To: The California State Senate and Governor Gavin Newsom
Support Criminal Justice Reform: Petition for A.B. 2845
Show your support for Assembly Bill 2845. This bill will create a five-member panel that holds the power to give pardons to former inmates and expunge their criminal records after proving they will be productive members of society. Criminal records are currently being used by ICE as justification for the deportation of recently-released inmates who are undocumented immigrants. This bill could help solve this issue associated with crimmigration. AB 2845 will bring justice to criminals of all backgrounds who have been wronged by our current system.
Why is this important?
Introduced by Assemblymember Rob Bonta, the Pardon and Commutation Reform Act of 2018 will create the Pardon and Commutation Panel that will take over the responsibilities of the current Board of Parole Hearings. This five-member panel, each of who will have experience with “in community-based reentry, reentry services, community-based risk assessment issues, and immigration law” will meet monthly to review submitted applications for pardons and make recommendations to the Governor.
In current law, the Governor is the only one who can pardon former inmates of their past crimes, a power that can easily be tainted by individual bias. These individuals can wait years to receive a pardon, and in those years, struggle to land jobs or, in the case of immigrants, face deportation due to their past criminal records.
Allowing the panel to give pardons will expunge the criminal records of former inmates who have been reformed and are ready to be productive members of society. Though the Governor still holds the power to elect the candidates on the panel, the bill would force the committee to look at each recommended individual and give a response in one year (or 90 days if they are at risk of deportation by ICE). Thus, with AB 2845, more pardon cases will be examined each year and individuals are guaranteed a review of their case within a year rather than having their case ignored.
This will allow reformed former inmates to be able to obtain jobs instead of being limited by their criminal record and help to solve the crimmigration crisis. ICE has been targeting immigrants with criminal records and using their criminal past as justification for their deportation despite showing they are productive citizens of society. A portion of these immigrants were raised in America and would not be able to adjust to a new lifestyle overseas.
In current law, the Governor is the only one who can pardon former inmates of their past crimes, a power that can easily be tainted by individual bias. These individuals can wait years to receive a pardon, and in those years, struggle to land jobs or, in the case of immigrants, face deportation due to their past criminal records.
Allowing the panel to give pardons will expunge the criminal records of former inmates who have been reformed and are ready to be productive members of society. Though the Governor still holds the power to elect the candidates on the panel, the bill would force the committee to look at each recommended individual and give a response in one year (or 90 days if they are at risk of deportation by ICE). Thus, with AB 2845, more pardon cases will be examined each year and individuals are guaranteed a review of their case within a year rather than having their case ignored.
This will allow reformed former inmates to be able to obtain jobs instead of being limited by their criminal record and help to solve the crimmigration crisis. ICE has been targeting immigrants with criminal records and using their criminal past as justification for their deportation despite showing they are productive citizens of society. A portion of these immigrants were raised in America and would not be able to adjust to a new lifestyle overseas.