Proponent Testimony House Bill 164
Good Afternoon Chairman Butler, Vice Chair Manning, and Ranking Member Stinziano, thank you for allowing me to provide proponent testimony for House Bill 164.
On behalf of Miracle Revival Ministry Assemblies of God I extend our deepest thanks and appreciation for your kind concerns and compassion. “For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you” according to the Holy Scripture. On June 2nd 2015 at 6:00pm, Miracle Revival Ministry Assemblies of God located at 182 West Jackson Street in Painesville, Ohio will feature an event hosted by Pastor Gerard Mirbel and attorney at law Joseph Randy Klammer in partnership with the Legal Aid Society of Cleveland.
This session will feature important information about sealing a criminal record. The presenters will discuss eligibility for sealing a criminal record, the steps and process, and alternatives if one is not eligible to seal a record.
Plus they will learn how to access help for sealing a record through appointments at scheduled legal aid clinics.
In our state there are many thousands who suffer a life-long handicap as a result of a one time lapse in judgment. Indeed, a single conviction or even an arrest without a conviction can forever affect an individual’s employment opportunities and social standing.
A failure to forgive can cause irreparable damage not only to the individual but also to our society as a whole.
Knowledge of a person’s criminal past, while it can certainly provide fair and needed insight into that person’s character; it may also be counterproductive in that it can also create an obstacle impeding a changed person’s effort at reformation and rehabilitation.
First and foremost, some ex-offenders are disqualified at least temporarily from obtaining federal loans or grants for post secondary education. Even government programs designed to assist the poor, like food vouchers, are unavailable to some ex-offenders making rehabilitation far more difficult.
Ex-offenders also risk disqualification from military service as well. In other words, society’s attitude towards those with criminal histories creates a very predictable cycle, where denials of access to education, housing, and employment often lead to criminal recidivism. Individuals who have a criminal record just may have a direct coalition with drug trafficking. They can’t find employment so they may be attracted to drug trafficking as an alternative to employment. In comparison, many people may not participate because of addiction but they may be used by the drug lord as dealers or illegal employees. I believe if people can find legitimate employment we may be able to decrease the drug trafficking which is to them a source of income because they can’t find employment due to their criminal records.
On March 20 2014, a Stanford student report found that erasing some criminal convictions from public record makes it easier for those offenders to find employment-increasing tax revenues and decreasing public assisting payments. In view of this challenging issue I would like to personally call upon our state legislatures to consider more sensitive changes to our laws governing criminal records.
Thank you immensely for your kind review.
Sincerely,
Rev. Gerard P. Mirbel
Pastor of Miracle Revival Ministry Assemblies of God
182 West Jackson Street
Painesville, Ohio 44077