Press Release:
Assemblyman Steve Hawley (R, C - Batavia) joined fellow Minority assembly members today for a press conference calling for the holding of a bill that would seek to automatically seal criminal records after a predetermined period.
Called “Clean Slate,” the bill has been pushed by the Assembly Majority in what is read as an effort to prioritize the welfare of criminals above law-abiding citizens.
“This measure will single-handedly make the review of convicted felons’ history much more difficult, inherently increasing threats to public safety,” Hawley said. “I don’t understand why this is the issue that has dominated the Majority’s focus at the end of our legislative session for 2023 when we’re in the midst of an affordability, public safety and immigration crisis.”
“For a victim of crime, the slate is never wiped clean, so the favoritism shown to former convicts astounds me. I call on my colleagues in the Majority to reject this proposal wholeheartedly,” Hawley concluded.
