LANSING, Mich. (Michigan News Source)-Michigan’s more than 100,000 individuals whose records are subject to Michigan’s automatic records expungement program may not be recognized by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) without a formal request.
The FBI will not remove the crimes from the federal databases without a specific court order or request from the state seeking the removal according to the Detroit News, particularly for those seeking eligibility to own a gun.
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Unless a court order or formal state request is made at the behest of the individual, it is unlikely that those whose crimes were erased from state background check databases would be able to purchase or own a firearm because federal background checks would still possess the records. Under Michigan’s current automatic expungement system, there is not an automatic formal order of expungement or request from the state to the FBI.
“The state must request the modification to the federal criminal history record,” the FBI’s biometric support section said in a statement to The Detroit News.
Despite setbacks, Michigan is the third state, following Pennsylvania and Utah, to initiate an automatic expungement process out of 10 states who have adopted similar legislation.
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel’s office said it respected the federal government’s expungement recognition standards and had no plans to request more than 100,000 court orders affirming the expungements, the Detroit News reported.
“I would expect that neither our department nor the courts have the capacity to request or produce them,” AG Nessel’s spokesman Danny Wimmer said. “The expungements stand to make a real difference in the lives of Michigan residents seeing their previous convictions set aside, despite this lack of federal database recognition.”
Michigan State Police say they are leading the charge with an automated system which would remove certain convictions from MSP databases of criminal records and would notify the courts daily with updates.
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Not eligible for automatic expungement includes “assaultive crimes” like assault, homicide, manslaughter, assault against pregnant women, kidnapping, rape, armed robbery, terrorism, and violations involving bombs and explosives, according to the House Fiscal Agency.
From the system’s Go-Live on April 11 through April 19, there have been more than 105,000 felonies set aside by the automatic expungement system according to Michigan State Police.
Previously, the Michigan Sheriffs’ Association (MSA) revealed that it was concerned that the expungement process would allow for more to possess a firearm who previously could not with their sentence.
“At the same time, we’re trying to keep firearms out of the hands of those who may be a threat, we’re getting rid of past criminal convictions,” said MSA executive director Matthew Saxton.
“Even if they’re not assaultive crimes, we can’t forget that past behavior when it comes to predicting criminal behavior.”
The future for formerly convicted individuals and their path to gun ownership appears unclear under the FBI’s position.
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