Street Roots • Jan. 1-7, 2016
News
Page 4
2016 brings
criminal
justice reforms
What you need to know about
laws coming into effect Jan. 1
BY EMILY GREEN
S T A F F W R IT E R
everal significant changes to
Oregon’s criminal justice system
were signed into law during the
2015 legislative session and become
effective Jan. 1.
A ban on police profiling and
immunity from certain criminal charges
when seeking help for someone
experiencing a drug overdose are new
protections extended to Oregonians.
Also coming into effect are two
criminal-history-forgiveness measures.
Employers are now prohibited from
asking potential employees, about their
criminal record in the early stages of the
hiring process, and people convicted of
Schedule I drug charges no longer have
to wait 20 years before asking the court
to seal their record.
S
The box is banned
Employers in Oregon can no longer
ask a job applicant about his or her
criminal history on a job application or
at any other time prior to the initial
interview. If there is no interview, the
employer must make a conditional job
offer before criminal history is
discussed.
This rule does not apply to jobs in
which current laws and regulations
require a consideration of an applicant’s
criminal history as a condition of
employment, such as jobs in law
enforcement and the criminal justice
system. Nor does it apply to volunteer
positions.
Unlike an earlier version of this
legislation, the bill that
passed does
1
allow for an employer to run a criminal
background check at any point in the
hiring process. The employer just can’t
ask the applicant to self-report up front.
“Oregon’s new ban-the-box law will
remove barriers to employment for
workers so that they can contribute to
Oregon’s workforce and society,” said
Brad Avakian, commissioner of Oregon
Bureau of Labor and Industries, in a
written statement. “Our agency looks
forward to working with employers so
that they understand and comply with
the new law.”
Business owners and managers with
questions about the implementation of
this law can call BOLI’s Technical
Assistance for Employers program at
971-673-0824.
If you apply for a job in Oregon and
the employer asks about your criminal
history on a job application or before
offering you an interview — or, if there is
no interview, before extending a job
offer — contact the Bureau of Labor and
Industries Civil Rights Division at 971-
673-0764 or crdemail@boli.state.or.us to
file a complaint
Criminal record expungement
Senate Bill 908 was an agreement
between defense and prosecuting
attorneys - each side of the bench
got two “fixes” to Oregon’s
expungement law, attorney Gail
Meyer explained to the House
Committee on Judiciary during
a May hearing on the bill.
The most substantial
change came from the
defense bar: Prior to Jan. 1,
people convicted of
possession or delivery of
I
certain controlled
substances had to wait 20
years before they could
apply to have the
conviction removed
from their criminal
record. With the new amendment, they
must wait only three years from the
date of judgment - if they successfully
complete their sentence and haven’t
been convicted of any subsequent
misdemeanors or felonies.
Charges now eligible for expungement
after three years include most drug-
related class B felonies - such as
Schedule I drug possession. Schedule I
drugs include heroin, magic mushrooms,
peyote, LSD and party drugs such as
Ecstasy. Possession
of cocaine and
methamphetamine
charges were
already eligible for
expungement after
three years.
Also from defense
attorneys is a provision
allowing an offender one
subsequent violation
before the wait
time for
expungement is
extended from
three to 10 years. This
includes offenses such as
nonpayment of TriMet fare
and misdemeanors that have
been reduced to violations. It
does not include more serious crimes.
From the district attorney’s side of
the aisle came two changes that add
new limitations to expungement
eligibility. For one, offenders who have
been revoked from probation are no
longer eligible for getting their
convictions set aside in three years, but
must wait 10 years instead.
Prosecutors also mandated that third-
degree assault is no longer eligible for
expungement in cases where the victim
is 10 or younger and the assailant is 18
or older at the time of the offense.
Additionally, Oregon’s massive
marijuana bill contained an
See 2016 LAWS, page 5