Legal Question in Criminal Law in California

Re: criminal records esponed or cleared

Thanks for your question. This is a complicated area of the law. If you have been convicted of a misdemeanor (not a felony), and have completed probation (or are eligible to have probation terminated), then under section 1203.4 of the California Penal Code, a convicted defendant "may be reinstated as a law-abiding member of society" if he or she complies with the requirements of his or her probation and he or she is not currently serving a sentence or on probation for any other offense or charged with the commission of any other offense.

Section 1203.4, subdivision (a) reads in pertinent part:

"In any case in which a defendant has fulfilled the conditions of probation for the entire period of probation, or has been discharged prior to the termination of probation . . . the defendant shall, at any time after the termination of the period of probation, . . . be permitted by the court to withdraw his or her plea of guilty . . . and enter a plea of not guilty; . . . and, . . . the court shall thereupon dismiss the accusations or information against the defendant and except as noted below, he or she shall thereafter be released from all penalties and disabilities resulting from the offense of which he or she has been convicted . . . ."

Subdivision (b) of section 1203.4 provides:

"Subdivision (a) of this section does not apply to any misdemeanor which is within the provisions of subdivision (b) of Section 42001 of the Vehicle Code, to any violation of subdivision (c) of Section 286, Section 288, subdivision (c) of Section 288a, Section 288.5, or subdivision (j) of Section 289, or to any infraction."

Although section 1203.4 confers the benefit of expungement to a defendant who successfully fulfills the conditions of probation, the statute does not operate automatically. A defendant must petition the court for such expungement and show the successful completion of probation as long as he or she is not then serving a sentence or is on probation for any offense or charged with the commission of any offense.

An expungement may be filed one year after the date of sentence or after the completion of probation on a misdemeanor. The court will not grant an expungement on a felony conviction unless it is first reduced to a misdemeanor and only misdemeanors and certain felonies qualify for expungement.

I hope this information helps you, but if you do have other questions, want more information, or feel you need legal representation, please feel free to contact me directly, at my email address, [email protected], or call me at 1-877-568-2977 (toll free). I�m happy to help in any way that I can, and I wish you the best of luck.

Re: criminal records esponed or cleared

By filing an application and motion to the court, usually done through counsel, and only after all terms of probation are successfully completed, plus one more year at least without any further arrests or problems. Contact me if interested.