People make mistakes, and if one or more of yours resulted in an arrest or conviction, having that stain on your criminal record can have a long-lasting effect, including a negative impact on your employability. The good news is, in some cases, you can apply for an expungement of your records. An expungement is the removal of an offense from your record. 

What Types of Cases May Be Expunged?

Your case may qualify for expungement if:

Everyone makes mistakes at some point in their life, and for some, these mistakes can include breaking the law. When this occurs, you deserve a second chance. In Illinois, expungement and sealing are two ways you can get that opportunity. Expunging or sealing your criminal records lets you keep your past actions in the past and can prevent future employers from seeing any unfortunate mistake. There are limitations to what you can and cannot seal or expunge, however.

Differences Between Expungement and Sealing

While they are very similar, there are a few differences between record expungement and record sealing. If you qualify to have your criminal record expunged, the expungement will erase your arrests and/or court supervisions like they never happened. If you have your criminal record sealed, your record will be hidden from most of the public. Most employers are not able to see sealed records, though sealed criminal records will still be visible to law enforcement agencies.

A criminal record can be the proverbial kiss of death for many aspirations and life options, and in Illinois, you will have a criminal record even if the charges against you are ultimately dropped. However, in certain situations, there is a way by which your record can be expunged. If you are able to do this, you may be able to avoid possible negative consequences in the future.

Procedures

Expungement proceedings are available to those who have (1) never been convicted of a criminal offense; (2) have had a conviction reversed, vacated, or pardoned by the governor; or (3) had their conviction recommended for expungement by the Prisoner Review Board. If you believe you are able to have your record expunged, there are specific procedures that must be followed, and they usually differ by county. One of the most commonly known is the waiting period - depending on the fact pattern, a person must wait anywhere between two and five years before filing to expunge an offense.

Adolescents are notorious for making decisions that they later come to regret. Unfortunately, when those decisions have legal repercussions, regret and reformation may not result in the individual getting a clean slate. Criminal records from prior years as a misbehaving teenager can have severe personal and professional consequences, even for rehabilitated one-time offenders. A new law, effective this year, works to limit the negative effects of juvenile records in employment and education by requiring that, if the case meets certain guidelines, the records be expunged.

The Law

The new law, which became effective at the beginning of the year, amends an older statute concerning the destruction of juvenile records. Previously, those with juvenile records could petition the court for expungement, or destruction, of the records only for certain lower-level misdemeanors. A petition could be made after the person turned 18, or when all juvenile court proceedings had ended, whichever was later.

The story is common: you do something stupid and illegal in your younger years and you get caught. You go to court, you are convicted, and your criminal record has the horrible black mark from your younger indiscretions for the rest of time.

There does happen to be a light at the end of the tunnel. Illinois law provides options for getting that dreaded black mark off of your record. Illinois Compiled Statute 20 ILCS 2630/0.01 et seq. allows for qualifying arrests, supervision, and probation to be expunged.

However, there are a few exceptions under this Illinois law. The primary exception is if you have previously been convicted of a crime you are likely ineligible to have your record expunged, but you may still be eligible under the law for sealing criminal records, regardless of the outcome of the case. Nevertheless, it is important to note that only criminal records prosecuted and maintained by the state of Illinois are eligible for expungement or sealing; federal and out of state convictions cannot be sealed or expunged under the Illinois statute.