Clean Slate leader brings decades of experience advancing opportunity for people with criminal records
PHILADELPHIA, Pennsylvania, July 13, 2026 – Rasa Legal, a mission-driven legal technology organization making it simple and affordable for eligible people to clear their criminal records, today announced that Sharon M. Dietrich has joined the organization to expand access to justice and opportunity in Pennsylvania and beyond.
Dietrich brings nearly four decades of experience gained from Community Legal Services (CLS) of Philadelphia, where she has been a leading voice on the employment barriers faced by people with criminal records, until her retirement from CLS earlier this year. She helped shape Pennsylvania’s landmark Clean Slate law, which made the state a national model for automated record sealing, and has provided technical assistance to advocates and policymakers across the country working to adopt and implement similar reforms.
Her career has centered on a simple but urgent idea: a past record should not permanently block someone from work, housing, education, or stability. At CLS, Dietrich represented thousands of people denied employment because of their criminal records, led national record-clearing technical assistance efforts, and litigated cases challenging unfair background screening practices and overly broad employment restrictions.
“I learned from my work with CLS that what people with criminal records most want and need is to clear their records, so they can move on with their lives. I am thrilled to continue helping Pennsylvanians who need legal help to clear their records by working with Rasa Legal.”
Founded by attorney and access-to-justice advocate Noella Sudbury, Rasa Legal has helped more than 34,000 people learn what is on their criminal record and determine eligibility for sealing and expungement under state law. To date, over 5,000 records have been successfully cleared since the platform launched in late 2022.
“Sharon has spent her career expanding what is possible for people living with criminal records,” said Sudbury. “Her work made Pennsylvania a national leader in Clean Slate policy, and her experience will be invaluable as Rasa continues building practical, people-centered technology that helps more eligible individuals move forward.”
Dietrich’s arrival strengthens Rasa’s Pennsylvania work at a time when record clearance is becoming an increasingly important part of workforce development, housing access, and economic mobility. By combining legal expertise, policy experience, and technology, Rasa aims to make a complicated process easier for the people who need it most.
About Rasa Legal
Rasa Legal is a mission-driven legal technology organization dedicated to making the process of clearing a criminal record simple and affordable for everyone. Through innovative tools and a streamlined legal process, Rasa’s lawyers provide criminal record sealing and expungement services. For more information, or to do a free eligibility check, visit rasa-legal.com.
Media Contact:
Noella Sudbury
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 801.913.9675