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Massachusetts Law About Criminal Records

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2010 CORI Reform Explained: How the law is changing, and when. 5-page chart outlines differences between the current law and new law, and provides effective dates for each change.

The CORI Reader, Mass. Law Reform Institute, 2009. Excellent source for gaining an understanding of what CORI is, who has access, and how to correct one's information.

Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI), Mass. Criminal History Systems Board. The agency responsible for administering CORI, their site has a wealth of information on all CORI-related issues.

Massachusetts Laws

MGL c.6, s. 167-178B Criminal Offender Record Information Act (CORI).

NOTE: The CORI law was completely revamped by St.2010, c.256, s.2-37. Most substantive changes, such as limits to CORI given to employers and others, are effective in May 2012; restrictions on CORI questions on job applications are effective in Nov. 2010.

Massachusetts Regulations

Executive Orders

Executive Order 495: Regarding the Use and Dissemination of Criminal Offender Record Information by the Executive Department.

Forms

CORI Forms

Access to CORI

Reading a CORI Report and Contents of CORI Reports

Interpreting Abbreviations Found in CORI Reports:

How to Read a Criminal Record, Mass. Criminal History Systems Board. Provides explanations for codes found in CORI reports, tips for searching, Master Crime List and more.

Accessing Your Own CORI

Frequently Asked Questions About One's Own CORI, Mass. Criminal History Systems Board.

How Do I Get a Copy of My CORI?, Mass. Legal Help. Outlines the process and provides forms for requesting a copy of your own CORI.

Access by the General Public

Massachusetts Laws:

Judicial Archives of the State Archives. For information prior to 1860. The records for the various county courts (1636-1860) are in the Judicial Archives of the State Archives in Boston. For further assistance you may consult the Finding Aids for the County at the State Archives (Reference Desk) or Contact the Judicial Archives. You should try to find as much information about the case as you can before you contact them. We were told that the person's name, year of the trial, as well as the type of crime is helpful. The archivist suggested that local newspapers from around the time of the trial often provide detailed information.

Public Record Requests and CORI, SPR Bulletin 3-03. "There is little doubt that MOST police records are public records and must be available to anyone upon request."

Publicly Accessible CORI, Mass. Criminal History Systems Board. "For the adult conviction record to be "publicly accessible" the person whose record is requested must have been convicted of a crime punishable by a sentence of five years or more, or has been convicted of any crime and sentenced to any term of imprisonment, and at the time of the request: 1. is serving a sentence of probation or incarceration, or is under the custody of the parole board; or 2. having been convicted of a misdemeanor, has been released from all custody or supervision not more than one year; or 3. having been convicted felony, has been released from all custody or supervision for not more than two years; or 4. having been sentenced to the custody of the department of correction, has finally been discharged therefrom, either having been denied release on parole or having been returned to penal custody for violating parole for not more than three years."

Who Can See My CORI?, Mass. Legal Help. Lists the types of people and organizations who have access to your criminal record.

Housing and CORI Access

Housing and CORI, Mass. Legal Help. Explains the access of a housing authority or potential landlord to your criminal history, and how to obtain housing if you have a criminal record. Covers both public and private housing.

Employment and CORI Access

MGL c. 71, s.38R Schools' access to criminal records; employees, contractors, and volunteers; use limited to protection of children

MGL c.151B, s.4 (9-1/2) as added by St.2010, c.256, s.101. An employer may not "request on its initial written application form criminal record information," unless very specific conditions apply. Effective Nov. 4, 2010.

Bellin v. Kelley, 435 Mass. 261, 755 N.E.2d 1274 (2001). According to this decision, an investigating police officer did not act wrongly in revealing an employee's CORI history to an employer. The decision further stated that an employer could fire the employee for the employee's failure to submit to a polygraph test. Summary judgments were thus granted for both the police officer and the employer who were among the defendants in the matter.

CORI Reform in Massachusetts, Boston Worker's Alliance, 2010. Includes great chart summarizing differences between old and new criminal records laws.

Criminal Offender Record Information Administrative Procedure Reforms: MCAD Fact Sheet, November 2010. Detailed explanation of what employers may and may not ask applicants under the new law, which employers must comply, and the relevant exceptions.

How Your Criminal History May Affect You When Enlisting in the Army, Children's Law Center. Explains what may disqualify an enlistee, and the "moral waiver" process that may enable you to enlist despite a record.

Human Services Jobs and Your CORI, Mass. Legal Help. Human services agencies face restrictions on who they may hire, depending on the criminal record involved. Outlines the laws and how to overcome obstacles in working for human services if you have a criminal record.

New Massachusetts Law on Criminal Background Checks, Jackson Lewis, August 2010. Clear and concise explanation of the new CORI law for employers.

Access by Court

Commonwealth v. Morse, 50 Mass.App.Ct. 582, 740 NE2d 998 (2000). Appeals Court is entitled to access probation-related documents according to the Criminal Offender Records Information System, regardless of whether or not the records were included within the record of an appeal.

Media Access and Dissemination

Globe Newspaper Co. v. District Attorney for Middle Dist., 439 Mass. 374, 788 NE2d 513 (2003) Newspaper had sought disclosure of docket numbers of criminal cases involving municipal corruption, prosecuted in public judicial proceedings. Among its findings, court held that CORI statute did not prevent disclosure of criminal record information, but newspaper only had a disclosure right to the extent the requested information correlated with information available from court records or other public records.

