New website helps Minnesotans get expungements of criminal records
Attorney General Keith Ellison announces launch of HelpSealMyRecord.org to help Minnesotans obtain expungements of their criminal records. (FOX 9)
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison and partners are announcing a statewide initiative Thursday to help Minnesotans expunge their criminal records.
Ellison and others are launching the website HelpSealMyRecord.org, which allows prosecutors to assist eligible Minnesotans in obtaining expungements of their criminal record anywhere in Minnesota at no cost, according to a news release. They say it is unfair to continue penalizing law abiding citizens who made mistakes.
Ellison was joined at the press conference by Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman, Ramsey County Attorney John Choi, Washington County Attorney Pete Orput and others.
HelpSealMyRecord.org was initially launched by the Ramsey and Washington County Attorney’s Office last year. With the addition of the Minnesota Attorney General's Office, it is now a statewide initiative.
Ellison's office says many people who have satisfied all the terms of their sentence for a crime that is eligible to be expunged do not apply for an expungement or are not even aware they are eligible to apply. Before HelpSealMyRecord.org was launched, those that did seek expungements had to navigate a complicated, expensive system on their own.