Coming soon to a courthouse near you is a way to seal your criminal past. We have all made mistakes and fallen into trouble with the law. Now you have a chance to keep your future employer, landlord, friend, or relative from finding out about a prior conviction. On January 1, 2015, a new expungement law goes into effect in Minnesota. Under certain circumstances, you may qualify to file a petition to seal all records relating to a prior arrest, criminal charge, indictment, trial, verdict and conviction.

Under what circumstances are you entitled to file for an expungement under the new law? There are many including some of the following:

1. All proceedings that were resolved in your favor such as plea agreement that called for a continuance for dismissal of the criminal charge, the completion of a diversion program or a jury verdict that resulted in an acquittal;
2. A successful completion of a stay of adjudication followed by no new charges for one year;
3. If you were convicted of or received a stayed sentence for a petty misdemeanor or misdemeanor and have been convicted of no new crimes for at least two years following discharge from the sentence;
4.Persons who were convicted of or received a stayed sentence for a gross misdemeanor as long as four years have elapsed from discharge without any new convictions;
5. Certain felony level convictions as long as five years have passed from the date of discharge without any new convictions. Some of the felony crimes that qualify include (a) controlled substance crime in the fifth degree; (b) sale of simulated controlled substances; (c) dishonored check over $500.00; (d) receiving stolen goods: (e) financial transaction card fraud; (f) theft of $5,000.00 or less; (g) forgery, and many more crimes listed in the new expungement law!

The petitioner must be able to prove to a judge that the expungement remedy would yield a benefit to him or her that is commensurate with the disadvantages to the public and public safety from sealing the record and the burden placed on the courts in managing, enforcing, and monitoring the expungement order. The judge will consider many factors when deciding to grant the petition including the length of time since the crime occurred, the petitioner’s criminal record, and any steps taken by the petitioner to rehabilitate.

Plan to wipe your record clean after January 1, 2015. Call expungement attorney Robert J. Shane now at (612) 339-1024 for a free consultation and be one of the first in Minnesota to be given a second chance under the new expungement law.