2nd Street Clinic on How to Seal, Expunge Criminal Record

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — 2nd Street, together with Community Legal Aid, will hold a free clinic on how to seal or expunge a criminal record on Thursday, Nov. 14 from 1-3 pm. 
 
The clinic will be held at the 2nd Street offices, located at 264 Second Street. Private consultations will be available.
 
Community Legal Aid attorney Annie Maurer will lead the clinic, which will cover legal rights withrespect to housing and employment for those with a criminal record, as well  as sealing and expungement of such records. Maurer will explain the four types of sealing/expungement: sealing by mail, sealing by court, age-based expungements and reason-based expungements.
 
The clinic is particularly designed for those who have either never been found guilty of a charge or who have fulfilled the requirements of a guilty plea or verdict. Such persons often have difficulty finding or keeping housing or employment due to their Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI), which landlords and employers commonly use for background checks. Legal experts will be on hand to help decode CORI and determine if eligible charges may be sealed or expunged.
 
If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.

Holiday Inn Remains Closed from Broken Elevator

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — It has been almost three weeks since broken elevators temporarily closed the Holiday Inn & Suites, and the hotel is still working to meet code compliance. 

The hotel at 1 West Street has been closed since Sept. 25, after its last working elevator of three broke down. The 101 Restaurant & Bar, located within the Holiday Inn, also has temporarily shut its doors while repairs are ongoing. 

The day of the shutdown had emergency personnel carrying people who use mobility devices down stairs. 

“We were called there a couple of Fridays ago. There was no working elevator. There were EMTs and the fire department there, and they were getting over half a dozen people down the stairs that were in wheelchairs and walkers,” Building Commissioner Rian Dowd told iBerkshires on Wednesday. 

“So with the no working elevators, we shut the building down.”

The central downtown, 12-story hotel has nearly 180 guest rooms. Massachusetts requires public multi-level buildings and facilities to have elevator access. 

Dowd said the Holiday Inn is still working with the elevator company and state inspectors to be certified and reopen. They were told to provide the City of Pittsfield with a timeline, work orders, and contracts from repairs so that everyone can be on the same page and the hotel can open as quickly as possible, she said. 

“We have not heard anything from them yet this week,” she reported. 

iBerkshires’ attempts to reach a representative from the Holiday Inn were unsuccessful. 

There were no passengers in the elevator when it stopped working; how it broke was not disclosed. 

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