Carson, CA — Residents whose criminal records still stand in the way of jobs, housing or professional licenses can get free legal help at a record-clearing clinic in Carson next week.
Assemblymember Mike A. Gipson, whose 65th Assembly District includes Carson, is hosting the clinic Wednesday, Sept. 30, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Carson Event Center, 801 E. Carson St. Attorneys from the Los Angeles County Public Defender’s Office will review cases and help eligible residents begin the process at no cost. The office’s services have no income requirement.
The clinic can help only with convictions from Los Angeles County courts.
“Many of our neighbors with a previous conviction are ready to embark on their next chapter, and they deserve a second chance to do so,” said Gipson. “We are proud to uplift this successful day as one of many steps towards a compassionate and smart approach to justice in California.”
A criminal record can follow people long after they finish their sentences. It can come up in job applications, housing searches, professional licensing and school admissions. An estimated 8 million Californians — roughly one in five state residents — have a criminal conviction record, according to the California Committee on Revision of the Penal Code, underscoring how widely the barriers associated with a criminal record can reach. The state Committee on Revision of the Penal Code has also named immigration status and parental rights among the areas a record can affect.
What “expungement” does and doesn’t do
The word “expungement” can be misleading. California generally does not erase a conviction as if it never happened. Several kinds of relief are available, depending on the case:
- Dismissal of a conviction after probation is completed. This is what most people mean by expungement.
- Reducing some felonies to misdemeanors.
- Certificates of rehabilitation for some people who served prison time.
- Sealing of some arrest records.
Eligibility depends on the offense, the sentence and whether the person completed its terms. Relief doesn’t remove every consequence. Law enforcement, some licensing boards and certain other agencies can still see records, and immigration consequences may remain. That’s why Public Defender attorneys encourage people to have their case reviewed rather than assume what can or can’t be done.
Under California’s Clean Slate law, which took effect in 2023, many older arrests and convictions are now eligible for automatic relief without the person filing anything. The clinic can help residents find out whether their records have already been updated.
