On November 7, 2020, South Carolina Legal Services collaborated with National Expungement Week, a national nonprofit that provides funding to pay fees associated with expungements, pardons and pretrial intervention, and Path2Redemption, a nonprofit group that provides training and mentorship programs for ex-offenders transitioning back into society. These like-minded organizations came together for an expungement and pardon clinic, “Pardon My Behavior” at the Colony Apartments in Columbia, S.C. South Carolina Legal Services provided attorneys and paralegals to assist over 50 people in applying to have with their criminal records expunged or offenses pardoned. National Expungement Week provided funding to South Carolina Legal Services’ applicants and clients to pay the cost of SLED checks, expungement, pardon, and court fees. Path2Redemption provided re-entry mentorship and counseling at the event.
On December 5, 2020, South Carolina Legal Services collaborated with National Expungement Week, Communiversity, a nonprofit that hosts presentations on legal and wrap around serves for ex-offenders, and The Black Liberation Fund, a nonprofit that provides bail and incarceration support to formerly incarcerated persons. Together the organizations facilitated an expungement and pardon clinic, “The Gift of Freedom” at Center Station in Charleston, S.C. South Carolina Legal Services, with 7 attorneys and 2 paralegals onsite for the event, assisted over 120 attendees with applications to have their criminal records pardoned or expunged.
Both of these events highlight the immense need for strategic and targeted collaborations. These collaborations created a “one stop shop”, where qualifying participants received free legal assistance, including free legal screening for additional civil legal issues, payment for expungement and pardon fees and information about mentorship, training and wrap-around services for ex-offenders. These events have created a “referral boomerang”. South Carolina Legal Services is still receiving applicants from both events following these collaborations.
South Carolina Legal Services is seeking to maintain current collaborations and develop new ones that will create a communal network of services to assist a common client base.
To inquire about a possible collaboration, please contact Andrea Loney, Executive Director of South Carolina Legal Services at andrealoney@sclegal.org.
