Legal Question in Criminal Law in Tennessee
In TN, if a person is given a citation for theft under $500 and has a previous theft under $500 conviction that was expunged, will the expunged theft be considered by judge during sentencing?
Asked on 9/04/13, 9:32 pm
1 Answer from Attorneys
No, the judge should not even know of the former expunged case, especially if it was expunged due to a diversion, since that places the defendant -- in the eyes of the law -- in the position they occupied before the original arrest. In other words, if a diversion was successfully completed and the record exunged, the Defendant may deny the original charge, even under oath. See T.C.A. �40-35-313.
Answered on 9/05/13, 6:25 am