Detroit’s Project Clean Slate celebrates 10,000 expungements for residents

Thousands of Detroit residents had their criminal records completely wiped clean thanks to Project Clean Slate.

Created by Mayor Mike Duggan in 2016, Project Clean Slate’s goal was to remove the barriers for education, employment and housing for citizens who had criminal records. The program received its first eight expungements in 2017 — one year after it launched —and an additional 5,300 records were cleaned last year.

Duggan said the only way Detroit can be a thriving city again is to have as many Detroiters as possible have the opportunity to participate.

“When I got to the city of Detroit and you looked at what this city needed to come back, we needed everybody. We couldn’t afford thousands of people behind,” Duggan said at a press conference. “People who have made a mistake, served their time and are staying out of trouble. We needed them in the workforce.”

Listen: Detroit’s Project Clean Slate celebrates 10,000 expungements for residents

Nicholas Dubose is one of the 10,000 residents who’ve had their record expunged. Having a clearer record provides him with more confidence and less barriers for his quality of life. Dubose explained a felony charge would have prevented him from taking his children to Canada, stopped his wife from passing a background check at her job, or even prevent him from fostering his nephew.

Dubose gathered the courage to negotiate his salary at a new job.

“I felt like I could do that because I felt worthy,” Dubose said. “I felt that because I didn’t have that cloud over my head. I’m thankful.”

Who is eligible?

The program is open to Detroit residents only. Applicants must provide proof of residency.

• No more than three felonies and unlimited misdemeanors (with exclusions).
• Convictions must date back three, five, or seven years.
• Traffic convictions may be expunged (with exclusions).
• “One Bad Night” allows convictions committed during the same incident to be treated as one conviction (with exclusions).

How does Project Clean Slate work?

Project Clean Slate staff and attorneys handle all the steps for qualified residents, including application preparation and representing clients at court hearings. The process can take up to one year from time of registration. Steps include:

• Eligibility review
• Signing/fingerprinting
• Record ordering
• Application filing
• Expungement hearing

Of more than 10,000 applicants that were filed with the city of Detroit, only 40 have not been approved for various reasons, giving the program as success rate of 99.7%.