Statement of Introduction
The Record Expungement Simplification to Offer Relief and Equity
(RESTORE) Amendment Act of 2021
Councilmember Christina Henderson
April 1, 2021
Today, along with Councilmembers Allen, Nadeau, Cheh, Robert White, Pinto, Bonds and
Silverman, I am proud to introduce the Record Expungement Simplification to Offer Relief and
Equity (RESTORE) Amendment Act. This legislation advances DCs commitment to reduce
barriers to employment and housing for those who have been arrested but not convicted,
convicted of a crime that has been decriminalized, or who have served their time and are
returning home. The RESTORE Act significantly expands residents eligibility to seal or
expunge publicly available criminal records and simplifies the related process.
According to data from Urban Institute, criminal records disproportionately impact the Black
community and result in public records that lead to an inability to find a job or be approved for
housing. From 2013 to 2017, Black residents comprised 47% of the Districts population, but
accounted for 86% of arrests. An estimated 1 in 7 DC residents has a publicly available criminal
record, while only half of these individuals have actually been convicted of a crime.
The RESTORE Act dramatically simplifies current laws related to record sealing, expands
eligibility for people with felony convictions, and provides an avenue for record expungement.
An expungement removes arrests or convictions from a persons record entirely. In contrast,
sealing removes a persons criminal record from public view, but it can still be accessed through
a court order.
This piece of transformative legislation fosters an environment in which affected individuals can
be treated fairly. In summary, the RESTORE Act:
Provides clear definitions of record expungement and record sealing;
Provides a clear definition of the purposes for which a request to access or disclose
records may be made;
Creates a framework for expungement upon written motion for non-convictions;
Facilitates automatic sealing for non-convictions;
Empowers the court, in its discretion, to seal records of felony convictions after the
relevant waiting period has passed;
Eliminates disqualifying convictions as a barrier to seeking and obtaining relief; and
Places time limits on the courts determination of motions to seal.
 Below is a fuller comparison of current law and the RESTORE Acts proposed enhancements:
Feature Current Law The RESTORE Amendment Act
Non-convictions Sealing upon motion. Automatic sealing.
Expungement upon motion.
Decriminalized offenses Sealing upon motion. Automatic expungement.
Convictions Eligible misdemeanors (limited by long list All offenses, including felonies, if the court
of ineligible misdemeanors). determines it is in the interest of justice to do so.
One felony offense (failure to appear),
Decriminalized or legalized offenses.
Disqualification An arrest or conviction in an unrelated case No disqualifiers.
may disqualify someone from sealing a
record, even of a non-conviction.
The person must find someone to access
their records out-of-state.
Waiting periods 2-10 years for misdemeanor non- 3 years for crimes of violence.
convictions. 2 years for convicted offenses punishable by a
4-10 years for other non-convictions. prison term of more than one year.
8 years for limited list of eligible 1 year for all other convictions.
convictions.
Time allowed for Must wait for court to order prosecutor to Automatic expungement within 30 days.
disposition respond. Automatic sealing within 30 days.
Prosecutor may request additional time to Decisions on motions to expunge or seal within
respond. 180 days.
No limit on time for court to decide the
motion.
Access to sealed Clerk. Expunged records available to Clerk only.
records Prosecutors. Sealed records available to prosecutors and law
Law enforcement. enforcement only.
Corrections agencies. Clear guidelines for court to permit access by or
Supervision agencies. disclosure to third parties.
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2 Councilmember Charles Allen Councilmember Christina Henderson
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6 Councilmember Brianne K. Nadeau Councilmember Mary Cheh
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10 Councilmember Robert C. White. Councilmember Brooke Pinto
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14 Councilmember Elissa Silverman Councilmember Anita Bonds
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19 A BILL
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22 IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
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26 To amend Chapter 8 of Title 16 to comprehensively revise the Districts criminal record sealing
27 statutes, to increase the number of people eligible for relief, and to simplify and expedite
28 the process for obtaining relief.
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30 BE IT ENACTED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this
31 act may be cited as the The Record Expungement Simplification To Offer Relief and Equity
32 (RESTORE) Amendment Act of 2021.
33 Sec 2. Chapter 8 of Title 16 of the District of Columbia Official Code is amended to read
34 as follows:
35 (a) The table of contents is amended to read as follows:
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36 CHAPTER 8
37 CRIMINAL RECORD SEALING
38 Section
39 16-801. Definitions.
40 16-802. Effect of criminal record expungement.
41 16-803. Effect of criminal record sealing.
42 16-804. Eligibility for criminal record expungement..
43 16-805. Eligibility for criminal record sealing.
