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Correctional Library Services > Connections 2008 > Legal Services 
Legal ServicesIt is often advisable for formerly incarcerated people to obtain some legal counseling soon after their release. Many areas of employment or types of licenses, for example, are prohibited to former prisoners unless they first secure a Certificate of Relief from Disabilities. Also, “cleaning up” or making accurate one’s rap sheet should be a top priority. Often there are errors listed on it that can prove detrimen-tal, such as a felony reduced to a misdemeanor still listed as a felony, or a record of an arrest that did not lead to conviction. Good counseling, furthermore, will advise you of your rights when filling out job applications. It is not legal, for example, for an employer to ask you about any arrest that did not lead to conviction. Nor can an employer legally ask you anything about an alcohol or drug addiction you might have had or still have, unless it could interfere with your performing the job. Special Services for Formerly Incarcerated PeopleLEGAL ACTION CENTER 225 Varick Street, Manhattan 10014 The Legal Action Center's website includes valuable resources for people facing the difficulties of reentry. Go to their Publications page at www.lac.org/pubs/gratis.html and click on "Criminal Justice" to download articles such as "How to Get and Clean Up Your State Rap Sheet", "Are You Somebody... With a Criminal?Record?" and the 2004 Roadblocks to Reentry study. LICENSE TO WORK INITIATIVE MFY Legal Services, Inc. For detailed information on how to clean up your rap sheet, restore your rights, and avoid discrimination as as a person who has been incarcerated, see also the section of this booklet entitled The Job Search. Be sure to keep a copy of your prison release papers as they might prove useful in your becoming eligible for certain benefits or programs. If they are lost, former inmates of state facilities can write for copies to the facilities in which they were incarcerated; former inmates of New York City institutions need to contact the facility in which they served. General Legal ServicesLEGAL REFERRAL SERVICE Telephone (English): 212.626.7373 CITY BAR JUSTICE CENTER Reentry Project Legal Hotline of the City Bar Justice Center: LEGAL AID SOCIETY 199 Water Street, Manhattan 10038 If you are re-arrested while on parole, and are income-eligible, you can write to the Legal Aid Society's Parole Revocation Defense Unit, same address as above; telephone: 212.577.3500. For a parole revocation hearing, you have the right to court-appointed counsel. If you do not have a lawyer by the date of the hearing, you may request an adjournment to get a lawyer. If you are not eligible for a Legal Aid lawyer, you can write the Supreme Court of the County you are in to request court-appointed counsel. If you have a parole problem anywhere outside the five boroughs of New York City, you must write to the local court of that area. BRONX DEFENDERS 860 Courtlandt Avenue, Bronx 10451 NEW YORK LEGAL ASSISTANCE GROUP 450 West 33rd Street, 11th Floor, Manhattan 10001 LEGAL SERVICES FOR NEW YORK CITY 350 Broadway, 6th Floor, Manhattan 10013 The History and Social Science Department of The New York Public Library's Mid-Manhattan Library (455 Fifth Avenue at 40th Street, Fifth Floor, Manhattan 10016) has a collection of legal reference works, including federal, New York State, and New York City laws and regulations. Public Access Law Libraries can be found in the Bronx (718.590.3678), Manhattan (646.386.3715), Brooklyn (347.296.1144), Staten Island (718.390.5291) and Queens (718.298.1206). A complete list can be found on the web at www.nycourts.gov/lawlibraries/publicaccess.shtml. NEIGHBORHOOD DEFENDER SERVICE OF HARLEM 317 Lenox Avenue, 10th Floor, Manhattan 10027 www.pubadvocate.nyc.gov/ The Family and Corrections Network answers some
of the following questions on its website www.fcnetwork.org/faq.html
: Call the Internal Revenue Service at 800.829.1040 for prerecorded information on various tax topics such as: alternative filing methods, exemptions, itemized deductions, child and dependent care credit, and whether or not you should itemize. Information in Spanish also available. The website is www.irs.gov. If you have questions that relate to the federal government, such as about immigration, Medicare or obtaining a Social Security card, you can call the Federal Citizens Information Center at 800.FEDINFO Mon.-Fri. 8-8. Tell them your problem and they can direct you to the right agency. Spanish also spoken. The website is www.usa.gov. Name ChangesIf you wish to legalize a name change, call Legal Services for New York at 212.431.7200 for the location of the neighborhood legal office for which you are eligible, or write them at 350 Broadway, 6th Floor, Manhattan 10013. Transgender people seeking information on name changes can also contact the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Law Association of Greater New York (LeGaL) at 212.353.9118, write to 799 Broadway, #340, Manhattan 10003. Registering to VoteIn New York State, you may vote while you are incarcerated unless:
