Manhattan DA Hopes To Give Those With Outstanding Warrants A 'Clean Slate'
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- The Manhattan District attorney is holding another "clean slate" day, where people with open warrants for low level offenses get a chance to wipe their records clean.
Officials are setting up a mobile courtroom on the Lower East Side on Saturday, April 30th, hoping to get people with minor offenses hanging over their heads to come out of the shadows and resolve their outstanding summons warrants.
According to Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance, the first clean slate event in November 2015 was very popular, WCBS 880's Marla Diamond reported.
"Seven hundred people came to that event and at 9 o'clock in the morning the line was going all the way around the block," Vance said.
At the November event, 409 cases dating back to 1998 were cleared. Most of the cases were old summonses for non-violent offenses like drinking alcohol in public or riding between subway cars.
Burli Web Server"It's a big step towards letting all New Yorkers participate fully in our communities," Vance said.
According to Manhattan Borough President, of the 7 million people issued violations in recent years, 81 percent were black or Hispanic.