Bill From Javan James For Automatic Expungement of Unjust Arrests Approved in Committee

Bill 35-0178 passed the Legislature of the U.S. Virgin Islands Committee on Homeland Security, Justice and Public Safety today with a letter of support from the VI Justice Initiative and live testimony from Special Advisor J. Russell B. Pate, Esq.  Sponsored by Senator Javan E. James Sr., Bill 35-0178 is an Act amending title 5 Virgin Islands Code, chapter 314 to allow for the automatic expungement of any charges on a person’s arrest records upon a finding by a judge that the arrest lacked probable cause.

Supporting this Bill 35-0178 furthers the VI Justice Initiative Clean Slate Program. We believe that everyone deserves a second chance and our Clean Slate Program helps Virgin Islanders overcome the barriers of their past by providing a free attorney to navigate the expungement process.

We believe that it is unconscionable that Virgin Islanders have to keep charges on their arrest records forever because they are too poor to afford an attorney to assist with the expungement process. We believe that it is a racial justice issue, because expungement services are widely available free of charge on the mainland. But here, where we have a population that is majority black these records continue to hold Virgin Islanders back from economic and social mobility.

Bill 35-0178 passed with 6 yeas and 1 absent. Next it will go before the Rules Committee.