Legal Question in Criminal Law in California

If you haven't waited too long, you can apply to the court for a Determination of Factual Innocence. I always thought people were innocent until proven guilty, but I have also heard of cases where a federal or state government agency thought otherwise. Be sure you follow up with whatever appeals process you have. If a government agency is involved, they have to give you the right to an appeal (for what it's worth).

In your email you stated that the charges were dropped. Assuming a criminal complaint was not filed I can file a motion to seal and destroy your criminal arrest record. However, sometime people confuse your situation when in fact the charge was plea bargained. If that is the case I can expunge your criminal record. You can reach me at

Tel 818 379 1777

A domestic violence restraining order has similar effect on your record to a felony conviction - you become a 'prohibited person' barred from possessing firearms or ammo, and causing serious problems in employment, credit, and other areas. IF a permanent RO was imposed, it fits into the 'records are forever' category. It can not be 'expunged' like some convictions can in CA. However, that applies only if a 'permanent' order was put into place; you had the option of fighting against the order at the time. If you had succeeded, there would be no 'permanent', and thus no record. A 'temporary' order should/would not have that effect -- that could be fixed if that were your situation. There is nothing you can do now about a permanent RO short of seeking a court order for a finding of 'factual innocence' and specifically restoring your rights, then using that to TRY to get DOJ to change their records status. If serious about doing so, feel free to contact me.