Sealing & Expungement of Criminal Records

A criminal record can affect your ability to find or keep a job, obtain housing, or get accepted into a college. The good news is that certain convictions can be reversed on your Washington State criminal record, so that they no longer cause damage to your reputation on a criminal background check.

An attorney who is experienced with vacating convictions, expungements, and record sealing can motion the court to have a criminal charge cleared from your record. A vacate, expungement, and record seal are three separate legal processes.

Your options will depend on:

1. How your original case was dispositioned (the final determination of the case)
2. If your charge was in juvenile court or adult court
3. How compelling your need is to remove information from public record (record sealing)

How Can I Remove my Conviction?

Vacating a conviction is a legal process where (if certain conditions are met) your attorney can motion the court to take away the conviction and dismiss the case. If successful, a person can legally say that they were never convicted of the crime.

The vacation of a criminal record means that the conviction is reversed and dismissed. This can be especially helpful if you need to pass a criminal background check for a job application or a housing application.

We Can Help

At Beckwith Criminal Law, we vacate, seal, and expunge criminal records in King County, Snohomish County, Pierce County, Thurston County, and Kitsap County. Our firm has a 99% success rate in vacating misdemeanor and felony convictions.

We offer a free telephone consultation to see if you are eligible to clear your record or remove your conviction. We can also meet you in either our Seattle or Tacoma office locations.

Am I Eligible to Vacate a Misdemeanor?

If you were convicted of a misdemeanor or gross misdemeanor offense in WA State, your attorney may petition the court to vacate the conviction under the following circumstances:

• You must not have any pending charges.
• You must not have any new convictions on your record.
• The offense was not a DUI.
• The offense did not involve obscenity or sexual exploitation of children.
• You have not been restrained by a protection order in the last 5 years.
• Any fines, court fees, or funds owed to the victim have been paid.
• 3 years have passed since the conviction (or 3 years past the final payment of legal financial obligations, whichever is later).
• For a domestic violence (DV) conviction, 5 years have passed (or 5 years past the final payment of legal financial obligations, whichever is later).
• If the original charge was DUI but was amended to an alternative charge (such as reckless or negligent driving) 10 years must have passed.

Am I Eligible to Vacate a Felony?

If you were convicted of a felony offense in Washington, your attorney may petition the court to vacate the conviction under the following circumstances:

• The above requirements for vacating a misdemeanor offense have been met.
• For a Class C felony, 5 years have passed since the conviction.
• For a Class B felony, 10 years have passed since the conviction.
• The charge was not a felony sex offense.

Restoring Gun Rights & Concealed Carry Permit

After a conviction is vacated, gun rights are not automatically restored. Restoring gun rights is a separate legal process that is handled in a different court.

The good news is that the requirements for vacating a conviction are very similar to the requirements for getting your firearm rights back. For many clients, we take care of both cases.

After your firearm rights are restored, you would then be eligible to apply for a CPL (Concealed Pistol License).

How do I Seal my Juvenile Record?

If you were convicted of a juvenile felony charge in WA State, your attorney may petition the court to seal the record as long as:

• You must not have any pending charges.
• You must not currently be subject to a diversion agreement.
• There is no requirement to register as a juvenile sex offender (we can often lift juvenile sex offender registration requirements).
• The offense was not Rape in 1st or 2nd degree or indecent liberties committed with actual forcible compulsion.
• No restitution (money) is owed to the victim.
• All legal financial obligations (fines & court fees) have been paid.
• For Class A felonies, more than 5 years must have passed since the conviction date or release from confinement, whichever is later.
• For other offenses, 2 years must have passed since the conviction date or release from confinement, whichever is later.

What is Expungement?

Expunging a record in Washington State is the process of deleting the arrest record and charging information two years after a dismissal. Many people who are not eligible for expungement are still eligible to vacate (reverse) their conviction.

For expungement eligibility, you would have been charged with an offense, two years have passed, and the original case result was:

1. Dismissal by the prosecutor
2. Acquittal (Not guilty verdict from a jury)
3. Dismissal after successful completion of a diversion agreement

You would be ineligible for expungement if:

1. Your original case resulted in a conviction.
2. You have incurred subsequent criminal history.
3. Your dismissal was due to a deferred sentence or vacate order.

What is the Record Sealing Process in WA State?

Sealing a court record means that documents, information, and exhibits that are maintained by the court in connection with a criminal case will be destroyed or deleted from public record. After vacating (reversing) your conviction, your lawyer may petition the court to seal your record.

After a case is dismissed (charges are dropped), the public record is not automatically sealed after a certain number of years. While this can be true for certain juvenile cases, it is not true for adult cases.

While record sealing is a relatively straight forward process in Juvenile Court, the requirements that must be met in adult court involve a much more challenging argument. The court will require proof that compelling privacy or safety concerns outweigh the public’s interest in having access to the record.

In WA State courts, judges place a high value on allowing public access to criminal court records. It is important that your lawyer makes a strong argument and provides compelling evidence, as the judge can disagree and prevent the criminal record from being sealed or deleted from public record. For example, if you were wrongfully charged and have faced direct prejudice because of the existence of the record, this could be a strong record sealing argument.

Common Charges that we Seal, Vacate, & Expunge

• Domestic Violence – Assault – Harassment – Stalking
• No Contact Order Violations – Malicious Mischief
• Theft – Robbery – Fraud – Burglary – Trespass
• Reckless Driving – Negligent Driving – Hit & Run – DWLS
• Reckless Endangerment – Disorderly Conduct – Firearm Charges

A Proven Track Record for Clearing Criminal Records

At Beckwith Criminal Law we have successfully vacated, sealed, and expunged the criminal records of hundreds of clients in Puget Sound areas that include Seattle, Bellevue, Everett, Kent, Tacoma, and Olympia.

Call us today to find out if you are eligible to clear your record during the free consultation.