After being classified as a felon for many years, Phyllis Henderson has now fully cleared her record. She has gone through challenges over the years for a mistake made so long ago that had become her identity and ruined her life.
She told KCTV, “I call it a judicial disability that they have given me. They have disabled me from renting in a decent neighborhood and gainful employment.”
It all started in 1988 when she was “drinking, partying” and embracing her wild side. When a young Henderson woke up from an overnight stay at a stranger’s home, one of her acquaintances had stolen several things, including a video cassette recorder, or VCR.
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When Grandview police questioned Henderson about the VCR, she chose not to snitch. Since the VCR was worth less than $150, her initial charge of felony was dropped to a misdemeanor and she entered a guilty plea.
Henderson, who is now in her sixties and a great-grandmother, said she had to work temporary jobs and rent subpar accommodation. Her applications for better jobs and housing were rejected because she was a felon, per her record.
When she finally went to the police, her records showed that she was a felon. She went ahead to request a pardon from then-Governor Jay Nixon, but he denied it.
At some point, Henderson gave in. She recounted, “It’s just in there. I just accepted it. It’s been slapping me in the face for 37 years.”
Later, she sought assistance from UMKC’s Expungement Clinic, where she received some answers. They discovered that the misdemeanor conviction was recorded improperly.
Ellen Suni, a UMKC law professor and co-director of the clinic, explained, “We asked for certain documents and the court sent us what documents they had. When we looked at those documents, it wasn’t a felony. It was a misdemeanor.”
The court documents approved by the judge show “felony reduced to a misdemeanor.” Henderson was stunned to hear this.
Court information at the time was transmitted to the Missouri State Highway Patrol criminal records repository. That was where the misdemeanor conviction was entered incorrectly.
Suni said, “This was the first case where I actually saw that big of a mistake. I mean, there are lots of consequences that come automatically from a felony.”
The great-grandmother sent her case to court, where a judge expunged the felony conviction from her record.
