What Exactly Is An Expunction?

 Posted on July 24, 2020 in Criminal Defense

An Expunction is a legal mechanism we use to completely destroy and erase any records of an arrest and a legal prosecution. We use it following a not guilty verdict or a complete dismissal of charges by the state of Texas. Simply put, with an expunction all records are completely destroyed and you are put back like the arrest simply had never occurred; not the FBI, not the government, not the police are gonna have access to the records of your arrest in court proceedings. 

If found not guilty, can professionals still see my case?

We've seen it so many times over the years where somebody is arrested for a crime. They go to court and the charges are dropped; the case is dismissed. They simply are not guilty. Years later, during a routine background check for a job or for a housing application, the arrest and the court proceedings pop up and cause them difficulties. The truth is unless you take that affirmative step of getting an order of expunction, it's still gonna pop up on criminal background checks. 

What are the qualifications for an order of expunction?

Expunctions are going to be available for a very selected group of people. It's going to be people who had their cases outright dismissed by the state of Texas without any kind of probation, people who completed a pretrial diversion, or people who obtained a "not guilty" at trial. Those people are all going to be eligible for a court-ordered expunction of all the arrest and court proceedings. 

Who has the right to obtain an expunction?

The bottom line is, if you got your case dismissed without probation, if you've got a "not-guilty" at a jury trial, or if you successfully completed a pre-trial diversion, you have earned the right to get an expunction under Texas law. The sooner you do it, the better it'll protect your future, your family and your employment.