A very common question we get asked is how to clean up someone’s criminal record. It’s a valid question, as more and more employers are doing criminal background checks during the interview process. There are two potential options for someone looking to remove something from their criminal record: expunctions and non-disclosures.
Expunctions
If eligible, an expunction is the most powerful way to remove an arrest or wrongful conviction from one’s criminal record. The problem is that Texas has made these very difficult to get. One way you might be eligible for an expunction is if you were wrongfully arrested and charges were either dropped or never pursued. Or, if you were found not guilty after going through a trial. There are a few other ways to be eligible, but these two are the most common. To learn more, please speak with us to learn if you’re eligible for an expunction. If you are, we’ll get to work on it right away.
Non-disclosures
A petition for non-disclosure is available only if you were sentenced to deferred adjudication probation and you have completed that sentence without any issues. Note that this does not include straight probation – just deferred adjudication probation. If successful, only law enforcement would be able to view your deferred adjudication. Most employers would not be able to pull of that specific criminal record.
As eligibility is limited for both options, we recommend you give us a call or schedule a consultation to meet with one of our attorneys to learn more.