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Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI) is the criminal record sheet of someone in Massachusetts and contains arrests, convictions, dismissals, and serious violations.

In many cases its use has been controversial in getting housing, employment, and funds. There is a move on to reform the CORI usage and contents, spearheaded by MARC, the Massachusetts Alliance to Reform CORI. Reforming CORI information and usage is very controversial in the state of Massachusetts. There is a manner of "sealing" a CORI, making old and purportedly insignificantly old criminal information redacted, but this process is sometimes flawed and ineffective for all parties, law enforcement and the former criminal.

The original intent of the CORI system was to share information among Criminal Justice agencies, but the system has been dramatically expanded and abused over the years, and current access to CORI records is virtually wide-open. A CORI report can keep a Massachusetts citizen from securing employment, housing, loans, insurance, entrance to college, or becoming a guardian or foster parent. Nearly 1.5 million CORI reports are issued each year, and the reports are notoriously flawed and difficult to interpret. CORIs display all court arraignments--regardless of the eventual outcome of the case--and in effect, turn all criminal histories into "life sentences". "source"

All court arraignments, innocent or guilty are reported on one's CORI for life. Currently, one must wait 15 years for a felony and 10 years for a misdemeanor after final disposition (the date you finished probation) to apply to the The Office of the Commissioner of Probation and have this record sealed. If however, during this time that individual so much as receives a traffic ticket for more than $50, he/she must wait an additional 15/10 years. To note also, children of those who have a CORI file often suffer from the effects of not being able to gainfully re-enter society, obtain employment or housing.

[edit] Bibliography

• Executive Order No. 495, "Regarding the Use and Dissemination of Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI) by the Executive Department.", The Commonwealth of Massachusetts', Jan 2008.
• House Bill No. 1416 (The Public Safety Act of 2007), "AN ACT IMPROVING PUBLIC SAFETY IN THE COMMONWEALTH", 2007.
• Kaplan, Claire, et al., "CORI: Opening Doors of Opportunity", The Boston Foundation, 2007.
• Winsor, Ernest, "The CORI Reader", July 2006, Massachusetts Law Reform Institute.

[edit] Further reading

• Bayles, Cara, "The Revolving Door: What's the Commonwealth doing to keep former prisoners from returning to jail?", Weekly Dig, Boston, May 15, 2008.

[edit] External links

• "Massachusetts Law about Criminal Records", Law Library, State of Massachusetts.
• Massachusetts Alliance to Reform CORI
• "Boston Workers Alliance"
• "Massachusetts Policy and Law Reform Coalition"
• "MassLegalHelp"
• "The Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick Committee"
• "The Crime and Justice Institute"
• "The Boston Foundation"