On Nov. 16, New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed legislation that will offer a “clean slate” to up to two million people with criminal records in the state. 

According to the New York Times, under new legislation deemed the “Clean Slate Act,” convicted criminals “who complete their sentences and remain out of trouble for a set period — three years for misdemeanors, eight for eligible felonies — will have their convictions sealed.” 

While this legislature does not include the possibility of automatic conviction sealing for offenders of more serious crimes including sex crimes, murder and most other Class A felonies, the new law should open doors to several members of the community and offer them a fresh start.

This is a huge step forward for some degree of reform to the U.S. criminal justice system, which we feel is something strongly overdue in United States. However, the Clean Slate Act, we feel, is a progressive move towards acknowledging the prisoners’ human rights. 

In the NYT article, Hochul said, “The best crime-fighting tool is a good-paying job.” We strongly agree, and as policies currently sit in most of the country, well-paying jobs for convicted criminals can be hard to come by. We are excited about the doors this new law will open up for designated offenders reintegrating into society and are hopeful that it is a first step towards some major changes nationwide.

Not only does it begin a step towards helping formerly incarcerated people, but it brings to light a reminder that we have a long way to go to improve and reform the current criminal prison system. We feel very strongly about the importance of making these reformations.

That said, the structure of the U.S. criminal justice system may not be conducive to other wholesale changes that could negatively affect the money-makers involved.

“What many have called the prison industrial complex represents an interconnection among the prison system, the political system and the economic system,” according to the Center for Juvenile and Criminal Justice .

The “iron triangle” encourages incarceration, and in turn, the financial gain of politicians and companies that benefit from putting people behind bars. This is also relevant to the number of private prisons in the United States, as compared to state-run institutions. The National Institute of Corrections reported, the number of people in private prisons has grown by 32% since the year 2000, while the total prison population has risen just 3%.

The National Institute of Corrections added, “There are more than 10.35 million people incarcerated throughout the world with the most being in the United States- more than 2.2 million.”

When people think about the criminal justice system, they find it hard to imagine a society without the permanent fixture of prisons. The Center for Juvenile and Criminal Justice says, “such a system may not be legally a form of government, but nevertheless may exert greater influence than more formal structures of the government.”

Prison reform is not a new idea by any means and often is brought up in terms of combating the prison-industrial complex, but changes must be made. What New York State is doing can be considered a simple and logical step in the right direction.

Prison reform is an important issue as we believe that rehabilitation is where lawmakers should be focusing their attention, rather than punishment. Those convicted of crimes should be offered the ability to maintain stable lives after they reclaim their freedom through rehabilitation programs. 

It is important to note that rehabilitation looks different for varying types of crime. We would hope that lawmakers push for more rehabilitation programs to help prisoners serving a non-life sentence. On the other hand, we also believe that offenders serving long sentences should also have improved living conditions, access to mental and physical healthcare and education while incarcerated. Despite the crimes committed, we strongly believe that the conditions behind prison walls should continue to improve until they are humane. 

Moving forward, we are hopeful that other states will follow New York in creating legislation that helps to give second chances to offenders who have already served their time and proven they can be reintegrated into society again.

We are strong believers in calling for reform to help not just people who are now out of prison, but also for currently incarcerated people as well.