Immigration Consequences

MGL c.278 sec. 29D. Court Advisement. "The court shall not accept a plea of guilty, a plea of nolo contendere, or an admission to sufficient facts from any defendant in any criminal proceeding unless the court advises such defendant of the following: "If you are not a citizen of the United States, you are hereby advised that the acceptance by this court of your plea of guilty, plea of nolo contendere, or admission to sufficient facts may have consequences of deportation, exclusion from admission to the United States, or denial of naturalization, pursuant to the laws of the United States."

Immigration Consequences of Criminal Activity, Congressional Research Service, October, 2006. "This report discusses the potential immigration consequences of criminal activity. “Criminal activity” generally refers to conduct for which an alien has been found or plead guilty before a court of law, though in limited circumstances consequences may attach to the commission of a crime or admission of acts constituting the essential elements of a crime. Consequences may flow from violations of either federal, state or, in many circumstances, foreign criminal law."

Sealing, Expungement and Pardons

Massachusetts Laws:

Chief of Police of Shelburne v. Moyer, 16 Mass.App.Ct. 543, 453 N.E.2d 461 (1983). "Statute providing for sealing of record of a person convicted for possession of certain controlled substances does not preclude use by a chief of police...of departmental records which are not public records, maintained by police and other law enforcement agencies."

Commonwealth v. Boe, 456 Mass. 337 (2010). A judge does not have the authority "to order the Commissioner of Probation (commissioner) to expunge a defendant's record where the criminal complaint was dismissed because its issuance was premised on a mistake." "Massachusetts appellate decisions have construed the unambiguous language of G.L. c. 276, § 100C, as conferring on a judge the authority, in appropriate circumstances, to order sealing, but not expungement, of the probation and court records of dismissed prosecutions." 

Commonwealth v. Doe, 420 Mass. 142, 648 N.E.2d 1255 (1995). Court provides an in-depth discussion regarding the sealing statutes, MGL c. 276 secs. 100A-C. Specifically, it clarifies the phrase "substantial justice," which is used in MGL c.276 sec.100C as follows: "the value of sealing to the defendant [must] clearly outweigh[] the constitutionally-based value of the record remaining open to society." Id., at 151.

Commonwealth v. Gavin G., 437 Mass. 470 (2002). While Juvenile Court judges have the authority to order expungement of police records, they do not have authority to order expungement of probation records.

Commonwealth v. S.M.F., 40 Mass.App.Ct. 42, 660 N.E.2d 701 (1996). "When statute governing sealing of certain criminal records is applicable, exercise of judicial power of expungement is no longer within authority of judge, but, when statute or other confidentiality statutes are not applicable, trial courts may invoke their inherent power to order expungement of criminal records."

CORI Reform in Massachusetts, Boston Worker's Alliance, 2010. Includes great chart summarizing differences between old and new criminal records laws.

A Guide to Public Access, Sealing and Expungement of District Court Records, Mass. District Court, April 2010. Includes information on what records can be sealed or expunged, procedural information and forms.

Relief from the Collateral Consequences of a Criminal Conviction: Massachusetts, Margaret Colgate Love, 2007. Covers the ways in which a person convicted of a crime may have their rights reinstated, including automatic restoration, executive pardon, and records sealing. The section on obtaining a pardon is particularly helpful.

Sealing Juvenile Records, Children's Law Center. Explains the process of having a juvenile record sealed.

Sealing My CORI, Mass. Legal Help. Provides a clear explanation of the ways a criminal record may be sealed and how to do it. Includes forms when possible, and directions on how to obtain forms that cannot be downloaded.

Correcting A Criminal Record

St.2010, c.256, s.35. "Subject to appropriation, the department shall provide assistance to individuals that have requested assistance to correct inaccurate or incomplete criminal offender record information. Such assistance shall include but not be limited to cooperation with appropriate entities to correct, modify or appropriately supplement criminal offender record information that has been determined to be inaccurate or incomplete." Effective in May 2012.

Information Concerning the Process in Correcting a Criminal Record, Mass. Criminal History Systems Board. Explains what to do if your criminal record appears incorrect, such as when a case appears open but is actually closed, a disposition is listed incorrectly, or you are the victim of identity theft.

Mistakes on CORIs, Mass. Legal Help. In plain English, describes the process of correcting two types of mistakes: information about you that is incorrect, or information that is not about you.

Print Resources

Crime and Consequence: The Collateral Effects of Criminal Conduct, MCLE, 2009. Covers issues concerning housing, employment, immigration, sealing records and more.

Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI): Barriers to Re-Entry for Ex-Offenders , MCLE no. 2005-31027-25, 2005.

"Judicial Expunction of Criminal Record of Convicted Adult", 11 ALR 4th 956.

Massachusetts Practice, vol. 18A (Municipal Law and Practice, 5th ed.), West, 2006 with supplement, sec. 21.37; vol. 42 (Criminal Defense Motions, 3rd ed.), West, 2003 with supplement, sec. 3.2, 4.22 through 4.26, and 6.3 through 6.5; vol. 39 (Administrative Law and Practice), West, 1986 with supplement, sec. 1278 through 1294; and vol. 45 (Employment Law, 2nd ed.), West, 2003 with supplement, sec. 13.16 (includes forms).

State Agencies


Criminal Justice Information Services
200 Arlington St., Suite 2200
Chelsea MA 02150
(617) 660-4600

According to its own web site, the board "serves as the hub of information services for the law enforcement and criminal justice communities."

Office of the Commissioner of Probation (OCP).
One Ashburton Place, Room 405
Boston MA 02108
(617) 727-5300

Contact this office to obtain an application to request and file an application to have a criminal record sealed.