Committee hears debate over S.12 changes to sealing, expungement and judicial review

For the record, Kim McManus, Department of State's Attorneys and Sheriffs, told the House Judiciary Committee that her office supports moving many records from expungement to sealing but asked the committee to change the bill's wording from "access" to "use." "We support this bill, but we only if that language is changed," McManus said, adding that sealed records can be vital "for law enforcement, but for victims, for police departments in general, for their government records."

The bill under discussion, S.12, would expand the categories of records that are sealed rather than destroyed. McManus said the proposal would seal dismissals, acquittals and findings of no probable cause in many cases and that sealing — rather than expunging — preserves records that can later be needed for criminal justice purposes, civil litigation or professional discipline. She warned that a proposed "superseal" that would automatically expunge sealed records after a fixed period undercuts the point of sealing. "We don't think that there is a time limit on when folks may need these records," she said.

Tucker Jones of the Department of Public Safety told…