Reducing Crime Through Expungements

22 Pages Posted: 5 Jan 2016 Last revised: 17 Jun 2017

See all articles by Murat C. Mungan

Murat C. Mungan

Texas A&M University School of Law

Date Written: October 8, 2016

Abstract

Expungements reduce the visibility of a person's criminal record, and thereby reduce the informal sanctions that may be imposed on him. This reduction is enjoyed by the ex-convict only if he does not become a repeat offender, because otherwise he re-obtains a criminal record. Thus, the value a person attaches to having his record expunged is inversely related to his criminal tendency. Therefore, by making expungements costly, the criminal justice system can sort out low criminal tendency individuals -- who are unlikely to recidivate -- from people who have high criminal tendencies. Moreover, the availability of expungements does not substantially affect a first time offender's incentive to commit crime, because one incurs a cost close to the reduction in informal sanctions that he enjoys by sealing his criminal record. On the other hand, expungements increase specific deterrence, because a person who has no visible record suffers informal sanctions if he is convicted a second time. Thus, perhaps counter-intuitively, allowing ex-convicts to seal their records at substantial costs reduces crime.

Keywords: Expungements, criminal tendencies, general deterrence, specific deterrence, second chance

JEL Classification: K14, K4, K42

Suggested Citation

Mungan, Murat C., Reducing Crime Through Expungements (October 8, 2016). Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, 2017, FSU College of Law, Public Law Research Paper No. 786, FSU College of Law, Law, Business & Economics Paper No. 16-2, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2711024 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2711024

Murat C. Mungan (Contact Author)

Texas A&M University School of Law

1515 Commerce St.
Fort Worth, TX Tarrant County 76102
United States

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