The bill amends Section 12-1.3-1 of the General Laws in Chapter 12-1.3, which is entitled "Expungement of Criminal Records." The amendment includes a new definition for "misdemeanor" within the context of expungement. Specifically, the insertion clarifies that a misdemeanor now includes crimes that were classified as felonies at the time of the original sentence but have since been reclassified as misdemeanors by the General Assembly before the motion to expunge is brought. This change allows for certain crimes that have been downgraded from felonies to misdemeanors to be eligible for expungement.

The bill also provides definitions for terms such as "crime of violence," "expungement of records and records of conviction," "first offender," and "law enforcement agency." It specifies what is included in "records" and "records of conviction and/or probation," and excludes certain records kept by the department of attorney general. The act is set to take effect upon passage, indicating that the changes to the law regarding the expungement of criminal records will be immediate once the bill is enacted. The purpose of the act is to redefine misdemeanors for expungement purposes and to make prior felonies that have been reclassified as misdemeanors eligible for expungement under the specified sections of the law.

Statutes affected:
8342: 12-1.3-1