Jessica C.
Growing up, it was just expected that kids in Jessica’s neighborhood would eventually end up involved with the legal system. Poverty and limited opportunities led many to drugs and alcohol, and eventually to crime. At age 16, she had her first child and dropped out of school to be able to provide for them. Selling drugs was the way to provide for her family and after the way she grew up, she did not see any other options. “The only thing I knew was what I was shown. This is what I was taught, in the neighborhood I was born in, this is what everyone did. It was normal.”
When she was around 30 years old, she decided that things could be different. She was able to overcome her background and get her GED, and later her associate's degree. But while working on her bachelors, with her mother facing serious health issues and her financial aid running out, she turned back to selling drugs to again provide for her family. This time though, it led to her first arrest, which Jessica says ended up being the catalyst to changing her life and getting away from drugs completely.
Jessica made a commitment to herself and her family to do better, but her record kept putting obstacles in her path. Her home flooded and she needed to move, but no one would rent to her. Despite her bachelor’s degree and qualifications for many positions, she was unemployed for four months due to her record showing up on background checks. Eventually, she found a position working with individuals re-entering society after incarceration. She feels lucky to have found a position that will overlook her record, but the constant involvement with the legal system and reminders of her past are difficult to live with every day.
Jessica has turned her life around and broken out of the cycle, but there are still unfair limitations she faces every day. She managed to find housing, but she’d rather move somewhere that could provide her children a better education and safer neighborhood. While grateful for her employment, she knows that her career path is limited. Even going on a field trip with her son’s class is not an option.
Her son’s school has encouraged her to get involved in volunteering, and even apply for a position there, but she doesn’t want to take the chance of embarrassing her son if her record comes up. If she had the opportunity, Jessica would love to work with youth and help them overcome the same upbringing that she had:
“Those younger days, that’s when I was taught those values. If I could catch one or two youth, and teach them that they can do better. My past made me stronger, I made it out and that is a blessing, but I want to be able to share that. I used to think that people would not accept me because of the things I did. Now my life is going in a new direction, but I just really wish that everything was.”
Jessica’s record will qualify for expungement soon, and she is in a better position than most with a friend who is qualified to help her with the paperwork and legal filings. But, expungement is still expensive and as a single mom, Jessica’s funds are already limited. Anything she spends on the possibility of expungement will take away from her son’s needs. Now she’s just praying that something will change to open more doors for her. Working in re-entry, she also has seen so many people who aren’t as lucky, and she knows the difference expungement could make for so many people who are trying to overcome their mistakes and get their lives back on track.
“I know I made mistakes, but the system is set up for us to fail. Just because I did something five years ago, does not mean I will do it again. Expungement could stop people from living on the streets, it could stop violence. It could make people feel hope for the future, instead of constantly being denied everything.”
