Clearing Your Record in Montgomery County, PA
Expungement -- clearing your record – is the process by which all records of your arrest, case outcome, fingerprints and mug shots are destroyed. Many people who are entitled to an expungement do not know this is a possibility or they do not know how to go about getting their record expunged. Their criminal record continues to affect them negatively in all walks of life.
Officially Clear Your Record | Call an Expungement Attorney Today: 610-270-8800 | Contact the Law Office of Henry S. Hilles, III
In many situations, Pennsylvania judges will agree to sign an expungement order even if a person is not legally entitled to have his or her record expunged. Other people are accepted into an Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition (ARD) program and then may apply for an expungement.
How do you know if you qualify for an expungement? Contact an experienced criminal defense attorney who understands expungement law.
Leave the Criminal Record in the Past Where It Belongs
Does the state have a compelling interest in holding onto your criminal record? Is there more to be gained by you having your record cleared? As your lawyer, I can force a judge, by bringing the expungement request forward, to determine whether a conviction as an underage drinker years ago or an ARD disposition on a DUI case makes a person an ongoing threat to society. In most cases, the record is ultimately expunged.
Especially in our age of expanding technology, when you can click just a few buttons online and do a relatively thorough background search on almost anyone, it becomes increasingly important to seek expungement of criminal records when at all possible.
As of January 26, 2009, the Pennsylvania legislature passed a new law permitting the expungement of certain summary offense convictions for people who remain arrest-free for five years following their conviction.
The system recognizes that it can be unfair to punish people for life for one mistake. Isn't it time you gave yourself the same recognition?
Clear Your Record
Call my law office in Norristown, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, at 610-270-8800 to learn more about how to clear (expunge) your criminal record. You may also e-mail me with questions.
Expungement of Criminal Records, Montgomery County, PA
Expungement of criminal convictions in PA refers to a legal process by which the record of a person's arrest, case disposition and/or conviction is destroyed. The purpose of expunging a criminal record in PA is to ensure that any record of an arrest or disposition is removed from criminal history records so that there is no trace or indication that such information ever existed.
It is important that people who are entitled to a clean criminal record in Pa follow through and have their record expunged. When a potential employer or other entity conducts a criminal background check, they will uncover records of prior arrests and dispositions unless a person's record has been legally and physically expunged.
People who have completed the Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition (ARD) Program in PA are entitled to have their record expunged after the period of probation has expired. This does not happen automatically. The attorney for the person seeking expungement must file a petition with the Court of Common Pleas requesting a court order that any records of the arrest and ARD disposition must be destroyed. The attorney must then obtain certified copies of this order (i.e., copies stamped with the seal of the County Clerk of Court's Office) and serve a certified copy on each PA or federal government department and agency having any record of the arrest and/or ARD disposition.
Montgomery County, PA Expungement Lawyer
The Pennsylvania (PA) Criminal History Record Expungement Act provides for when criminal history information must be expunged. This law applies to the expungement of juvenile and adult offenses in PA. It is important to know that in certain situations, PA courts have the authority to order the expungement of records even absent express statutory authority. This is one reason it is important to retain an attorney who is knows PA expungement law and when persons are entitled to have criminal records expunged.
The PA Criminal History Record Expungement Act does not grant a person the absolute right to have charges expunged when charges are dropped (such as after an ARD disposition) or when there is a finding of not guilty. Rather, the court must use a balancing test to determine whether the petitioner's interest in having his record expunged outweighs the Commonwealth's interest in retaining such records.
A person desiring an expungement of criminal records, following an ARD disposition or a finding of not guilty, must file a petition requesting the court to review whether a criminal record should be expunged. Where charges have been dismissed and/or the petitioner has completed the ARD program, a court must consider whether an individual may suffer serious harm from the Commonwealth's retention of the arrest records. Due process requires the Commonwealth to present compelling evidence justifying the retention of arrest records. Among other factors, the court must weigh the Commonwealth's interest in retaining such records versus the potential damage to the individual in not having his record expunged.
Effective January 26, 2009, the Pennsylvania legislature passed a new law permitting the expungement of certain summary offense convictions for people who remain arrest-free for five years following their conviction. Prior to this law, a summary conviction could never be expunged unless the governor issued a pardon. Now, most summary convictions can be expunged after five years the same way ARD dispositions and non-guilty adjudications are expunged. This is very important because employers increasingly will not hire anyone with a criminal record, even if it is a minor conviction when a person was young. This new law permits people with a minor conviction on their record to have it expunged so they can proceed with a clean criminal record.
