Legal Question in Criminal Law in Washington

Sealing is possible. However, in 1997, the applicable statute was amended to preclude destruction of juvenile records except in limited circumstances, e.g. a record consisting of only a single diversion.

There are appellate opinions that a motion to seal and destroy a pre-1997 juvenile record filed after the amendment could be granted if there was an express (written or oral) promise to the offender that the record could or would be destroyed. The promise could be made by the court or it could be part of an agreement with the prosecutor that was ratified by the judge.

Sealing should be sufficient. Note that a juvenile adjudication is not a conviction for purposes of federal law. This does not mean that a federal agency cannot consider it. It does mean that there is no federal firearm disability as there is under Washington state law.

Sealing the juvenile record should include vacation of the conviction. The sealing has an automatic nullification clause triggered by any subsequent felony charge or any subsequent criminal conviction.

It would also be prudent for him to restore his gun rights. While there is a consensus that sealing a juvenile felony is sufficient to remove a state firearm disability, there is no case law directly on point. Additionally, if the sealing order was ever nullified, the "felony in possession" statute, which defines conviction to include dismissal entered after a period of conviction, could create issues. I provide this additional information not because I agree with it, but because I have spoken with prosecutors who are not convinced an "unsealed" felony is out of reach.