What is the Islam's position regarding rehabilitation of criminals and their return to society after they were punished for their crime? Is there any reference to their criminal record?

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His slave and Messenger.

Perhaps it is appropriate to mention here a general principle which Shaykh Al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah mentioned – namely that he said: "The Sharee'ah was brought to achieve the general good and complete it, and to eliminate what is harmful and minimize it; achieving a small amount of good is better than achieving no good at all, and repelling some evil is better than not repelling any evil at all." [End of quote]

Therefore, what is lawful and what is forbidden (the Halaal and the Haraam) revolve around that principle. Allaah permitted everything whose benefit is pure or prevalent and forbade everything whose evil is pure or prevalent.

Hence, what the revelation came down with is the source of happiness of humans if one adheres to it and acts according to it, because what the revelation came down with is what will achieve what is generally good for him. Allaah says (what means): {"Descend from Paradise - all, [your descendants] being enemies to one another. And if there should come to you guidance from Me – then whoever follows My guidance will neither go astray [in the world] nor suffer [in the Hereafter].} [Quran 20:123]

Ibn Abbaas said while interpreting the above verse: "Allaah guaranteed that whoever recites the Quran and acts according to it will not go astray in this world, and in the Hereafter, he will not be unhappy."

Therefore, the rehabilitation of a criminal in order that he returns to the community sane and sound falls under this general principle. Islam approves this and does not deny it, and Islam consents to this and does not reject it. For more benefit, please refer to Fatwa 180205.

However, we did not understand what you mean by your question: "Is there any reference to their criminal record." Nonetheless, we say that a criminal record is taken into consideration in the Sharee‘ah and there are some laws that are consequent to it. A person who commits crimes is not like others; it is for this reason that the Hadeeth reads: "Forgive the errors of the right-acting people unless they commit a sin which necessitates a Hadd (prescribed penalty)." [Al-Bayhaqi]

Ash-Shawkaani said in Nayl Al-Awtaar: "This is evidence that it is permissible to forgive the mistakes of the right-acting people if they rarely make a mistake…. Ash-Shaafi‘i said: the nobles whose mistakes are tolerated are those who are not known to commit evil, and then they happen to make a mistake. Imaam An-Nawawi said: However, if a person is known to commit evil (i.e. corruption), then it is desirable not to conceal his sin if it is not feared that this would lead to harm, because concealing the sins of such a person encourages him to do more harm and to corrupt and transgress the limits of Allaah, as well as to encourage others to do the same as him." [End of quote]

Allaah Knows best.