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Which states have the most lacks laws of convictions for felony crimes
Executive summary
There is no single, authoritative national ranking in the provided sources that answers “which states have the most laws limiting convictions for felony crimes” in plain terms; available reporting instead measures related concepts — how easy it is to clear or expunge convictions, how harsh sentencing and parole regimes are, and where legislatures have recently expanded or rolled back felony categories (for example, Rosenblum Law’s state ranking of record-clearing laws and Prison Policy’s parole grading) [1] [2]. These sources identify New York, Louisiana and Iowa as among the strictest on clearing records, while Arizona, Georgia and Wisconsin rank among the most lenient — and they highlight that many states have recently tightened statutes or parole eligibility [1] [2] [3].
1. What the phrase likely means — and why coverage is scattered
“Lacks laws of convictions for felony crimes” can mean different things: states that (a) make it hard to expunge or seal felony convictions; (b) impose many felony offenses by statute; (c) have long mandatory sentences or limited parole; or (d) restrict relief such as restoration of gun rights or removal from registries. The provided sources do not measure a single composite called “lack laws of convictions”; instead each source focuses on one axis (expungement ease, sentencing severity, parole availability, or recent legislative changes), so no single citation in current reporting gives a definitive all‑state list answering the user’s exact phrasing [1] [4] [2] [3].
2. Where states are hardest to clear records: Rosenblum Law’s ranking
Rosenblum Law’s analysis of statutory expungement and sealing processes ranks New York, Louisiana and Iowa among the strictest states for clearing criminal records; by contrast it lists Arizona, Georgia and Wisconsin as comparatively lenient [1]. That report used a concrete example (a misdemeanor shoplifting hypothetical) and statutory criteria to judge how difficult record relief is, which captures one important element of “lack” of relief for convictions — but it does not enumerate how many felony statutes each state has or how sentencing/parole operate in every jurisdiction [1].
3. Sentencing severity and how it matters
Separately, data on average sentence lengths and the statutory ranges show major regional differences: Security.org’s analysis found states like Virginia, Texas, Minnesota, North Carolina and Kentucky deliver higher average prison terms for crimes against persons (Virginia cited at 13.1 years average) — evidence of punitive sentencing regimes rather than of expungement or statutory categorization [4]. Sentencing severity affects how long someone carries the consequences of a felony even where mechanisms for relief exist [4].
4. Parole and release: states that curtailed discretionary release
Prison Policy’s grading of parole systems finds that sixteen states earned the lowest grade (F-) after making changes that largely eliminated the ability for many people to earn discretionary parole for today’s sentences [2]. That report documents how statutory and policy choices tighten post-conviction relief; it speaks to limited pathways out of long sentences even when statutes allow parole historically [2].
5. Recent legislative shifts toward “tougher” laws
State legislatures and voters have been active: reporting shows measures in multiple states to tighten penalties or narrow relief. Examples include state-level bills to expand bail-restricted offenses, re-criminalize certain conduct, and ballot measures raising parole bars (Georgia and Tennessee bills, Colorado’s 2024 ballot change requiring longer service for parole eligibility, and California’s Proposition 36 rollback) [3] [5]. Those changes increase the effective burden of felony conviction consequences even where expungement regimes remain unchanged [3] [5].
6. What’s missing in the available reporting — and why that matters for your question
Available sources do not provide a single, unified ranking of “which states have the most laws restricting felony convictions” in the exact terms you used; they cover overlapping but distinct indicators (expungement difficulty, sentencing severity, parole availability, and recent legislative changes) [1] [4] [2] [3]. If you want an answer aligned with one specific definition (e.g., “hardest to expunge felonies,” or “most felony statutes created since year X,” or “longest mandatory sentences”), I can synthesize a targeted list using the relevant sources and note caveats.
7. Suggested next steps to get a definitive list
Tell me which axis you care about — expungement/record-sealing (Rosenblum Law data), sentencing length (Security.org), parole availability (Prison Policy), or recent legislative changes (Stateline/USA Today summaries). I will then produce a state-by-state summary limited to that dimension using only the cited sources and highlight tradeoffs and political context for the changes at issue [1] [4] [2] [3] [5].