Protesters want tougher access to criminal records
BOSTON --Yakov Kronrod, 25, graduated from Worcester Polytechnic Institute in three years with a 4.0 undergraduate GPA. The clean-cut math wiz was a teaching assistant working toward his master's degree when he made a mistake.
The Lowell resident, who has a criminal record as a result, came to Boston yesterday to rally for changes to the CORI law; otherwise, he said, he'll pay for that mistake for the rest of his life.
The state's Criminal Offender Record Information system is used by businesses, schools, churches, housing authorities and more to check whether a potential employee or client has a criminal record.
That system, said more than 100 ex-convicts demonstrating at Boston Common yesterday, pegs individuals such as Kronod as undesirable.
"At this point, we are making our communities less safe by denying law-abiding ex-offenders access to legitimate employment," said Jackie Lageson, project coordinator for Mass Alliance to Reform CORI.
Yesterday the Mass. Alliance pushed the Public Safety Act of 2006, which would require a future employer or agency to give the offender an opportunity to refute or discuss what is in the report before making a decision to either hire or give housing to them.
CORI reports on convicted felons would also be sealed seven years after felons complete their sentence if they have maintained a clean record. Those convicted of a misdemeanor would see their CORI records sealed after three years.
Sealing a record means that the criminal justice system could access the information, but a future employer or housing authority could not, said Lageson.
Kronrod said his mistake happened when a policeman pulled him over for speeding and found illegal drugs in his trunk. He took a plea bargain to avoid jailtime -- two charges of intent to distribute -- not realizing the charges were considered felonies.
"I immediately was asked to leave college, had my car taken by the state, lost my license," Kronrod said. "My landlady asked me to move out because she was scared to have a felon live in her house. I couldn't get a job anywhere. No one would hire me."
Not everyone thinks changing the CORI law is a good idea.
Ken Lavallee, deputy superintendent of the Lowell Police Department who was reached by phone yesterday, said it is important for employers and agencies to have access to criminal records.
"Do you want someone who works in a hospital with a prior conviction for drugs?" Lavallee said. "Unfortunately we all make decisions in life and sometimes they are bad decisions."