44 (b) Section 16-801 is amended to read as follows:
45 16-801. Definitions.
46 For the purposes of this chapter, the term:
47 (1) Clerk means the Clerk of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia.
48 (2) Conviction means the entry of judgment of guilt or the entry of judgment
49 of acquittal under D.C. Code 24-501.
50 (3) Court means the Superior Court of the District of Columbia..
51 (c) Section 16-802 is amended to read as follows:
52 16-802. Effect of criminal record expungement.
53 (a) The effect of criminal record expungement shall be to restore a person, in the
54 contemplation of the law, to the status they occupied before being cited, arrested, or charged.
55 (b) No person as to whom criminal record expungement relief has been granted shall be
56 held thereafter under any provision of law to be guilty of perjury or otherwise giving a false
57 statement by reason of failure to recite or acknowledge their citation, arrest, charge, prosecution,
58 or disposition, in response to any inquiry made of them for any purpose.
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59 (c) If a criminal record is expunged:
60 (1) The Clerk and each prosecutor, law enforcement agency, corrections agency,
61 and community supervision agency shall reply in response to external inquiries concerning the
62 existence of the records that no records are available.
63 (2) The Clerk and each prosecutor, law enforcement agency, corrections agency,
64 and community supervision agency shall eliminate from all publicly available physical and
65 computerized records any references that identify the person as having been cited, arrested, or
66 prosecuted.
67 (3) The Clerk shall retain and sequester a nonpublic record, appropriately and
68 securely indexed in order to protect its confidentiality;
69 (4) Each prosecutor, law enforcement agency, corrections agency, and
70 community supervision agency shall file a certification with the Court within 30 days of an order
71 to expunge the records that, to the best of its knowledge and belief, all references that identify
72 the person as having been cited, arrested, or prosecuted have been expunged; and
73 (4) The Clerk shall provide a copy of the certifications to the person who was
74 cited, arrested, or charged, or their counsel, both at the time of filing and at any time, upon
75 proper identification, without a showing of need.
76 (d) A request to access or disclose expunged records may be made ex parte:
77 (1) By the person who was cited, arrested, or charged; or
78 (2) By another party, upon a showing of good cause, and for the limited purpose
79 of:
80 (A) Investigating, prosecuting, or defending another criminal case;
81 (B) Complying with disclosure obligations in another criminal case; or
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82 (C) Using in civil litigation.
83 (e) If the Court permits a party to access or disclose expunged records, the Court, the
84 parties, and the recipient shall take all reasonable measures to ensure that the record is secure and
85 that its contents are not disclosed, published, or redistributed, such as issuing a protective order
86 or electronically limiting access to verified viewers..
87 (d) Section 16-803 is amended to read as follows:
88 16-803. Effect of criminal record sealing.
89 (a) The effect of criminal record sealing shall be to remove all records related to a
90 citation, arrest, charge, prosecution, or disposition from public view and to permit restricted
91 access by specific actors for specific purposes related to advancing public safety or ensuring due
92 process.
93 (b) No person as to whom criminal record sealing relief has been granted shall be held
94 thereafter under any provision of law to be guilty of perjury or otherwise giving a false statement
95 by reason of failure to recite or acknowledge their citation, arrest, charge, prosecution, or
96 disposition, in response to any inquiry made of them for any purpose.
97 (c) If a criminal record is sealed:
98 (1) The Clerk and each prosecutor, law enforcement agency, corrections agency,
99 and community supervision agency shall reply in response to external inquiries concerning the
100 existence of the records that no records are available;
101 (2) The Clerk and each prosecutor, law enforcement agency, corrections agency,
102 and community supervision agency shall eliminate from all publicly available physical and
103 computerized records any references identify the person as having been cited, arrested,
104 prosecuted, or convicted, except:
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105 (A) In a case involving co-defendants, the persons name be redacted
106 from records that are not sealed, only to the extent that is practicable; and
107 (B) The persons name may continue to appear in any published opinion
108 of the trial or appellate courts; and
109 (3) The Clerk and each prosecutor and law enforcement agency may retain and
110 sequester a nonpublic record, appropriately and securely indexed in order to protect its
111 confidentiality;
112 (4) Each prosecutor and law enforcement agency shall file a certification with
113 the Court within 30 days of an order to seal the records that, to the best of its knowledge and
114 belief, all references that identify the person as having been cited, arrested, prosecuted, or
115 convicted have been sealed;
116 (5) Each corrections agency and community supervision agency shall file a
117 certification with the Court within 30 days of an order to seal the records that, to the best of its
118 knowledge and belief, all references that identify the person as having been cited, arrested,
119 prosecuted, or convicted have been eliminated; and
120 (6) The Clerk shall provide a copy of the order sealing the records and the
121 certifications to the person who was cited, arrested, prosecuted, or convicted, or their counsel,
122 both at the time of filing and at any time, upon proper identification, without a showing of need.
