Provides that individual counts of a district court criminal complaint dismissed pursuant to Rule 48(a) would be sealed administratively by the court clerk upon the defendant’s request.

Plain-English Summary

This bill addresses what happens to certain criminal charges after they are dropped in Rhode Island's district courts. Specifically, it deals with situations where a prosecutor voluntarily dismisses individual charges (called "counts") against a defendant using a legal procedure known as Rule 48(a). Under current rules, even when these charges are dismissed, the records of those dropped charges can still show up on a person's background. This bill would allow defendants to request that the court clerk automatically seal those dismissed counts from public view.

The sealing process described in the bill would be handled administratively — meaning it would be a straightforward, paperwork-based process handled by the court clerk's office, rather than requiring a lengthy court hearing. Only the specific charges that were dismissed would be sealed; any remaining charges or convictions on the case would not be affected. This is an important distinction because criminal complaints often contain multiple charges, and only some of them may be dropped.

This bill would primarily affect people who have had individual criminal charges against them dismissed by a prosecutor, but who are concerned that those dropped charges still appear on their public record. Sealed records are generally not visible to the public or most employers conducting background checks. The bill is currently in the early stages of the legislative process — it has been referred to the House Judiciary Committee, which has recommended holding it for further study before taking action.