Legal Question in Criminal Law in Massachusetts

i was arrested for a misdemeanor possession of 1 gram of marijuana roughly 10-11 years ago when i was 17 years old in the state of Massachusetts. in 2009 voters passed a bill to decriminalize marijuana in the state which is now in effect (since Jan 1st 2009).

before the decriminalization happened i had tried to get a judge to seal the record back in 2004 because i was leaving college and searching for a job but the judge refused. the lawyer told me it it was b/c the judge strongly disliked marijuana and any other judge would have sealed it. i have not tried again and i have not been arrested since this incident.

luckily the place i work at now doesn't do background checks. i'm thinking of applying for a new job but dont want this to come back and haunt me. is it possible to remove this altogether since marijuana possession is decriminalized up to 1 ounce and i only had 1 gram? if decriminalization was in effect back then i wouldnt even have a record! is it possible to retro-actively fix this? i will try to seal it again but i wish i could just get it removed altogether! some agencies have access to sealed records.


Asked on 1/27/11, 11:13 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Paul Lancia Attorney Paul Lancia

Yes you can have your record expunged.

Read more
Answered on 1/27/11, 12:53 pm


Related Questions & Answers

More Criminal Law questions and answers in Massachusetts