Debt paid, they want a chance to rebuild lives

Bobby Dellelo can be found most days sitting in a lecture hall at Bunker Hill Community College. He wants to become a paralegal. But the problem, he says, is that he can't find housing, a job, or a break. He is an ex-convict who spent 40 years of his life behind bars.

Dellelo is one of hundreds expected to turn out at a rally on Boston Common today advocating for the reform of criminal background checks. While employers use the Criminal Offender Record Information system to know who they are considering hiring, people such as Dellelo say the checks prevent them from becoming productive members of society.

''I can't even get a job driving a cab," said Dellelo, 68, who holds a bachelor's degree in sociology from Curry College.

''I can't get a home. I can't get a job. I know how to rob banks. I know how to hotwire armored cars. I did it. What do you think I should do?"

The CORI system was originally established in 1972 to allow law enforcement officials to check criminal records, but it restricted access to the records, aiming to protect the privacy of ex-convicts and give them the chance to make a fresh start. Over the years, however, limits on access were relaxed and now employers, landlords, and media can see them.

Critics of CORI complain that the information provided on arrests and convictions is often outdated, or wrong, and too many potential employers use the information to discriminate against those with records.

To fix it, they want state lawmakers to enact a bill that would allow ex-convicts to seal their records sooner. They also want to stop CORI checks from disclosing some information, including arrests on cases that were dismissed or resulted in not guilty verdicts.

''We have to get folks to understand that law abiding ex-offenders are no threat to them and no threat to our society," said Horace Small, director of the Union of Minority Neighborhoods in Roxbury. ''We know we have our work cut out for us, and we are going to do that work."

But opponents of CORI reform, such as the Massachusetts District Attorneys Association, have little sympathy for ex-offenders. They want reform of a different sort. They want to make it easier for employers and law enforcement officials to read a CORI, which can be difficult because of the codes used. They said an employer has the right to know the backgrounds of potential workers and whether a prospective hire poses a threat.

''I do not believe CORI reform is in the best interest of public safety," said Plymouth District Attorney Timothy Cruz, who is also president of the state's district attorney association. ''Why should the public have to pay the price for basically hiding someone's criminal record?"

Middlesex District Attorney Martha Coakley said that while some reforms may be needed, she does not believe ex-offenders are being denied jobs because of their records. ''First of all, there are jobs available. It's an easy excuse for someone to say, I can't get a job."

In addition, Coakley said, ''If you were the employer, don't you want to have some idea what this person's record is? Are you putting your other employees, your family at risk? Don't banks have a right to know whether this employee that they are hiring has already done federal time for larceny?"

The bill calls for sealing CORI reports after seven years, instead of the current 15 years, on a felony conviction and three years, instead of 10, on a misdemeanor conviction. The bill states that only convictions and open cases be reported to people outside the judicial system and that an individual's criminal history cannot be checked until the applicant is deemed appropriate for a particular job or housing opportunity.

''Hundreds and hundreds of people get out of jail everyday," said Todd Avery, 41, who served five years for a series of assault and battery convictions, and is now a student at UMass-Boston. ''Not letting them get jobs or a roof over their heads, to me, is a public safety risk."

Catherine Hennessey served six months in 1997 for a drug conviction, she said. But when she searched for jobs, her CORI came back with three pages filled with inaccuracies and about 15 charges that had been dismissed.

''A potential employer with an untrained eye, I can understand why they were intimidated," said Hennessey. ''I served my time. I've stayed clean, but still can't get a job with benefits."

Suzanne Smalley contributed to this report.