Attorney Michael T. Malarick has over 25 years of experience as a record expungement lawyer in Delaware County, Pennsylvania. Call the Malarick law firm now for a free initial consultation. Expungement is the process by which the arrest record or conviction record of a person is sealed or erased from the public view. In Pennsylvania, a charge will not be removed from your record until a Judge issues an expungement order and the order is served upon the appropriate law enforcement agencies. A Delaware County, PA expungement attorney will gather all of the appropriate information and exhibits necessary for filing expungement petitions.
Michael T. Malarick is an experienced Delaware County criminal record expungement attorney in Pennsylvania. The law office handles criminal record expungement cases in and around Delaware County, Philadelphia, Boothwyn, Upper Darby, West Chester, Springfield, Drexel Hill, Aston, Havertown, Ridley, Marcus Hook, Glen Mills, Swarthmore and more.
The Benefits of Expungement
With an expungement order, the personal stigma of an offense on your criminal record history is gone. You will be able to pass a future employer’s background check. You will become eligible for governmental benefits such as student loans or housing assistance. With an expungement order, a past mistake need not affect the rest of your life.
Pennsylvania’s law clearly states that:
any expungement record of arrest or prosecution shall thereafter be regarded as an arrest or
prosecution for the purpose of any statute or regulation or license or questionnaire or any civil or
criminal proceeding or any other public or private use. No person shall be permitted to learn of an
expunged arrest or prosecution, or of the expunction, either directly or indirectly.
35 PS 780-119
In fact, the law states that anyone except the individual arrested or prosecuted who divulges such information is guilty of a summary offense punishable by not more than 30 days imprisonment and/or not more than a $500 fine.
Who is Eligible for Expungement
You are eligible for expungement if you were found not guilty of the charge or the charges were withdrawn by the prosecution. The Pa., expungement statute states that you are eligible for expungement if no disposition has been recorded in the state police central repository within 18 months of the arrest and the court certifies that no action is pending; a court order requires that non-conviction data be expunged; and someone 21 years old who was convicted of underage purchase, consumption, or possession of alcohol while 18 years old or older and who has satisfied all terms of the sentence.
Others eligible include someone convicted of a summary offense who has been free of arrest or conviction for 5 years following the summary offense conviction; someone who is 70 years old and who has been free of arrest or conviction for 10 years following release from prison; or someone who has been dead for three years.
You are also eligible for expungement if you successfully completed an ARD program (accelerated rehabilitative disposition) and paid all costs. Here, for instance, a DUI expungement order will clear your record.
You are also eligible for expungement of juvenile delinquency adjudications, generally, if 6 months have elapsed since your final discharge and no adjudication or prosecution is pending.
What is the Expungement Process
An expungement order is obtained by the filing of a petition in the county where the offense occurred with notice to the District Attorney. The basic information an expungement attorney needs includes your name, address, social security number, and any aliases by which you have been known. Before filing the petition, your expungement attorney will also need case specific information.
What Expungement Information is Needed:
- Provide the name and address of the court that heard your case (including any magisterial or municipal court);
- Provide the name of the arresting law enforcement agency;
- Provide the date of arrest;
- Provide the date of the citation;
- Provide the name of the affiant on the complaint or citation;
- Provide a list of the specific charges together with their dispositions;
- Provide a statement that all fines, costs, and restitution has been paid;
- Provide the reasons for the expungement request (such as acquittal, age, arrest or prosecution free of five years);
- Provide an attached criminal record history (current within 60 days of filing the petition);
- Record a proposed order.
Within 30 days after service of the petition upon the DA, the District Attorney shall either consent to the petition, object to the petition, or take no action upon the petition. Upon receipt of the DA’s response, the judge shall grant the petition, deny the petition, or schedule a hearing on the petition.
If, after the hearing, the court grants the petition, there is a 30 day appeal period. If the court denies the petition, the court will enter an order stating the reasons for the denial. An order granting expungement will include the basic and case information from the petition together with a list of the criminal justice agencies upon which certified copies of the order shall be served.
Expungement and ARD
Once an individual has been accepted into an ARD program and has successfully completed any and all terms and conditions of that program, that individual may move for an order dismissing the charges and expunging the arrest record. If the DA objects to this automatic expungement, a hearing will be held.
Where the individual has successfully completed any pretrial or post trial diversion or probation program, the state police central repository will maintain the name and criminal history record SOLELY for the purpose of determining subsequent eligibility for such programs, determining the grading of subsequent offenses, or identifying those in a criminal investigation. This limited information will ONLY be made available to a court or law enforcement agency.
Delaware County Criminal Record Expungement Lawyer
Our law office helps the residents in and around Delaware County, Philadelphia, Upper Darby, Aston, Chester, Marcus Hook, Havertown and more with criminal record expungements. Call our law office today for a free initial consultation from our experienced Delaware County record expungement lawyer.
Other Practice Areas
- Delaware County DWI Attorney
- Record Expungement Lawyer Chester County, PA
- Delaware County Suspended License Lawyer
- Delaware County Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Lawyer
