MINISTER of Justice Delroy Chuck is appealing for help to push his long-promised proposal to widen the pool of people who qualify to have their criminal records expunged.

“I have been struggling for quite a few years as to how much we should expand the expungement programme. It is something I hope that you would join me to take back to Cabinet, and to Parliament, as to how we can give convicted criminals — who have put crime behind them — a second chance.

“This indeed is a part of social justice. In truth, many of them have gone through it; they are begging for a second chance, but the law does not allow them the second chance. We are hoping that in due course they will be able to get a second chance,” Chuck said as he addressed a Ministry of Justice World Day of Social Justice Conference at Jamaica Conference Centre in downtown Kingston.

“We have thousands of people now applying for expungement, and it is a challenge,” Chuck added during his remarks to the function which was staged to observe the United Nations’ World Day of Social Justice.

Expungement is having a conviction removed from one’s criminal/police record after a specific period has elapsed, and after certain requirements have been met.

The statute which authorises the expungement of criminal records is the Criminal Records (Rehabilitation of Offenders) Act, 1988, which has an underlying principle that a person who has made a sincere and successful attempt to be law-abiding should be given the opportunity to start afresh without being haunted by his/her unfortunate past.

Under the legislation, murder and offences in relation to rape, distribution of child pornography, carnal abuse with a person under 16, sex with a person under 16, issues in relation to firearm possession and ammunition, the import and export of narcotics, and some offences under the Malicious Destruction of Property Act, such as arson, cannot be expunged.

But, over the past seven years, Chuck has repeatedly argued that the legislation should allow the expungement of criminal records for Jamaicans who ran afoul of the law for serious offences many years ago but have drastically turned their lives around and are now seeking to make progress.

On Thursday Chuck highlighted his desire for changes in the legislation as he noted that the majority of people who apply for expungement are turned down.

“The law restricts the number of people who can get their criminal records expunged. I must be frank with you: Many of these cases that have been turned down are of people who have been engaged in real serious crimes, like people 30 to 40 years ago who were found with a gun or who in fact used a gun. Now, 20 to 30 years later, a couple of pastors have written to me, appealing,” said Chuck.

He pointed out that many of the ex-convicts who pastors appeal on behalf of have become “strong church members”.

Chuck added that many of these ex-convicts are married, their families and children live abroad, but they cannot travel because their criminal records continue to haunt them.

“I struggle regularly with the Expungement Board because there is only a limited class of persons who can get expungement. There is no doubt that we need to give many of these persons a chance who have shown that they no longer have a criminal propensity — because after 15 to 20 years they have been living a straight life,” Chuck said.

“Many of them can’t get work or get promoted because of previous convictions,” noted Chuck.