Everyone makes mistakes. Unfortunately, even one arrest or criminal charge can have a long lasting impact on your life; even if the case was dropped or you were never convicted. A criminal record can affect your job opportunities, housing, education, and even your personal relationships.
The good news? Florida law provides options to help you move forward: sealing and expungement are the options that you may be able to pursue. At Wanda T. Greene, P.A., I help clients understand the process and fight for their right to a clean slate.
What Does it Mean to Seal or Expunge a Record?
Sealing your criminal record means that it is placed under highly restricted access. Government agencies still have limited access, but the record is not available to the general public or most employers.
Under Florida Statue 943.045 (19) “Sealing of a criminal history record” means the preservation of a record under such circumstances that it is secure and inaccessible to any person not having a legal right of access to the record or the information contained and preserved therein.
Expungement goes one step further – the record is physically destroyed by each criminal agency EXCEPT the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE).
Under Florida Statute 934.045(16), “Expunction of a criminal history record” means the court-ordered physical destruction or obliteration of a record or portion of a record by any criminal justice agency having custody thereof, or as prescribed by the court issuing the order, except that criminal history records in the custody of the department must be retained in all cases for purposes of evaluating subsequent requests by the subject of the record for sealing or expunction, or for purposes of recreating the record in the event an order to expunge is vacated by a court of competent jurisdiction.
Both sealing and expungement can help you legally deny or fail to acknowledge that the arrest or charge ever existed in most circumstances.
Who Is Eligible?
Florida has strict eligibility requirements. Generally:
You may be eligible to seal your record if:
✓ You received a withhold of adjudication
✓ Your offense is not on the list of disqualifying charges
✓ You have never been adjudicated guilty on any other offenses
✓ You have never been adjudicated delinquent as a juvenile for certain crimes specified in Florida Statute 943.051(3)(b)
✓ You have no other pending criminal charges
✓ You haven’t applied for either sealing or expungement before
You may be eligible to expunge your record if:
✓ Your charge was not filed or it was dropped or if you were found not guilty by a judge or jury after trial
✓ You have never been adjudicated guilty on any other offenses
✓ You have never been adjudicated delinquent as a juvenile for certain crimes specified in Florida Statute 943.051(3)(b)
✓ You have no other pending criminal charges
✓ You haven’t applied for either sealing or expungement before
Which Charges are Not Eligible for Sealing?
Under Florida Statute 943.0584(2), (2) A criminal history record is ineligible for a certificate of eligibility for expunction or a court-ordered expunction pursuant to s. 943.0585 or a certificate of eligibility for sealing or a court-ordered sealing pursuant to s. 943.059 if the record is a conviction for any of the following offenses: