State Lawmakers Revive Proposal Changing Criteria for Wiping Away a Past Criminal Conviction

Tuesday, April 25th, 2023 -- 2:01 PM

(By Sarah Lehr, Wisconsin Public Radio) A bipartisan group of state lawmakers is reviving a proposal that would change Wisconsin's criteria for wiping a past criminal conviction from public view.

According to Sarah Lehr with Wisconsin Public Radio, currently, state law only allows someone to ask a judge for expungement if the crime was committed before they turned 25. That age requirement would be removed under a bill sponsored by Republican state Rep. David Steffen of Green Bay.

At a public hearing on the plan, Steffen said "arbitrary" limits shouldn't stop people with criminal histories from turning over a new leaf. "An individual that is trying to get back into work, we want them to do that whether their crime was committed as a 17-year-old or a 27-year-old," he told the Senate's Committee on Judiciary and Public Safety. 

While the proposal would remove the current age limit, it would also make certain crimes, including stalking, violating a domestic abuse restraining order, criminal trespass, criminal damage to a business and traffic offenses, ineligible for expungement.

And, as is the case under the current law, expungement would only be possible for crimes other than violent felonies if someone has no other past felony convictions. Someone would need to wait at least year after completing their sentence, before applying for expungement.

That includes completing community supervision and paying any outstanding court fees and restitution.

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