The Maine Legislature passed two bills that would expand eligibility for sealing criminal records, one that drops the age requirements for record sealing and another that allows for sealing now-legal marijuana crimes.
While these plans require people to apply to have records sealed, another proposal that would have automated the process failed after criticism that doing so would violate the First Amendment. That bill specifically applied to criminal records for marijuana possession and cultivation that’s since been legalized in Maine.
The Legislature signaled that Maine’s reconciliation with when it may be appropriate to seal criminal records is far from over, as it also passed a bill to make permanent a commission to continue to study the issue.
Unfinished work on this matter was made clear during floor speeches on these bills, as well, from lawmakers who voted both for and against the range of measures.
The bill that removed the age-related prerequisite for sealing criminal history, LD 2188, passed the House 87–59 and the Senate 25–9. Ahead of the Senate vote, Sen. Lisa Keim (R-Oxford), who voted against the bill, argued record sealing is the incorrect means to give people a fresh start.
“I’m very in favor of second changes and letting people rebuild their lives after making mistakes,” Keim said. “My problem with this legislation, and similar legislation, is the false sense of security.”
Rather than shielding the records from public view, Keim said Maine should instead develop a more robust pardon process.
While legislators agreed to provide a way for people to apply to have certain criminal histories sealed, the majority of the House and Senate did not go so far as to make record-sealing the default.
The bill the Legislature killed, LD 2269, would have tasked state agencies with reviewing criminal record information on a monthly basis and then sealing records for crimes that are no longer considered illegal under Maine’s adult use cannabis law, which was enacted in 2017.
Hellbound and Down 