The line was out the door 10 minutes before the 9 a.m. start of the 15th annual Shelby County Criminal Clerk Office expungement clinic at First Baptist Church Broad on Broad Avenue.

Shelby County Criminal Court Clerk Heidi Kuhn said she believes these clinics give hope to residents who lack the resources they need to participate in civilian life. 

Shelby County Criminal Court Clerk to hold 15th expungement clinic

“Sometimes we look at having a criminal record as a life sentence, and it’s not,” Kuhn said. “This clinic is a way to offer people opportunities to get them back on the right track, because unfortunately, their record has held them back for so long. We have had so many success stories where people walk out having that weight lifted because they were able to get their record expunged. Just because you have a past doesn’t mean you can’t have a future.”

“Law changes last July expanded on the number of felonies and the type of felonies eligible for expungement. So those that were not eligible prior to July 1st, 2021? They could be eligible now.”

Heidi Kuhn
Shelby County Criminal Court Clerk

For those that have failed previously to qualify for expungement at the clinics, Kuhn said there is plenty of reason to keep hoping.

“It is sad to me when many people aren’t eligible they leave disheartened, but law changes last July expanded on the number of felonies and the type of felonies eligible for expungement,” Kuhn said. “So those that were not eligible prior to July 1st, 2021? They could be eligible now.”

Memphian Ricky Briggs, 54, heard about the clinic on social media. He said his search for a stable job has been impeded by decades-old criminal charges.

“What happened wasn’t a violent crime — it was an unintentional mistake, but it’s carried on with me for 20 years,” Briggs said. “I just wanted to get my record expunged. It’s kind of hard to explain even though it’s an old charge, but a lot of times employers just don’t understand. They see those charges, and that’s it.”

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Briggs feels an opportunity for expungement could open doors for him in many aspects of his life.

“I just feel like I need a clean start. There are so many things I can’t do because of that felony,” Briggs said. “This is my first time coming to a clinic, and I’m happy they held it.”

Bobby Banks, a 51-year-old Memphian, feels she has more than done her part when it comes to qualifying for expungement.

“I’ve done so much to rehabilitate and read the stipulations by the state, seeing what their requirements are so I can move forward,” Banks said. “But criminal history has an impact on other things you want to do, especially when it comes to employment, receiving credit from institutions — that’s the main reason why I’m here.”

Banks feels stereotyping is a large part of why a criminal record prevents so many citizens from taking full part in civic life. 

“There are stereotypes surrounding the offender and the crime regardless of your character. We come from many walks of life — there is no one prototype of criminal or conviction,” Banks said. “Despite different economic backgrounds, ethnic backgrounds, religious backgrounds or social backgrounds, we’re still one people moving forward and trying to do positive things in our lives. Yet we can’t when we’re being restrained by whatever conviction it may be especially when it was, you know, decades ago.”

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Keith Norman has been the pastor at First Broad Baptist Church for 22 years and helped host the expungement clinic. 

“This is really the work of the church. It’s about redemption,” Norman said. “When people are given a fair shot, when we look at their skill set and intent of heart after they’ve made a mistake instead of focusing on their past, we can see them for who they have become, and not for what they’ve done.”

The next Shelby County Criminal Court Clerk Office expungement clinic will be held at Southwest Tennessee Community College near the end of March or early April 2022. According to Kuhn, the clerk’s office will partner with FedEx, Nike and Amazon to provide a job fair in addition to the clinic. An exact date for the clinic has yet to be confirmed.