To talk about the marijuana record expungement process and whether this initiative is living up to its promise of righting the wrongs of the war on drugs, we were joined by the co-founder of the Cannabis Equity Coalition and an attorney from a legal aid organization.

We spoke with Illinois Newsroom reporter Lee Gaines about her reporting on who has been left out of the expungement process. We were joined by Matt, a central Illinois resident dealing with a cannabis felony from nearly 10 years ago, and Brandon Williams,supervising attorney with Cabrini Green Legal Aid in Chicago. 

This Saturday, nearly 300 Champaign County residents will gather at a church in Urbana to try to get their criminal records expunged or sealed.

For anyone who’s ever been arrested, charged, or convicted of a crime, that criminal record can make it hard to find a job. Many people are eligible for criminal record relief that would either destroy or seal their record from public view. But the process of applying can be complicated and expensive.

About 200 people took advantage of free services offered by the Champaign County Circuit Clerk to seal or expunge their court records.