Seals and Expungements

Seals and Expungements

When you have a criminal history, you may wish you can clear it out, it may be that one mistake you made that you want out of your life. Sometimes clearing your history is a possibility. There are some charges that will not be excused. You cannot have been adjudicated guilty or delinquent, in Florida, in any criminal offense.  

You may also seal your case if you had an adjudication withheld not within the list on the Florida Statute 943.0584. Normally juvenile records are sealed or expunged automatically. But there are times you can request an early expungement. The time frame to file it is when the child is between 18 and 21 years old. It may also be expunged if the minor was in a diversion program for a misdemeanor charge and he has successfully completed it. Before applying the minor cannot be charged, or found that he has committed, any criminal offense or comparable ordinance violation.  

Another type is an administrative expunction for arrests made contrary to the law or by mistake. This applies for both minors and adults. This require to submit an application with an endorsement of the head or chief law enforcement officer of the arresting agency or of the state attorney of the judicial circuit in which you were arrested. After the process your arrest record for the mistake should be cleared. 

Florida Statutes also protects those who are victims of human trafficking and were forced by the situation or when you acted in lawful defense and charges were not filed or were dismissed. Human trafficking expunction is a court process and a little more complicated than the other seals or expungements. In regards to the Lawful Self Defense expunction a written statement from the state attorney that the person acted in lawful self-defense is needed.  

While filling out the form may not be complicated, determining if you are eligible is.  Every case is different and there are various statutes that can be taken into consideration to determine if you qualify.  

You can ask yourself the following to determine if you are automatically disqualified: Have I applied and gotten a seal or expungement in Florida? Do I have any petition in any court for seal or expunge process? Have I been adjudicated guilty? If your answer to any is yes, then you do not qualify.  

Also, if you got a seal or expungement from another State that doesn’t automatically disqualify you. If you are a minor there are other requirements to take into consideration.