Legal Question in Criminal Law in Michigan

Expungement

If one has a misdemeanor conviction with two counts of a misdemeanor, does that constitute two separate convictions, and disallow expungement of that conviction, if the defendant is an adult?


Asked on 4/07/09, 11:55 pm

3 Answers from Attorneys

William Morrison Action Defense Center

Re: Expungement

Unfortunately, yes.

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Answered on 4/08/09, 12:29 am

Re: Expungement

Yes, you have two convictions on your record which do not qualify for expungement.

You can read more at:

www.AggressiveCriminalDefense.com

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Answered on 4/08/09, 7:37 am
Neil O'Brien Eaton County Special Assistant Prosecuting Attorney

Re: Expungement

As the previous two replies indicated, you are not eligible to set aside (expunge) any criminal conviction in Michigan because you have "more than one" such conviction. But, their answers should have added "... under CURRENT Michigan laws."

There is a bill pending in the state legislature that might open the door wider for expungements for folks with more than one prior conviction. The bill is 2009 HB 4405. You can read is at www.michiganlegislature.org. (In part, it would allow expungement of a person's one-and-only felony if they have no more than two misdemeanor priors; or, it would allow expungement of two misdemeanors if they have no felonies and only those two misdemeanor priors.)

There is no guarantee that this bill will pass, or even be put into law in its current form. It is still pending in the House Judiciary committee. If you support this bill, contact your state legislators (including people on the House Judiciary committee) and tell them. You might even send them letter, or schedule an appointment, to explain your situation and how the current law is affecting your life (employment, military, schools, housing, etc.).

A bill filed in 2007 that also sought to expand expungement opportunities (not identical to the current bill) was not passed into law. But the rationale is similar to the current bill: some people think the current law is too harsh, and folks are being blocked from employment opportunities, etc because of a certain criminal conviction that cannot be set aside because they also have another minor conviction (e.g., DWLS).

So, while the current law makes you ineligible, that may well change in the coming year(s).

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Answered on 4/08/09, 8:37 am


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