Expungements

                     Good people make mistakes and those mistakes should not define them for the rest of their lives. Often times a criminal record can hinder ones ability to obtain a good job, obtain certain state licenses, apply to certain higher education institutes, and even qualify to live in certain rental housing.

 

                      Fortunately, an expungement or sealing of your case is a legal remedy that gives a person with a criminal record a second chance at a clean slate. For the criminal record be eligible for an expungement, the charging document that was filed or issued which gave rise to the criminal record must have been dismissed, received a judgement of acquittal, or obtained a not guilty verdict from a judge or jury.  In addition, the person applying for the expungement must have never been found guilty for committing any felony. There are also some misdemeanors, as well as specific crimes, that the person could not have been found guilty of such as, for example, sexual misconduct, unlawful possession of a firearm, neglect of a child, cruelty of animals, unlawful use of destructive devices or bombs, among many others. Even if the person was not found guilty of a particular charge, he or she may not be eligible for an expungement if he or she is still under court supervision, or was found guilty of any of the acts stemming from the arrest to which the expungement is for. 

                       

                        If you have entered a plea, were found guilty of a crime, or an adjudication of guilt was withheld, you may be eligible to seal your criminal record. Unlike an expungement which physically destroys your criminal record making it unavailable for anyone to see including government or criminal entities without a court order, sealing the record does not destroy it and it is still available to certain government agencies, departments, and judges to review, but not the public.

It is important to know that person can only expunge or seal a criminal record once in their lifetime. If a person has multiple criminal charges, he or she must carefully decide which one is most the detrimental and use their one-time expungement or sealing for that particular charge.

​

                           If you are interested in an expungement or sealing of your criminal record, contact the Law Office of Lace Hernandez today for a consultation to discuss your eligibility. Obtain the help you deserve to get your life back on track and leave your mistake in the past.