How Can I Seal or Expunge My Criminal Record in Florida?
When you have a criminal record, the stigma of your arrest or conviction can create obstacles when seeking certain housing, employment, educational, or financial opportunities. Fortunately, Florida law allows individuals to clear their records through sealing or expungement.
Understanding Sealing and Expungement
When your criminal record is sealed or expunged, the public will not have access to it. However, certain government entities will still have access to the information in its entirety. When a record is expunged, most of the entities which would have access to a sealed record will be informed that you had a record expunged, but would not have access to the record itself without a court order.
Additionally, sealing of a criminal record or an expungement allows you to lawfully deny or fail to acknowledge your record, except when applying for employment with a criminal justice agency, facing subsequent prosecution, seeking admission to the Florida Bar, seeking employment or licensing with the Department of Children and Families or any school or childcare facility, or seeking appointment as a guardian.
Sealing
In Florida, a person can petition the court to seal their criminal record if 1) the record qualifies for sealing and 2) the person has never received a guilty verdict or adjudication of delinquency in Florida for certain offenses, unless they have expunged that disposition. Sealing a criminal record makes that record confidential and restricts access to all with the exception of:
- The person to whom the record pertains and their attorney
- Certain licensing agencies
- Law enforcement and corrections agencies
Expungement
A person with an eligible criminal record can petition the court to expunge that record. An expungement requires law enforcement agencies maintaining copies of an expunged criminal record to destroy or delete that record. The only exception being that the Florida Department of Law Enforcement will retain a copy of the record; that copy remains confidential and not subject to inspection or release except by court order.
Who Qualifies for Record Sealing or Expungement?
Under Florida law, a person can petition a court to expunge a criminal record if they meet one of several eligibility criteria, including:
- Prosecutors did not issue an indictment, information, or other charging document against the person
- Prosecutors or the court dismissed or nolle prosequi the indictment, information, or charging document
- The jury or judge returned a not-guilty verdict against the person
Furthermore, a person seeking an expungement must not have a conviction or adjudication of delinquency for any felony or any of the following misdemeanors:
- Assault
- Battery
- Assault on a law enforcement officer or firefighter
- Carrying a concealed weapon
- Open carrying of a weapon
- Unlawful possession or discharge of a weapon on school property or at a school-sponsored event
- Unlawful use of a destructive device
- Unlawful possession of a firearm
- Exposure of sexual organs
- Arson
- Petit theft
- Neglect of a child
- Cruelty to animals
A petitioner for expungement must also have completed their sentence, including any court supervision applicable to the arrest or criminal activity to which the expungement petition pertains. Finally, a petitioner must not have previously sought a sealing or expunction of a criminal record, although individuals can seek expungement of eligible records sealed for at least 10 years.
However, the law designates some offenses as ineligible for sealing or expungement, including:
- Murder
- Manslaughter
- Domestic assault or battery
- Terrorism
- Sexual misconduct
- Stalking
- Enticing a child
- Human trafficking
- Kidnapping/false imprisonment
- Lewd or lascivious conduct
- Arson
- Burglary of a dwelling
- Voyeurism
- Robbery
- Carjacking
- Abuse of an older person or disabled adult
- Child abuse
- Drug trafficking or manufacturing
The Legal Process for Clearing Your Record
Sealing a criminal record involves several steps. First, an individual must apply to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement for a certificate of eligibility. The department will issue a certificate if a person meets the eligibility criteria for sealing and submits a certified copy of the disposition of their charge. After obtaining a certificate, a person can petition the court to seal their record. The state attorney can file a response or objection to the petition. The court may hold a hearing to consider whether to grant the petition. If a court grants a petition, it will send an order for sealing to the state attorney and arresting law enforcement agency.
Obtaining an expungement also requires an individual to petition the court. The state attorney can also file a response or objection to an expungement petition. The court may hold a hearing to consider the petition; when a court grants a petition, it will send an order for expungement to the state attorney and arresting law enforcement agency.
Benefits of Sealing or Expunging Your Record
Some of the benefits of sealing or expunging a criminal record include:
- Better employment prospects and improved housing opportunities, as sealed or expunged records may not appear in commercial background checks
- Restoration of some rights
- Ability to live one’s life free of the social stigma of a criminal record
Challenges and Common Mistakes to Avoid
Challenges and mistakes that convicted individuals face when pursuing expungement of their criminal records include:
- Misunderstanding the eligibility rules
- Filing an incomplete petition
- Failing to disclose information that could disqualify an individual from expungement
- Not obtaining certified copies of case dispositions in case you need a record of a dismissal or acquittal (such as for immigration purposes)
Contact a Criminal Defense Attorney Today
Pursuing an expungement of your criminal record can give you a fresh start, free of the stigma of a conviction. Let an experienced Keys criminal defense attorney from Reed Palacios Law fight for your rights and interests.
Contact us today for a confidential consultation with our legal team to discuss your eligibility for an expungement.