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Shelby man struggles to get back on his feet after not guilty verdict

GASTONIA, N.C. — Some people found not guilty of a crime say they can still be denied opportunities even after being cleared of wrongdoing.

And in one case, that scenario has been keeping a father out of work for months after his trial, because he’s having trouble passing a background check.

Channel 9 reporter Ken Lemon spoke to that man and his attorney as they work to clear the defendant’s arrest record.

A new law states that anyone found not guilty of a felony or anyone that had a felony charge dropped will have it automatically removed from the record at the clerk’s office.

But that’s for cases filed after Dec.1, when the law took effect.

Everyone else must petition. And it could take months before records reflects the change.

Last year, a jury in Cleveland County found Jamorris Green not guilty of a sex crime. He’d been in jail since he was charged in 2018.

“I went through a lot of stress and pain and suffering not knowing if I was ever going to see my family again,” Green said.

John Barnett advocated for Green as he awaited trial.

“Three years of his life was taken. I’m sure he missed friends’ funerals and birthday parties,” John Barnett said.

Green’s attorney said the jury unanimously found him not guilty after deliberating for an hour.

“I just thanked God because every day I was in there I was praying to God,” Green said.

Green said he filed for an expungement, a request to have his arrest record wiped clean.

Green said a judge signed off on it in December and he was ready to go back to work to support his 4-year-old son and child on the way.

“I tried to apply for a couple of jobs. And they just gave me my ID back and said my clients are not to accept you with this on your record,” Green said.

Allison Garren is the Chair of the Criminal Section of the North Carolina Advocates for Justice. She said people who were found guilty before the new law went into effect have to petition for expungement and that could take a long time.

“Generally three to six months is what we tell our clients,” Allison Garren said.

Garren said there are often private services that provide background checks for employers.

At times they don’t have the updated information.

“We sometimes have to send cease and desist letters saying, ‘This has been expunged, you can’t continue to have this information on your website,’” Garren said.

Green said his attorney will likely have to do that for him.

Green said the state should refund the $300 he paid to petition for an expungement that still isn’t recognized in some places.

“I was found not guilty, but I still had to pay to get it off my record?” Green said.

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