Symposium Examines Far-Reaching Impact of Criminal Records 

The University of North Carolina School of Law hosted a thought-provoking symposium, “Justice in the Age of Criminal Records,” on October 11, 2024. Organized by the North Carolina Law Review, the event brought together legal scholars and practitioners to explore how criminal records shape lives long after formal sentences end. 

The symposium kicked off with a panel on juvenile justice. Professor Kristin Henning of Georgetown Law discussed how juvenile records, once thought confidential, now follow individuals into adulthood. “Even limited forays into restrictions on legislative criminalization are being pushed back,” Henning noted, pointing to recent challenges to reform efforts. 

Henry P. Brandis Distinguished Professor Eisha Jain discussed how criminal records drive policing decisions in ways not accounted for in seminal doctrinal cases. She argued that neither legal doctrine nor reform movements adequately address how records are used within the criminal legal system itself. 

The digital age has amplified these issues, as Professor Margaret Hu of William & Mary Law School explained. The explosion of social media data and Artificial Intelligence-driven analysis has blurred lines between civil, criminal, and counterterrorism law. “We’re at risk of losing the presumption of innocence,” Hu warned, describing how predictive policing algorithms may treat anyone with a digital footprint as a potential threat. 

Professor Deborah Archer of New York University School of Law, argued that criminal records have become a new paradigm for governing, used to control access to resources and opportunities essential for vibrant communities. “We’re using the framework of crime and criminal history to prohibit people from integrating and becoming full members of their community,” Archer said. 

The symposium’s final panel, moderated by Carolina Law’s Anne Shea Ransdell and William Garland “Buck” Ransdell, Jr. Distinguished Professor Carissa Hessick, tackled record-clearing initiatives. Professor Colleen Chien of Berkeley Law presented research on automated expungement laws, showing automation has increased expungement rates. However, Chien noted ongoing challenges with notification, data quality, and implementation. 

Chien proposed governance mechanisms to improve the process, including algorithmic audits and expanded regulations on background check companies. “If we make it too risky to create automation, then these bills will not pass,” Chien cautioned, noting the tension between accountability and encouraging reform. 

Professor Jennifer Chacón of Stanford Law analyzed the recent Supreme Court case State Department v. Munoz, examining how criminal records and databases intertwine with immigration law. She recounted a case where a man was denied a visa based on alleged gang affiliations from an opaque database, despite following proper procedures to regularize his status. 

“This is what getting in line looks like,” Chacón said, “and this is why it’s fraught.” She noted the lack of transparency and due process in gang designation use, leaving individuals unable to challenge potentially inaccurate information. 

Throughout the day, speakers stressed the work still needed to narrow criminal records’ scope and ensure second chance initiatives provide real relief. The symposium served as a crucial step in fostering dialogue on this pressing issue, leaving attendees with a renewed sense of urgency to address the far-reaching consequences of America’s criminal record system.