Having a criminal record can cause all types of problems. It can impact your ability to get a job, attend the school that you want to, rent the apartment that you want to; and it can just be plain embarrassing. Everyone makes mistakes, and once they’ve been resolved, we all want to be forgiven and given an opportunity to move on with our lives. An expungement can give you a fresh start.
When done properly, an expungement will effectively erase your criminal record from three places.
The official court records at the clerk’s office
The arrest report and any files at the police station
The Maryland Judiciary Case Search
The rules surrounding expungements are very specific and only apply to certain cases and certain types of convictions. Whether or not your case is eligible will depend on three things.
What charges you faced
How those charges were resolved
How much time has passed
Generally speaking, cases that were dismissed (nolle prosequi), placed on the STET docket, or where you were found not guilty are automatically eligible for expungement. Additionally, most cases that result in a probation before judgement (PBJ) become eligible for expungement after a period of time. But even if your situation doesn’t qualify for an expungement ordinarily doesn’t mean that there’s nothing to be done. Under certain circumstances, you can request a “Good Cause Expungement” which, if successful, will expunge your case even though your case is not eligible according to the law.
Each and every case is different and needs to be evaluated by an expungement attorney.
If you have an old case that you want to have expunged, call Bradley Shepherd at BSS Law, LLC now for a free consultation.