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Editorial: Navy Case Shows Why Criminal Records Vital
October 07, 2013 posted by Steve Brownstein
by Albuquerque Journal Editorial Board
It’s a worst-case scenario of expunging criminal records, and the state Legislature should take note.
Aaron Alexis, better known as the Washington Navy Yard shooter, lied about a previous arrest in his application for a Navy security clearance. Investigators found it, then deleted the fact he used a gun.
So Alexis got his clearance. And he went on to mow down 12 people who had simply gone to work Sept. 16.
In 2007, 2009 and 2012, New Mexico lawmakers have approved erasing some criminal records under the rationales the greater good would be served by protecting the names of victims of identity theft who had been wrongly arrested, of individuals who had made lone misdemeanor errors of youthful indiscretion, of honest folks who had been wrongly accused.
Yet every proposal went much further, wiping out records if charges were dropped, a defendant entered a pre-prosecution program, was acquitted or even convicted of DWI and some violent felonies.
Each proposal was wisely vetoed by the governor; the first two by Bill Richardson, the last by Susana Martinez. Because they, like even the most forgiving and compassionate members of society, recognized innocence is not the only reason a case is dismissed or a prosecution lost, that many misdemeanor convictions start out as felony charges, that offenders can petition for pardon or clemency, and that learning from mistakes speaks more to character than a government-sanctioned eraser.
Voters need to be able to fully examine a candidate’s past. Victims need to have an official record of what was done to them. And, as the Navy yard shooting shows, employers need to be able to do thorough criminal background checks.
When Alexis appeared in court, charged with shooting out a set of tires, charges against him were dismissed, and he believed the incident was erased from his record. Because of a Navy omission, it essentially was. And that left his co-workers at mortal risk.
Navy Secretary Ray Mabus has recommended beefing up background checks with all police reports – not just arrests or convictions. New Mexico lawmakers should not go in the other direction.