RESOURCES for NEW PARDON PROJECTS
This page is for counties that do not currently have a Pardon Project but are thinking about starting one. It contains examples for how you can go from idea to operation, in five parts:
Most Pardon Projects have started off small, with a dozen or so Pardon Coaches trained and an equal number of clients needing help. They then expand from there, as the word starts getting around and the supply of both clients and coaches increases. Each Pardon Project continues to develop, learning from their own experiences and those of the others, as their leadership meet monthly as the Pennsylvania Association of Pardon Projects. For attorneys who volunteer through member Pardon Projects, the Association offers free, primary professional liability insurance.
If you have questions or need another example, send us an email and we will get back to you: probono@plsephilly.org. Thank you for your willingness to help others obtain the second chance that only a pardon can provide.
Tobey Oxholm, Director, PLSE Pardon Project
November 17, 2021
Getting Started
- Background: articles, reports, and videos about the damage caused by criminal history records and the benefits to everyone of erasing them
- Invitation to exploratory meeting – Washington County
- Agenda for first meeting – Washington County
- List of invitees/participants – Allegheny County
- Powerpoint from Brainstorming Meeting – Berks County
- Notes and action items from first brainstorming meeting – Lackawanna County
Developing The Project
- Agenda for second meeting – Beaver County
- The role of the District Attorney in Pardon Projects – PLSE
- Eligibility Criteria – PLSE Volunteer Program, Erie County and Berks County
- Involving the Court – “Pardons for Prothys” hosted by The Pennsylvania State Association of The Prothonotaries and Clerks of Court – November 2021 (60-minute zoom)
Outreach to Potential Clients and Client-Serving Community
- Notice to clients – North Penn Legal Services/Lackawanna County
- Informational flyers for potential clients – Lackawanna and Beaver Counties
- Community Informational Meeting Outline: Lackawanna and Erie Counties
- Community Presentation, – Erie County, August 2021 (90-minute zoom)
Training Pardon Coaches
- Invitation to Pardon Coach training (non-lawyer) – Lackawanna County
- Bar Association CLE Announcements/Flyers – Allegheny, Berks, and Erie Counties
- Pardon Coach Training – Berks County, October 2021 (60-minute zoom)
Making The Project Sustainable
- Policies and Procedures for Clerk of Courts responding to record requests – Beaver County
- Requests for Underlying Criminal Court Records (Attorney and Non-Attorney) – Erie County
- Client Authorization to Obtain Copies of Underlying Criminal Records – PLSE
- Position description, Pardon Fellow – Lancaster County
- Application for funding Pardon Project Coordinator – Beaver County
