Many ex-offenders and felons find it very difficult to find jobs after serving their sentences. There are some legal tools that are available that can be used that will make the difficult task of getting hired with a criminal record easier. One of these tools is the Certificate of Rehabilitation. It has also been known as Certificate of Relief from Disabilities or Restoration of Rights or Certificate of Good Conduct.
A Certificate of Rehabilitation is a court order, which declares that a person who has been
convicted of a felony is rehabilitated. If a petition for a Certificate of Rehabilitation is granted, it
is forwarded to the Governor by the granting court and constitutes an application for a pardon. (In
some cases the granting of a Certificate of Rehabilitation relieves some offenders from the sexual
offender registration requirement.)
If granted a certificate, one may be eligible to be certified in some fields that were previously closed because of the nature of one's conviction
Currently there are 14 states (and Washington, D.C.) in total that offer certificates of rehabilitation:
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Connecticut
District of Columbia
Georgia
Illinois
Nevada
New York
New Jersey
North Carolina
Ohio
Rhode Island
Tennessee
Vermont
Each state has it own requirements for those who wish to apply for a Certificate of Rehabilitation. Application for a certificate is a legal process that should only be handled by a legal professional. You must get assistance from a qualified professional. Contact your local Legal Aid office where you may be able to get free or nearly free assistance applying for a certificate.
Legal Aid attorneys may know of employers who have hired ex-offenders and felons in your area.
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Felons can Use a Certificate of Rehabilitation to get Jobs
After
having many run-ins with the law, this entrepreneur vowed to help those who has
had a troubled past if they demonstrate that they want to turn their lives
around.
If you’d told me 15 years ago today I’d be leading and running a fast-growing company, I would’ve called you crazy.
I experienced, shall we say, a pretty rebellious youth. To put it more accurately, I was not a good kid. I was arrested 17 times before my 18th birthday and several more arrests throughout my twenties and early thirties. After many run-ins with the law, I had to make a choice: go to jail or serve in the military.
I took the latter option. Five years as a Navy deep sea diver gave me a newfound purpose. But I found myself on the wrong side of the law again when I went down the path of selling illegal anabolic steroids. When I finally decided to abandon that life to build Nutrition Solutions–I found myself standing before a judge waiting to receive sentencing for crimes that I’d committed three years earlier.
ON GETTING A SECOND CHANCE
The police prosecutor had recommended 24 months in state prison, and I walked into the courtroom that day not knowing if I would walk out on my own free will. What happened next was nothing short of a miracle, as the judge made a decision that allowed me to be where I am today. Although I had pleaded guilty for multiple felony charges, she decided not to send me to prison. Instead, she let me off with a one-year probation. She considered the strides I took to better my life and grow my business and recognized the efforts I had made to change for the better. That judge chose to see the best in me, despite my past circumstances.
I realized that not everyone in that position would have been as lucky. Many people who experience the criminal justice system won’t have the opportunity to prove themselves the way that I was able to. That day, I vowed to do everything in my power to help those with a troubled past, have hit rock bottom or who come from nothing to help them make positive transformations in their lives. Here’s what I learned.
SOMEONE’S HISTORY ISN’T AN ACCURATE INDICATION OF THEIR FUTURE
e have a massive problem with incarceration and re-entry in America. One in three Americans have a criminal record, and 60% of those are unemployed one year after being released. Getting a job with a criminal record is almost impossible. As Rick Wartzman previously wrote for Fast Company, many businesses see this as a sign of “the kind of workers that they’ll prove to be,” no matter how committed the individuals are to bettering themselves.
Having hired former felons myself, I can say for sure that a mark on your criminal record doesn’t mean you can’t succeed and make something of yourself. It’s true that you can’t escape your past, but those who have struggled with life-altering circumstances or a troubled past still can create a productive life for themselves and the people around them. Pain makes you stronger–and adversity teaches you valuable lessons that you will not forget. I’ve found with the proper training, structure, and support those with criminal records can become productive employees and thriving members of society.
THE BENEFITS OF FOCUSING ON CHARACTER AND VALUE
To be clear, I don’t give second chances to just anyone. I evaluate those with criminal records and/or a history of substance abuse on a case-by-case basis. Some acts and crimes don’t warrant a second chancexd5. The simple recipe for determining whether or not someone deserves another shot comes down to one element–whether or not that person has accepted full responsibility for their past actions.
Criminal record or not, you can judge a person’s character by the way they view their mistakes. Do they acknowledge it, or do they blame external circumstances? When they accept responsibility for the fact that they were the one who got themselves in that position, they also understand that they possess the ability to get themselves out.
Convicted felons and those who have served time in jail or prison also have been conditioned to living in very stressful environments and constantly being uncomfortable. This gives them a considerable advantage in the workplace when it comes to taking on new challenges, operating under pressure, and stepping out of their comfort zone. A lot of the times, the “uncomfortable situations” they may face at work are like Disney World compared to what they’ve lived through.