123 (d) A request to access or disclose sealed records may be made ex parte for any lawful
124 purpose, including:
125 (1) Investigating, prosecuting, or defending another criminal case;
126 (2) Complying with disclosure obligations in another criminal case;
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127 (3) Determining the persons suitability for diversion, release, sentencing
128 reduction, or record sealing in another case;
129 (4) Using in civil litigation; and
130 (5) Law enforcement hiring decisions.
131 (e) If the Court permits a party to access or disclose sealed records, the Court, the
132 parties, and the recipient shall take all reasonable measures to ensure that the record is secure and
133 that its contents are not disclosed, published, or redistributed, such as issuing a protective order
134 or electronically limiting access to verified viewers..
135 (e) Section 16-804 is amended to read as follows:
136 16-804. Eligibility for criminal record expungement.
137 (a) A criminal record shall be expunged automatically within 30 days if:
138 (1) The person was:
139 (A) Cited for, arrested for, charged with, or convicted of a criminal
140 offense under the laws of the District that has subsequently been decriminalized or legalized; or
141 (B) Cited, arrested, charged, or convicted under a District law that an
142 appellate court found to be facially unconstitutional;
143 (2) The citation, arrest, or charge was not made in connection with and did not
144 result in any other charges against the person;
145 (3) The case was terminated by the prosecutor or otherwise reached a final
146 disposition; and
147 (4) The United States Attorney for the District of Columbia or the Attorney
148 General for the District of Columbia has not:
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149 (A) Filed a written motion, which may be made ex parte, to retain and
150 sequester the record for a limited period of time; and
151 (B) Demonstrated by a preponderance of the evidence that retention is
152 necessary for a lawful purpose, such as:
153 (i) Investigating, prosecuting, or defending another criminal case;
154 (ii) Complying with disclosure obligations in another criminal
155 case;
156 (iii) Determining the movants suitability for diversion, release,
157 sentencing reduction, or record sealing in another case;
158 (iv) Using in civil litigation; and
159 (v) Law enforcement hiring decisions.
160 (b) A criminal record shall be expunged by the Court within 180 days if:
161 (1) The person was cited for, arrested for, or charged with, a criminal offense
162 under the laws of the District of Columbia;
163 (2) The case was terminated by the prosecutor or otherwise reached a final
164 disposition and did not result in a conviction or an acquittal under D.C. Official Code 24-501;
165 and
166 (3) The person files a written motion demonstrating by a preponderance of the
167 evidence that:
168 (A) The offense for which the person was cited, arrested, or charged did
169 not occur;
170 (B) The person did not commit the offense; or
171 (C) It is in the interests of justice to expunge the records.
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172 (c) When determining whether it is in the interests of justice to expunge a criminal
173 record, the Court may consider:
174 (1) The interests of the movant in expunging the records of the citation or arrest
175 and related court proceedings;
176 (2) The communitys interest in furthering the movants rehabilitation and
177 enhancing the movants employability;
178 (3) The communitys interest in retaining access to the records, including the
179 interest of current or prospective employers in making fully informed hiring or job assignment
180 decisions and the interest in promoting public safety;
181 (4) The nature and circumstances of the alleged offense;
182 (5) The movants role in the alleged offense and the weight of the evidence
183 against the movant;
184 (6) The history and characteristics of the movant, including the movants:
185 (A) Character;
186 (B) Physical and mental condition;
187 (C) Employment history;
188 (D) Prior and subsequent conduct;
189 (E) History relating to drug or alcohol abuse or dependence and
190 treatment opportunities;
191 (F) Criminal history; and
192 (G) Efforts at rehabilitation;
193 (7) The time that has elapsed since the alleged offense;
194 (8) Any statement made by the victim of the alleged offense; and
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195 (9) Any other information it considers relevant.
196 (d) If the Court denies a motion to expunge a record under this section:
197 (1) The Court shall entertain a second motion under this section no sooner than
198 one year after the date that the order on the initial motion becomes final;
199 (2) If the Court denies the movants second motion under this section, the Court
200 shall entertain a third and final motion under this section no sooner than one year following the
201 date that the order on the second motion becomes final; and
202 (3) The Court shall not entertain a fourth or successive motion under this
203 section..
204 (f) Section 16-805 is amended to read as follows:
205 16-805. Eligibility for criminal record sealing.
206 (a) A criminal record shall be se