Greater Boston Legal Services helps people with CORI (Criminal Offender Record Information) who are shut out of the economy, rejected for housing, and denied other opportunities because of their criminal records.
The Project focuses on Roxbury, Dorchester and Mattapan due to very high rates of unemployment and extreme poverty in these parts of Boston.
The project represents individual clients and engages in systemic law reform advocacy. Cases accepted include:
- Free CORI reports for low-income people
- Legal help sealing or expunging records and representation of clients at criminal record sealing hearings. Click here to link to record sealing and other booklets
- Appeal of denials of criminal record and juvenile sealing petitions
- Fixing mistakes on CORI reports and problems with juvenile court youthful offender records being listed on adult CORI reports in violation of the law
- Denial of the right to seal all of one’s Boston Municipal Court (BMC) cases from all divisions of the BMC in a single division of the court under BMC Standing Order 1-09
- Cases where a judge ordered sealing or expungement, but the Commissioner of Probation will not seal or expunge the CORI as ordered
- Violations of the BAN the BOX law where a job application asked about criminal records
- People denied or might be denied a professional license (driving for Uber or other transportation companies, trade licenses, etc.) because of CORI where: (1) an application asks about arrests and/or non-convictions; or (2) an application does not warn people not to list sealed records
- Rejections for housing, training or education programs, jobs or other things based on CORI
- Other criminal record problems that arise
GBLS walk-in sites at the Roxbury Court, Dorchester Court and Boston Municipal Court at Brooke courthouse stopped due to COVID, but expect to return starting in Roxbury by January 2022. Check GBLS website.
In the meantime, you can get help on the 2nd and 4th Wednesdays of the month, 2pm to 4pm by ZOOM click here to register for a clinic. You can also email your name, address and phone number to cori@gbls.org or leave a message at 617-603-1797.