr. Kamm even mentions how there is a waiting list of inmates at the prisons who want to join the Camp.  AGAIN, NO KIDDING! THE WOMEN WANT TO WORK!

And what about the families who are left behind as their loved one is incarcerated?  Does the family benefit from the incarcerated person's menial wages?  Of course not.  The "employee" does not get benefits, the opportunity to participate in a 401k, insurance benefits, etc.  And again, the person doesn't get to put on his or her resume that they had a corporate job, nor does the inmate get the opportunity to work for that corporation upon release.

The article mentioned above properly shows one thing: you give people the opportunity to work and they will take it.  People don't change upon their release from prison.  The only thing that changes is their ability (or lack thereof) to work and provide for their family; hence, recidivism.

Finally, I suggest we find a way for the families of incarcerated "employees" to receive some kind of benefit.  With the person not at home, many families are living off of public aid and welfare.  Maybe we can get these companies to start a program for the families of incarcerated people as a form of payment for the work they have received.  If you don't like this idea, then I guess you are ok with families struggling financially when, in fact, their loved one IS WORKING behind prison doors.

Our prison industry must change because right now it looks a lot like modern-day slavery cloaked in "punishment."

www.xpunged.com and www.tamaraholder.com