Criminal Defense: Expungement

Expungement is the process by which a criminal conviction and/or arrest is destroyed and erased from court records. The Oregon Statute regarding this process is ORS 137.225. If you get an offense expunged, you will get a signed court order that says, among other things, that "such arrests and other proceedings are deemed not to have occurred and the defendant may, accordingly, answer any questions relating to their occurrence as if they had not occurred." This means that if you have a record expunged, and on a job application the employer asks if you've ever merely arrested and not convicted, you can say no, and will not be being untruthful.

If you have an offense that is expungeable, it is vitally important to get it taken care of as soon as possible. If you even get wrongly arrested prior to getting an old offense expunged, it can set you back several years before you are eligible to do it again. Unfortunately, successful DUII diversions are not expungeable under Oregon law.

If you were arrested and charged, and the case later dismissed, you are generally eligible for expungement immediately following dismissal of the case, with no filing fee.

If you were arrested, but never charged, you have to wait one year before applying for the expungement of the record of arrest, with no filing fee.

If you were convicted of a crime that is expungeable, you must wait 3 years from the date of conviction, and cannot be on probation or parole for that conviction at the time of expungement. There is a court fee of around $80.00 in addition to reasonable legal fees.

At Case & Dusterhoff, LLP these cases are handled by Benjamin O. Falk.

Contact us to inquire about Expungements.