At Nutrition Solutions, we spend ample time strengthening each employee’s character, mindset, work ethic, and self-discipline through a mandatory personal development policy for every team member. Each day, we play motivational podcasts and e-books over the loudspeakers of the facility. We have a team briefing that includes 90 seconds of gratitude, and each team member hugs or shakes the hand of every other member. By focusing on the personal development of our team and recruiting those who are hungry for a second chance (sometimes their last), we’ve been able to grow the company more than 500% over the last three years.
A few short years ago, one of my closest friends, Lee Anderson, finished a six-year prison sentence. Throughout his time in prison, I always told him when he got out I would have a job for him and that we would do amazing things together. I picked him up that day and on the ride home, started immersing him in my sales calls to get him accustomed to the company and how we operate. Today, Lee is an incredibly high performer, serving as the director of client relations for Nutrition Solutions. He’s making a significant impact at our company, but more importantly he’s made extraordinary strides as a man, team member, husband, and father.
When your company culture and values spill over and impact your team’s personal lives positively, you know that the principles that you’re teaching at work are making a real difference. Not everyone will deserve a second chance, but I’ve learned it’s worth it to invest in those who have taken responsibility for their past mistakes and are hungry for an opportunity to create a better life for themselves and the people they care about.
Chris Cavallini is the founder of Nutrition Solutions, a lifestyle meal-prep company that provides healthy meals to clients globally.
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I’m an entrepreneur, and I believe in giving ex-felons a second chance
Monica Andrade served 16 months in prison starting in 2002, followed by three years on parole.
Her crime? Manufacturing a controlled substance for sale, and child endangerment. More specifically, Andrade manufactured methamphetamine while her 13-year-old son was home.
Andrade completed her sentence and set out to change her life. She went to AV-East Kern Second Chance for help.
Michelle Egberts, an ex-felon herself, is founder and executive director of Second Chance. She ran “expungement” workshops to help ex-felons clear their records. The two-hour workshops are packed with information including the barriers people face as they work to clear their record.
“She educates on all the records that are out there,” Andrade said.
Expungement is a court-ordered process that allows an offender to seal or erase the legal record of an arrest or criminal conviction in the eyes of the law.
An individual is eligible for expungement if he or she committed a felony or misdemeanor and was not incarcerated in state prison, has fulfilled his or her probation, and was not convicted of an ineligible crime such as rape or child sexual abuse.
Andrade, 50, served time in prison, so she was not eligible to have her record expunged. But she was eligible for a Certificate of Rehabilitation.
A Certificate of Rehabilitation is available only for people who have gone to prison. They can get it after a certain amount of time if they meet the criteria. If granted, the document restores some of the rights of citizenship that were forfeited as a result of a felony conviction. It also acts as an automatic application and recommendation for a pardon from the governor.
Andrade attended four or five of Egberts’ workshops to begin work on getting her Certificate of Rehabilitation. She received the document in December 2016.
“There is an 11-page questionnaire just from the courts, from the DA’s office, that needs to be addressed, and if it’s not addressed correctly you’re not going to get your COR,” Egberts said.
The application package includes character references from at least four people who know you went to prison and have turned your life around. Andrade had at least 10 letters of recommendation. Andrade submitted her application for the pardon, including another seven pages of questions, in August 2017.
Former California Gov. Jerry Brown signed Andrade’s pardon on Nov. 21.
“She’s our first pardon,” Egberts said.
Egberts estimated Second Chance has helped more than 2,000 people expunge their records since 2012.
“Everybody is eligible so I don’t discriminate,” Egberts said
However, she noted individuals who committed crimes such as murder, rape, or kidnapping are not eligible for a certificate of rehabilitation.
Andrade visited Egberts’ Mojave home to talk about her pardon and how she is working toward creating a better life for herself and her family.
Andrade’s 13-year-old son, Carlos Boquin, is now 30.
“He is my idol because he never gave up on me,” Andrade said.
Boquin continues to help his mother and her two youngest children, his sisters, after Andrade’s husband was deported back to Guatemala six years ago. She lives with Boquin and his family.
“It was either fall back and go back to my bad ways and repeat history again, or this time, my son said, ‘Mom, I’ll watch the kids, you go to school,’ ” Andrade said.
Andrade went to school. She received an associate of arts degree in 2014. She received a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from California State University, Bakersfield in 2017.
She is working on her master’s degree in criminal justice at Grand Canyon University. Andrade hopes to become a probation officer in the juvenile division for the Los Angeles Department of Probation someday. Her ultimate goal is law school.
“I’ve been through it; I’ve experienced it. So that now I can understand and I can relate, so that if anyone wants to talk to me I can be there for them, “ Andrade said. “That’s my goal — is to be there for someone else, to help someone else.”
Andrade got involved with meth because of a weight problem.
