Requires superior court clerk to automatically seal cases/individual counts of a criminal complaint/indictment that were dismissed, upon request of defendant and serve it upon bureau of criminal identification, police department and counsel of record.

Plain-English Summary

This bill would require the clerk of the Superior Court to automatically seal criminal cases — or individual charges within a case — that were dismissed, as long as the defendant requests it. "Sealing" a record means that the case is hidden from public view and generally cannot be seen in standard background checks. Under this bill, once a defendant asks for their dismissed case to be sealed, the court clerk would be required to carry out that sealing and then notify the Bureau of Criminal Identification, the relevant police department, and the attorneys involved in the case.

This bill primarily affects people who were charged with a crime in Rhode Island but had their case dismissed — meaning the charges were dropped or thrown out before any conviction. Currently, even dismissed charges can appear on a person's criminal record, which can create obstacles when applying for jobs, housing, or loans. This bill would give those individuals a clearer path to have that dismissed record hidden, so long as they formally request it.

It is worth noting that this bill applies specifically to dismissed cases — not convictions. It covers situations where the legal system essentially said the charges should not move forward. The notification requirement ensures that law enforcement agencies and identification bureaus are kept up to date when a record is sealed.

As of now, the bill has been referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee and has been scheduled for a hearing, but the committee has recommended it be held for further study, meaning it has not yet advanced to a full vote.