"The state Senate seems on the verge of passing a terrible bill that is inoffensively labeled the âSecond Chance for Ex-Offenders Act.â Thereâs a companion bill in the Assembly." The champion of this bill is Sen. John Sampson of Brooklyn, leader of the Democratic conference and thus the most powerful member of the Senate. Sampsonâs bill would allow court records of most misdemeanor convictions to be sealed â that is, to effectively blot out the history of the law-breaking. In fact, the bill would allow the sealing of up to three convictions, so that a fourth conviction could be the first one visible to, say, a prospective employer. http://blog.timesunion.com/editors/rex-smith-sealing-records-is-a-foul-idea/1868/ ________________ I always wondered how this pan out. It's been discussed here before basically "Show me the man I'll show you the crime". Criminalize everything, ta da. ----------------------------- "The reality is that there are limited prospects for persons with criminal records. Each time they acknowledge their criminal pasts on job applications, they are likely to be turned away. H.R. 623 would remove this barrier of the past and lower the rates of recidivism by offering these individuals real opportunities for gaining legitimate employment..."- Rep. Charles Rangel, Mar 12, 2007. Sheesh "lucky to still have my job" Charlie Rangel, are you hiring? Got Jobs?