Governor Moore Signs Bill Allowing More Marylanders to Clear Criminal Records

Maryland Governor Wes Moore signed legislation allowing many more Marylanders to expunge criminal records after completing their sentences. The measure will also require the state to automatically shield from public view records for roughly 175,000 people who were pardoned by Governor Moore last year for minor cannabis convictions. The bill, SB 432, was sponsored by the Moore administration.

“This legislation is a major step forward in our efforts to allow Marylanders who have paid their debt to society to be able to rebuild their lives and become productive members of our community,” said Trina Selden, executive director of Out4Justice, on behalf of the Clean Slate Maryland coalition, a diverse statewide group advocating to reform state laws covering expungement of criminal records. “Governor Moore has shown leadership on this issue, and we congratulate him for leading the effort to pass this legislation.” 

The legislation essentially overturns a 2022 state court ruling that found that a person who is found to have violated their probation after a criminal sentencing would be indefinitely ineligible to have that record expunged, even if they have served an entire sentence, paid the consequence for the probation violation and waited through a required waiting period of between five and 15 years. 

The new law will ensure that a probation violation will not impede a person’s ability to seek an expungement if they complete their sentence and otherwise qualify to have their record cleared. Under the legislation, prosecutors and victims retain the right to object to a person’s effort to expunge their record, leaving courts to decide whether the expungement is in the interest of justice. 

The bill will also prohibit Maryland’s public criminal database from showing records of cannabis charges for anyone whose conviction has been pardoned by the governor.  Governor Moore issued a pardon of minor cannabis records in 2024 for about 175,000 people, but those records have remained in public view.

"This is a meaningful victory for Maryland's families and economy,” said Sheena Meade, CEO of The Clean Slate Initiative. “No one should be forever stigmatized and locked out of opportunities based on a past mistake, especially after doing what society requires of them to earn redemption. With SB 432, Maryland’s legislature affirms that redemption is possible; economic opportunity should no longer be out of reach for the more than 1 million Marylanders with an arrest or conviction record. We commend Governor Moore for his work to expand access to second chances in Maryland and hope to see to his leadership on automated record sealing in the future.” 

Roughly one in every 4.6 adults in Maryland – or 22% of adults – have an arrest or conviction record. Their hope to build a better future for themselves and their families is constantly denied because of a mistake made in their past. 

According to the National Inventory of Collateral Consequences of Conviction, there are more than 42,000 state and federal regulatory restrictions that limit or prohibit access to opportunities and benefits. Combined with other societal or cultural barriers, people with a record are excluded from many essential aspects of life, including housing, employment, education and social and civic participation.

“We will continue to advocate for more reforms to give Marylanders a pathway to a meaningful second chance, one that is accessible to everyone who earns it,” said Meredith Girard, executive director of Shore Legal Access. “This is a critical step forward in the fight to give people a path to a stronger life after they have paid their debt, and we will build on this moving forward.” 

Clean Slate Maryland thanks key legislators who championed the bill, including Senate President Bill Ferguson; House Speaker Adrienne Jones; Sen. William C. Smith, chair of the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee; Sen. Jeff Waldstreicher, vice chair of the Judicial Proceedings Committee; Del. Luke Clippinger, chair of the House Judiciary Committee; and Del. J. Sandy Bartlett vice chair of the Judiciary Committee.

Clean Slate Maryland advocated this year for the Maryland Clean Slate Act of 2025. Sponsored by Del. David Moon and Sen. Mike McKay, the bill would take broader action to automatically expunge some criminal records after a person has completed a sentence and gone through a waiting period.