Helping Clients Remove Damaging Information From Their Criminal Records

Do not let your criminal record stop you from having a successful future. If you have a criminal record, you may have been denied from applying for homes, certain jobs, and schools. You will want to seal or expunge your criminal record. Depending on the type of offense and the surrounding circumstances, you will file for either an expunction or a nondisclosure. Juveniles may also get their records sealed so that something they did when they were young doesn’t affect them when they become adults.

Sylvia A. Cavazos is an experienced San Antonio defense attorney serving adults and juveniles throughout south central Texas. If your criminal record is interfering with your ability to move on with your life, she can act on your behalf to get your record permanently expunged or sealed.

Petition for Nondisclosure Versus Expunction

Filing a petition for nondisclosure requires you to have successfully completed your deferred adjudication. If granted, it will hide your record from the public from accessing your records. If your case was dismissed, you may qualify for an expunction. An expunction basically destroys the record as if the allegations never occurred.

Criminal Nondisclosure

If you have received and successfully completed deferred adjudication, you may be eligible to seal your record, meaning the record will still exist, but agencies are prohibited, in most cases, from providing it to anyone. If your record is sealed, you are not required to disclose any information to civilians, private employers or educational admissions. However, certain law enforcement and government agencies will still be able to access the records.

If you have been charged with a felony and complete your deferred adjudication, you may apply for a petition of nondisclosure three years after the date of completion. If you were charged with a misdemeanor, the waiting period could be anytime between the date of completion up to two years, depending on the criminal charge.

There are offenses that are NEVER eligible to be sealed. Those include:

• Family violence offenses
• Sex offenses
• Child abuse
• Abandoning or endangering a child
• Abuse of an elderly or disabled person
• Murder
• Capital murder
• Violation of a protective order
• Stalking

Criminal Record Expungement

If you have been convicted of a criminal offense, you will not qualify for an expungement. An individual can expunge their record:

• If an alleged offender was charged with an offense but later ACQUITTED;
• If an individual was WRONGFULLY ACCUSED of a criminal offense;
• If an alleged offender was charged with an offense, but the charges were subsequently DISMISSED; and
• If the alleged offender was convicted of the offense, but later PARDONED.

Depending on which situation applies to your case, it may be eligible to be expunged immediately. If not, Ms. Cavazos will discuss when you will become eligible.

Learn Whether Your Case Is Eligible

Whether you are concerned about cleaning up your criminal record so you can apply for a job, obtain an apartment or qualify for security clearance, talk to a lawyer. To schedule a free one-hour consultation to discuss your case, please contact the firm at 210-468-1130 or online.