NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — With so many issues on Capitol Hill, oftentimes ending in a party-line vote, both Democrats and Republicans have signaled that they can find some common ground with one particular issue: Criminal Justice Reform.
One bill from from Rep. Harold Love (D-Nashville) would help people who were once convicted of misdemeanors.
As the law stands now, after people convicted of misdemeanors serve their sentence, they have to wait at least five years before they can go to a judge and ask them to remove the crime from their record -- a legal process called expungement or expunction.
Love's bill would shorten that time period to three years.
"People have learned their lesson from the crime they committed, and they deserve a chance to start over," Love said.
Love says misdemeanors that remain on criminal records can often throw up road blocks when trying to apply for jobs to turn their lives around.
