Middleton (AP) – Judges should decide whether to erase innocent people's cases from online court records, Gov. Jim Doyle said.
Speaking at the Wisconsin Newspaper Association's annual convention, Doyle said easily accessible electronic records make life a nightmare for people who are charged but later exonerated. The governor's remarks come after an Assembly committee approved a bill that would allow the public to see online records of court cases only where there has been a conviction.
The bill's main sponsor, Rep. Marlin Schneider, D-Wisconsin Rapids, argues that the mere mention of people in the state's online court database carries a connotation of guilt and can ruin their reputations forever, costing them jobs and housing.
Doyle, a Democrat, said Schneider's bill goes too far but “for those really innocent people … we have to figure out a way to protect them.”
Schneider said in a telephone interview he didn't expect the governor to support the bill. People need another avenue aside from judges to protect their records, he said.
Judges already are overworked, Schneider said. People shouldn't have to pay to hire lawyers “to be berated by a judge who thinks he’s God” to get their records erased, he added.
Wisconsin's Circuit Court Access site contains all manner of criminal and civil court records, from speeding tickets to homicides to divorces. Anyone can access the site, which gets as many as 5 million hits per day.
Each criminal case includes a note on whether the defendant was exonerated or convicted or if the case is still ongoing.
Judges currently may order misdemeanor and low-level felony records expunged for offenders under age 25. They also can order juvenile records expunged, although those records are never public.
The Wisconsin Bar Association, citing concerns that WCCA records could enable employers and landlords to discriminate against people, has asked the state Supreme Court to give judges broad expunction powers. The association says judges should be allowed to erase records in an acquittal, if a case is dismissed or if the minimum time for retaining the records has expired.
Schneider has been pushing bills to restrict WCCA access for years.
Under his latest proposal, the public portion of the site would contain only cases with convictions or findings of liability. Court officials, police and reporters would have access to all the records, however. If someone searches for a person on the site and denies that person housing or employment, the searcher must notify that person that he or she searched the site.
The Assembly Committee on State Affairs and Homeland Security approved the bill earlier this month.
Not one trade group has registered in support of the measure, according to state lobbying records, and Schneider drew criticism earlier this week after an Associated Press records request revealed he had gotten far fewer letters from people complaining about the site than the hundreds he claimed.
The newspaper association has registered against the bill. It also opposes the
Doyle told members during a question-and-answer session “there really is a problem” with innocent people's records being posted online. In the days before online court records, people could make new starts for themselves, but those days are over, he said.
Still, he said, “You really need a judicial determination that the person was truly innocent” before a record is erased.
Doyle didn’t mention the bar association's plan for more judicial expunction power. His spokesman, Adam Collins, said Doyle was speaking generally about judges.
George Althoff, publisher for Capital Newspapers' Portage/Baraboo Division, asked Doyle if he thought paper records on the wrongly charged should be expunged along with the electronic versions. Doyle said an electronic record is the same as a paper one.
Dan Flannery, executive editor of the Appleton Post-Crescent newspaper, asked Doyle how the public could evaluate law enforcement's performance without the records.
The governor said his thinking is still “evolving” on the issue, but he believes expunged documents could be kept private.
Doyle won the WNA's first Badger Award in 2004 for his commitment to open records, according to the convention's program.
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February 16th, 2010 at 12:44 am
Another stupid idea from our soon to be gone governor. This proposal invites favoritism and ripe for abuse.
Keeping public records from the public is the hallmark of corrupt government.
March 5th, 2010 at 8:53 pm
Sarah have you ever been denied a job because of a false accusation on ccap? I have. Its not fun, and to think I will potentially have that following me the rest of my life. Not everyone looks to see the sub-note *case dissmissed* they just look, “Oh you where charged with something, therefore you must be guilty”. THAT is the REALITY of ccap and its effect in the court of public opinion.
Im innocent… But not everyone sees it that way and that isn’t right. Also ccap shows charges that are currently pending! What happened to INNOCENT till PROVEN guilty?
April 22nd, 2010 at 5:06 pm
Sarah,
I was charged with misdemeanor because I was defending myself. Chargers later was dissmissed. I was Innocent. But, still shows on line. It is wrong. I aggree with Becky. Everyone is looking anything else and NOT the Case dissmissed.
Why the public need to know that someone got a speeding ticket or not wearing the a belt? It is definetelly a discrimination!
