SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) — State lawmakers could pass a plan this spring to automatically seal records for people convicted of nonviolent felonies. Felony convictions currently eligible for expungement could be automatically sealed by a circuit court judge or the Illinois State Police.
Many people may not know that April is national Second Chance Month, raising awareness about the long-term consequences of criminal convictions and opportunities people can have if they get a second chance at life after completing their sentences or public service.
Illinois House Assistant Majority Leader Jehan Gordon-Booth (D-Peoria) has been working on a clean slate policy for six years. Gordon-Booth told WAND News that she was inspired to work on the legislation after hosting multiple expungement summits in Peoria.
"I've watched individuals take more than a year to get to a place when they start the process and get to the end of it," Gordon-Booth said. "Many people lose faith that things can actually change for them."
The Democrat worked with former House Minority Leader Jim Durkin to pass legislation in 2017 to allow certain offenders with nonviolent felony convictions to apply for expungement. However, she said each of the state's 102 counties are addressing the record sealing process differently. Gordon-Booth argued it is past time for a streamlined system.
"Right now, we have 2 million Illinoisans who are sitting on the sidelines whose lives are being determined not by their own ingenuity and their desire to make a better life for themselves, but literally they're being judged by a mistake that was made 10, 15 or 20 years ago."
Gordon-Booth said sealed records can open doors to job opportunities and allow people who served time to rebuild their lives. She stressed this is a key reason why groups from the business industry like the Illinois Retail Merchants Association and Illinois Manufacturers' Association support her plan.
It is also rare to see law enforcement organizations and grassroots advocates working together to get the clean slate bill across the finish line in 2025.
"I knew that I had to be willing to listen to their concerns and their issues, and I had to be willing to craft a bill that allowed them to do what they needed to do on their side, needed to give them the tools they needed to be able to do their job, but to also be able to change the lives of 2 million Illinoisans," Gordon-Booth said.
Leader Gordon-Booth plans to file her proposal when lawmakers return to Springfield next month. She hopes to have the plan move out of committee and voted on the House floor by the end of April.
"I saw so many young people that had their lives absolutely changed that frankly had their lives calcified in poverty for 15 to 20 years not because they were bad people, but because they made a mistake between the ages of 18 and 24," Gordon-Booth added.
The Illinois House and Senate are scheduled to adjourn for the summer on May 31.
Copyright 2025. WAND TV. All rights reserved.
