A former client of mine was getting ready to sign up to sit for the nursing exam but discovered that she wasn’t sure how to answer the criminal history question on the exam’s application form, having previously sealed her adult criminal case and expunged her juvenile history. I spoke to Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR), the agency that licenses nurses and other health care professionals, and here is what they told me.
Read MoreRecently, I spoke with a women who had been trying to find work as a commercial truck driver. For some reason, no one was interested in hiring her. Court file revealed that Jenny had been sentenced to six months supervision -- a “deferred” sentence – and successfully completed it. In layperson terms, that meant Jenny did not have a DUI conviction on her record. Nevertheless, under the Illinois Secretary of State’s (SOS) record retention rules, even when someone receives supervision for a DUI, the infraction remains on someone’s official driving record for life.
Read MoreIllinois made it easier for someone with a criminal background to apply for a professional or occupational license from the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR). Three years later, the law’s changes remain largely unknown to those who were intended to benefit from them. Contact A Bridge Forward to schedule a free 20-minute consultation to assist you in exploring how best to maximize your odds of obtaining a occupational or professional license even with a criminal record.
Read MoreFix professional licensing issues - Several months ago I was contacted by a woman who applied for a licensed professional counselor (LPC) license. As with most license application forms, it included a criminal history question. She answered "no" when the correct answer was "yes". The state licensing board accused Martha of providing “false, misleading statements” on her application.
Read MoreIllinois Clemency - From January through November 20, 2020, Gov. Pritzker granted 38 commutation requests. In 2019, the governor commuted one prison sentence. Based on available clemency denial information (through October 12, 2020), Pritzker approved roughly one-third of the commutation requests reviewed. News reports of Gov. Pritzker’s commutations first surfaced in April after he’d commuted a dozen prison sentences. Seven (7) of those commutations involved convictions for murder. All told, the governor commuted seventeen (17) murder convictions and fourteen (14) life sentences (not all involved murder convictions).
Read MoreWhen Illinois legalized small amounts of cannabis last year it, in effect, invalidated a handful of misdemeanor and felony cannabis convictions. That said, individuals still need to ask a court to vacate and expunge their cases.
Even though this benefit contained in the cannabis law received much publicity in the months leading up to its effective date (Jan. 1, 2020), to date few people have had their convictions vacated and expunged -- setting aside those low-level misdemeanor convictions that have been pardoned by Governor Pritzker.
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