Amending New Jersey’s Expungement Law to Reflect the Historical Treatment of Juveniles: Juveniles Deserve a Second Chance

From the Introduction: 

“This Article will focus on the difficulties ex-juvenile offenders face when seeking expungement of their juvenile records to prevent collateral consequences. Specifically, I will argue that a person under the age of eighteen should not be subject to the same statutory expungement bar as adults when seeking an expungement in New Jersey. Although New Jersey offers juveniles a sealing option, that option is inadequate to protect the interests of juveniles. Also, it fails to allow them to avoid the harsh consequences of their youthful errors. I will, therefore, propose an amendment to New Jersey’s expungement statute to include a discretionary alternative for offenses committed as a juvenile.  

Before understanding why the proposed amendment of discretionary juvenile expunction is necessary, it is first essential to understand the historical treatment of minors who commit crimes. That said, Part I will discuss and review the historical treatment of juvenile offenders and New Jersey’s expungement statute applicability to juvenile offenders. Part II then proposes a solution to the issue, which explores a balancing test, allowing discretion in granting expungement to juvenile offenders. This balancing test requires an amendment to the statute to include a subsection excluding juvenile offenders from the statutory bar. Under the balancing test, courts would consider a number of factors to determine whether the individual has successfully rehabilitated and whether it would be in the community’s best interest to grant the expungement. The amendment, therefore, would provide the following bright-line rule: a person may expunge the entirety of their juvenile record—all offenses committed under the age of eighteen—if the individual can demonstrate rehabilitation and it is in the public’s interest to grant the expungement. Lastly, Part III applies the proposed solution to reveal its necessity and effectiveness.”