Board Meeting Recap & Holiday Reception

Panel discussion on D.C. Council criminal record sealing legislation
As part of CCE's semi-annual board of directors meeting, Carol Elder Bruce, Criminal Justice Committee chair, moderated a panel on four bills introduced in the D.C. Council pertaining to criminal record sealing and expungement. Katya Semyonova, special counsel at The Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia, and David LaBahn, president/CEO of the Association of Prosecuting Attorneys, shared their perspectives on balancing public safety and ensuring that D.C. residents returning from prison or jail have fair opportunities for employment and housing. In 2006, CCE was instrumental to creating the research basis for and building consensus around D.C.'s first criminal record sealing bill. CCE is collaborating with various stakeholders to inform policy decisions based on CCE's findings 2016's Beyond Second Chances report.

Carol Elder Bruce of Murphy & McGonigle, moderator; Katya Semyonova, Public Defender Service of D.C.; and
David LaBahn, Association of Prosecuting Attorneys