HR0755 99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0755 LRB099 14206 MST 38269 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Many people believe that if they are released after being mistakenly arrested and the charges are dropped or dismissed without any court date being set, they will not have an arrest record; and

WHEREAS, Even in the case of a mistaken arrest, the damaging documents are not automatically removed; and

WHEREAS, Hundreds of thousands of innocent Americans who are mistakenly arrested are still haunted by arrest records; and

WHEREAS, An arrest record can ruin an innocent individual's chance to get into college or secure employment, loans, and housing; and

WHEREAS, An arrest record is an ugly stain for law-abiding citizens who, in some cases, found themselves arrested for circumstances beyond their control; and

WHEREAS, When an individual answers questions about an arrest on a job application, he or she is treated as though he or she is guilty no matter what the outcome was; and

WHEREAS, The process to remove an arrest record can cost an average of $5,000 and can take a significant amount of time; and

WHEREAS, The wrongful arrest rates of African Americans are the highest among all races; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-NINTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we applaud the nationwide efforts of the #AutoErase Campaign to bring awareness to the fact that individuals wrongfully arrested may still have an arrest record even after they are released and to remove the burden from the individual of having that wrongful arrest record erased; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we call on all local, state, and federal agencies to automatically erase and destroy all information pertaining to arrest records of innocent individuals wrongfully arrested immediately after the individual is no longer being detained by the arresting agency and to ensure the arrest record does not appear in any local, state, or federal agency's database; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we call on the United States Congress, states, and localities, under such circumstances indicated above, to ensure that an innocent individual's record appears as it did before the wrongful arrest occurred, at no expense and with no action required by the individual; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we support that, under such circumstances, the innocent individual can in the future be legally and factually allowed to deny the arrest under all circumstances and on any local, state, federal, corporate, or private form, including, but not limited to, applying for a state-issued professional license, applying for a law enforcement job, applying for a federal or national security clearance, applying for a school-related job, buying a firearm or applying for a concealed carry permit, running for public office, or applying as a candidate for a state bar; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a copy of this resolution be delivered to the President of the United States, the Vice-President of the United States, members of the United States House of Representatives and the United States Senate, and other federal and state government officials as appropriate.