Community Legal Aid secures grant to aid record sealing

Community Legal Aid will receive $210,000 in grant funding to provide legal services in record sealing and expungement for residents in recovery in Trumbull, Mahoning, Portage, Medina and Wayne counties.

The grant from the OneOhio Recovery Foundation will go toward Community Legal Aid’s free civil legal assistance to low-income residents who are recovering from addiction to opiates and/or other substances and need support sealing criminal records to successfully walk their sustainable paths to independence and well-being. It will cover a period of three years.

The funding will allow Community Legal Aid to help up to 420 individuals who are trying to clear their records so they may pursue better employment and housing opportunities, according to Steven McGarrity, executive director.

“A criminal record closes doors for so many on their journeys to recovery,” McGarrity said. “The legal support our attorneys will be able to provide our neighbors in these five counties can truly transform lives and help our communities move forward from the devastation caused by the opioid epidemic.”

The grant is part of an inaugural round of approximately $51 million in funding made available by the foundation as part of its mission to combat the opioid epidemic by supporting prevention, treatment and recovery programs and services in communities. The grant money was funded by 55% of settlement funds Ohio is receiving from the pharmaceutical industry as a consequence of its role in the national opioid epidemic.

Across Ohio organizations like Community Legal Aid are working to strengthen their communities that have been impacted by the opioid epidemic, said Alisha Nelson, executive director of the OneOhio Recovery Foundation.

“We’re pleased to partner with Community Legal Aid to support their efforts to save lives, rebuild families affected by addiction, and foster strong and resilient places to live,” Nelson said.

The recipients announced as part of the foundation’s first grant cycle were chosen after a review process that included evaluation by the local OneOhio Regional Board, the OneOhio Expert Panel and the foundation’s board of directors.

Grant recipients have demonstrated a strong commitment to addressing the opioid crisis including prevention, recovery supports, services for impacted families and children and more.

A complete list of recipients can be found at www.OneOhioFoundation.com/GrantAwards.