She weighed nearly 300 pounds at one point and was in abusive marriage. She started losing weight with the assistance of a doctor who prescribed fenflurmine-phentermine, or fen-phen, an anti-obesity treatment later found to cause potential fatal heart problems that led to its withdrawal from the market.
Andrade met drug traffickers through her former security job. They introduced her to meth to help her lose weight. The meth gave Andrade energy that kept her busy cleaning her house and helped keep the weight off. Andrade said she had children and could not go to the gym.
One thing led to another and Andrade eventually started to cook her own meth. That eventually led to prison.
Andrade has seven children, The two oldest are boys and the rest are girls. At one point her five oldest children were taken away from her. All are now adults. Andrade has seven grandchildren.
Andrade did not expect to get her pardon as soon as she did.
“It couldn’t come at a better time,” Andrade said.
After five years renting the same home, Andrade and her family face eviction.
“I don’t make a whole lot of money; none of us do,” she said.
Andrade is concerned that although she has a governor’s pardon, potential landlords might see her record after a background check and deny her.
The background check will show what Andrade was convicted her and her prison term, along with her Certificate of Rehabilitation and her pardon.
Egberts started AV-East Kern Second Chance with her former partner, Richard Macias, a retired law enforcement officer with 25 years’ experience. Macias now serves as director emeritus.
“Everybody deserves to be rehabilitated,” Egberts said.
Egberts was convicted in 2004 for grand theft. Her case involved more than $100,000.
“I have not been able to fiscally pay off my restitution. But I have done it and more by giving back to my community.” Egberts said.
Egberts is not proud of her crimes. She spent almost three years in prison. When she left prison, she had a four-year degree in business administration with an understudy in marketing.
“Couldn’t find a job for nothing,” Egberts said.
Egberts still has not found a job. She has not cleared her own record.
“I haven’t had time,” she said.
That is because she continues to help other felons. She no longer has a place to conduct the workshops, so she works from home. She walked across the room and picked up a package she received in the mail recently.
“There’s 13 cases in it from Long Beach,” Egberts said.
They do not make any money from Second Chance. Any money they do get goes toward supplies such as postage and ink.
“We’re looking for a home,” Egberts said.
Explained: Misdemeanors, Felonies, Pardons, and Expungements
Companies Hire Felons | Companies That Hire Felons | Companies That Hire Ex-offenders | Employers That Hire Ex-offenders | Employers That Hire Felons | Jobs For Felons | Jobs For Ex-offenders | Jobs That Hire Felons | Resumes for Felons | Felon Friendly Jobs | Felon Friendly Employers | Jobs for Felons | Jobs For People That Have Felonies | Jobs For People With A Criminal Record | Pardons for Felons
One of the things that is Pure Michigan is sending people to prison. Although incarceration rates have fallen the past few years, there are three times as many people in Michigan prisons now than there were four decades ago. If Michigan were a country, it would have one of the top 20 incarceration rates in the world and would likely be on a State Department watch list.
More than six of every 100 Michiganders is in prison. About twice as many are former felons, those who have been released from prison, although many are still repaying a debt to society they no long owe.
It turns out that society needs them. Michigan needs them to get up in the morning and come to work. For many, though, that isn’t possible because one of the first things many employers ask, after name and address on a job application, is whether the applicant has been convicted of a felony.
One of those who would have to answer yes is the voice of those Pure Michigan commercials. Ten years before “Home Improvement” and 18 years before the debut of the state tourism campaign, Tim Allen was paroled from federal prison where he was serving three to seven years after being arrested with almost a pound and a half of cocaine.
Allen found work after his felony convictions.
Other former felons should be given the same chance. Many won’t. Some former felons are reluctant to apply for jobs, knowing they will have to check that box. Many employers won’t look past that blemish on a potential asset’s past history. Either way, applicants don’t get interviewed, employers don’t learn about important and relevant training and experience, well qualified people won’t get jobs and businesses will struggle to fill vital positions.
The felony question isn’t a valid predictor of future performance and should be illegal. In a handful of states and a few cities across the country, it is. A bill to ban it in Michigan never got a committee hearing.
But an executive order of Gov. Rick Snyder, Michigan last week just became one of about three dozen states that doesn’t ask the question of prospective state employees.
The city of Port Huron will no longer ask its applicants if they’ve been convicted of a felony. Beyond being a good business practice, it is part of City Manager James Freed’s campaign to give the city a reputation as a place welcoming to anyone who wants to work.
City Council can’t extend the ban to include other employers in the city, as Austin, Texas, and other cities have done.
That’s because, in March, Snyder signed Senate Bill 353, which prohibits local governments from enacting ordinances that restrict use of the felony question by private employers. Irony is not a crime.
Former felons deserve a second chance
Jobs for Felons: The Facts about Companies that Hire Ex offenders and Felons (2018)
Former felons deserve a second chance
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