*Your right to vote will be returned automatically when you finish your maximum prison sentence or are discharged from parole. You do not have to provide any documentation about your criminal record in order to register and vote. Voter registration forms are available in English, Chinese, Spanish and Korean. Registration offices are located in all five boroughs. Many public library branches also carry voter registration forms before election time. In New York State you may vote if you are:
Call 212.886.2100 for an appointment to register to vote or for an absentee ballot or check http://vote.nyc.ny.us for information on voting in New York City. DocumentsTo obtain a birth certificate, if you were born in the five boroughs of New York City, call the NYC Department of Health, Bureau of Vital Records, at 212.788.4520 or visit www.nyc.gov/health. Those born outside New York City must contact the department of health or vital records in their home county. A list of vital records contact information is maintained by the National Center for Health Statistics. Go to www.cdc.gov/nchs/births.htm and click on "Need a Birth Certificate?" The Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administrationwill help you obtain birth, marriage, divorce, and baptism certificates, if you are from Puerto Rico. It will also aid in natural child legitimization and name corrections. Information regarding how to obtain legal representation in Puerto Rico or certify imprisonment in Puerto Rico is offered. Employment programs are also available, and referrals are made to other government agencies and organizations. Call 212.252.7300 Mon.-Fri. 8:30-5:30. Information is also available at www.prfaa.com. NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF MOTOR VEHICLES 6 Empire State Plaza, Albany, 12228 Call 212.669.2400 for taped information on securing a Marriage License, or visit the website www.nycmarriagebureau.com Mon.-Fri. 8:30-3:45. Offices in all five boroughs. If you need information about a friend or relative who has been arrested, call Central Booking in your borough:
For information about jail inmates held by the New York City Department of Correction, visit their website at www.nyc.gov/doc or call the automated information line at 718.546.0700. Provides a list of the city's jails, information on how and when an inmate can be visited, how and where to pay bail, and how to place money in an inmate's account. For a list of New York State Correctional Facilities, their addresses and phone numbers, visit the New York State Department of Correctional Services website at: www.docs.state.ny.us/faclist.html. For a comprehensive listing of Federal Detention Centers throughout the United States, visit the Federal Bureau of Prisons website at www.bop.gov/locations. Discrimination and ComplaintsNEW YORK CITY COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS 40 Rector Street, Manhattan 10006 CIVILIAN COMPLAiNT REVIEW BOARD 40 Rector Street, 2nd Floor, Manhattan 10006 If the drug business is operating on your block, call the 24-hour Drug Sale Complaint Hotline at 888.374.3784. Immigrants' RightsTHE NEW YORK IMMIGRATION COALITION 137-139 West 25th Street, 12th Floor, Manhattan 10001 ARCHDIOCESE OF NEW YORK Immigration and Refugee Services To find legal counsel in your area qualified on immigration issues, visit the Legal Referral Service of the New York City Bar Association on the web at www.nycbar.org/LRS/index.htm or call 212.626.7373 Mon.-Fri. 8:30-5:45. For Spanish call 212.626.7374. For a brochure entitled "What You Need to Know About Immigration Service Providers" send a self-addressed #10 legal-sized envelope with appropriate postage to: NYC Department of Consumer Affairs, Free Publications Unit, 8th Floor, 42 Broadway, New York, NY 10004. It is available in ten languages. The Legal Aid Society also offers legal help on
immigration matters. Clients must be income eligible. Call 212.577.3300
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