The ongoing penalty of a prior engagement with the criminal justice system is the lingering and limiting effects of having a criminal record. As background checks become more and more ubiquitous, there are a number of ways to keep your record from thwarting your future plans.

Not all crimes are eligible for expungement. Call to review your record and potential avenues of relief.

Expungement

The baseline qualification for an expungement is completion of probation / parole following sentencing plus one-year without involvement with the law. An expungement clears the case without a conviction under Cal. Pen. Code 1203.4.

Expungement means you do not have to reveal the offense to employers. Additionally, it makes it easier to get a professional license (like a contractor’s license). Prior offenses cannot be used to impeach you as a witness in court (unless you are the defendant in a new case) and it can help avoid immigration consequences.

Certain sex crimes are excluded from expungement eligibility (specifically, Cal. Pen. Code sections 286(c), 288, 287(c) and 261.5(d)).

Additionally, if you served time in a California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) facility, you cannot pursue expungement (don’t worry, there are other pathways to relief).

Certificate Of Rehabilitation

If you did serve prison time (not jail time), you may request a certificate of rehabilitation. One must have completed parole plus a minimum period of time for rehabilitation (varies by conviction).

The certificate of rehabilitation is the first step in obtaining a pardon. If your certificate of rehabilitation is granted, it automatically is considered for a pardon.

Eligibility for a certificate of rehabilitation is more complex than expungement. If you were only convicted of misdemeanors, you are not eligible. Again, specific sex crimes are excluded from relief (Cal. Pen. Code sections 286(c), 288, 288a(c), 288.5, and 289(j). People serving mandatory life parole are not eligible for relief. If you went to prison with a sentence of death, you are not eligible. Additionally, if you are presently in the military, you are not eligible.

The minimum period for rehabilitation depends on the prior offenses. First, you must have lived in California continuously for five years prior to filing the petition. Upon your discharge from custody or release from parole (whichever is most recent), the period of rehabilitation begins to run. For instance, if you were released from prison on March 1, 2013, and released from parole on March 1, 2016, the period of rehabilitation begins on March 1, 2016.

For the following offenses, an additional four years of rehabilitation is required: Cal. Pen. Codes 187 (murder), 209 (aggravated kidnapping), 219 (derailing or wrecking a train), 4500 (assault with force likely to cause great bodily injury), or 12310 (use of explosives or destructive devices causing death, mayhem, or great bodily injury) of the Penal Code, or subdivision (a) of Section 1672 of the Military and Veterans Code (acting or failing to act so as to cause another person’s death), or any other offense which carries a life sentence. (Pen. Code, § 4852.03, (a)(1).)

This process can take time as records need to be acquired. Depending on the nature of your prior convictions, additional rules may apply. Call Wentworth Law Firm to assess your eligibility for relief.