Nikos
July 8th, 2010 at 9:30 pm
There is No justice in the Justice system with CCAPS. I was charged with a felony and later the charges were dropped…because it was found that there was no case and the other person LIED. And yes, i have lost jobs due to CCAPS. TWO jobs when the case was open and I havent been able to obtain work since…In a career in which I have a ton of experience. I praise Gov Doyle and his ability to use his head. Obviously the Attorney General over there has no clue..His opinion is to educate the public about CCAPS… Thats such a joke. Employers and the public will still use it and make their own judgement WITHOUT the facts. I hope your never on the other end of false allegations. And Interestingly, all of the judges on the Supreme Court have agreed. its screwing people lives up..INNOCENT PEOPLES LIVES ! Lets get a clue will ya! INNOCENT TIL PROVEN GUILTY…ATLEAST I THOUGHT THAT I LIVED IN THE USA …. A country with a constitution, and where people had rights.
July 8th, 2010 at 9:49 pm
Also.. The Supreme Court is discussing removing from CCAPS only those people where the charges were DISMISSED or found to be NOT GUILTY ! The rest of the people who are convicted..will still be there. Law enforcement will still be able to see that someone was charged with a crime ..should something come up at a later date. Leaving cases on CCAPS were the charges were dismissed or found not guilty is Reverse Discrimination. It is unjust, and unfair.
July 8th, 2010 at 9:56 pm
Schneider rules !
October 5th, 2010 at 11:34 pm
My fiance and I have been through hell the last 10 months, 3 of those months are thanks to CCAP. For 7 months we rented from a slumlord, we dealt with sewage leaking into our food pantry,severe mold growing on our living room wall which caused extreme hives for me and acute bronchitis for my fiance, mold and filth in the carpet that was supposed to be replaced that was also making us sick and made my dog just about gnaw her feet off every night ( I spent $300 of my own $ cleaning it trying to make it livable ), electrical problems which ruined my stereo, the list goes on and on… After some time we figured out she wasnt gonna do a damn thing about anything so we tried to just deal with all this and get through the lease and get the hell out. That seemed possible until she put a drifter upstairs ( it was a duplex ) and he sexually assaulted my fiance. Enough was enough, after speaking with an attorney I decided to withhold rent until she addressed the hazardous conditions we were living in. I called her and told her I was withholding rent and why, she said if I did that she’ll take an eviction action against me, I told her if she did that Id come back with a countersuit, game on! She sent us eviction papers and we moved out right away and filed our countersuit. Unfortunately we couldnt get in to a new place before the eviction showed up on CCAP. Now, going on our third month of being homeless, living out of our car, because nobody will rent to us with the eviction on CCAP…(THE EVICTION THAT IS WRONGFUL AND HASNT EVEN GONE TO COURT YET), weve built a very strong lawsuit against her. When our lawyer showed her side what were bringing to the plate she got scared and made us an offer to call it even, drop the eviction and everyone walk away. After everything that piece of garbage has put us through the last thing I want to do is call it even but I have no choice but to accept her offer. Its getting cold and we need a home and as long as were fighting her, the eviction will still be on CCAP. For 10 months my fiance and I should have been happy and planning our wedding but instead our home was making us sick and when we stood up for ourselves it landed us living in a car, parked outside a building with an internet signal. Thank you CCAP for protecting my ex slumlord. Thank you for giving all the power to a landlord and not allowing a tenant to protect themselves.
October 5th, 2010 at 11:45 pm
Sorry that was long winded but I felt I needed to give some details to show how unfair CCAP can be and how it can F somones life up. Maybe you should give a person a chance to show their innocent or not at fault before you publicly shame them or label them as a high risk tenant!!!
November 22nd, 2010 at 12:11 am
Wow..I hope things are improving for you and your fiance…Your story is a sad, but perfect example of what online court records can do to a person! I was married to a miserable man for several years. Now every small claims suit (he didn’t pay bills) is on the online court system, with my name attached :( I divorced him for a reason! Unfortunately, our names will be forever linked.
November 27th, 2010 at 1:40 pm
Jeff, I honestly hope you made that story up. Sewage was leaking into your food and you did not move out. Your dog was chewing her paws raw and you did not move out. You had hives, your fiancée had breathing problems and you did not move out. Your fiancée was sexually assaulted and you did not move out, but you didn’t want to pay any further rent, (apparently your fiancée’s security is only worth a few hundred bucks a month). However, upon threat of civil suit, you decide enough is enough and move out immediately. You are either missing key points in your story or are the worst fiancée a woman could have. Considering that you moved into your car and parked next to a building with free wifi for your computer (you own a laptop but couldn’t afford to drive to a decent shelter?!?), I am going to guess the latter. Hopefully that girl left you post haste.