photo by: Mackenzie Clark

The Douglas County Judicial and Law Enforcement Center, which houses Douglas County District Court and a number of other criminal justice services at 111 E. 11th St., is pictured April 8, 2020.

The KU law school and the Douglas County District Attorney’s Office will host a pair of events this week to help people expunge arrests or convictions from their publicly available records.

The University of Kansas School of Law’s Legal Aid Clinic and the DA’s office will host Clean Slate Criminal Record and Expungement Clinics from 3 to 6 p.m. Wednesday and 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Thursday. The Wednesday and Thursday events are the first part of the process, where individuals may call to determine if they are eligible for an expungement under state law. People can make a reservation to speak with a member of the clinic’s legal staff by calling 785-864-5564.

The legal clinic will represent individuals who meet the state’s standards for an expungement of an arrest or conviction. The clinic will provide representation free of charge, but some individuals may have to pay court costs related to the procedure, unless they qualify for a low-income exemption of fees.

The clinic will focus on expunging records that exist in Douglas County District Court or Lawrence Municipal Court.

Representatives with both the clinic and the DA’s office said they were hosting the event to help people who may have trouble finding new opportunities in life due to past legal issues that show up as part of job and housing searches, among others.