A Statement from Senator Rob Ortt

In 2017, as part of the Raise the Age legislation, Republicans in the Senate passed comprehensive criminal justice reform that allowed for the sealing of up to two non-violent criminal convictions, as long as the individual stayed crime-free for 10 years.

Today, the Democrats in the Senate held a hearing to advocate for their next piece of pro-criminal legislation, a bill that would wipe clean the convictions of almost every criminal in this state -- including violent criminals, even murderers.

If passed, this legislation would pose a serious threat to public safety. Day care providers would have no way to ensure the people they hire to look after your children are not violent criminals. Landlords would have no way to ensure the person living next to you is not a violent criminal. The legislation would even seal the conviction of inmates before they were released from prison.

Cities across New York State have seen a dramatic increase in violent crimes over the past two years. Now is not the time to coddle criminals -- now is a time to stand up for law-abiding citizens. While the sealing of convictions under the Raise the Age legislation could be done in a more efficient manner, this legislation simply goes too far.

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