What You Need To Know About Sealing Your Criminal Record

In 2016, the Missouri Legislature signed into state law new criminal record expungement rules. Those new criminal record expungement rules allow for expungements of most misdemeanors and many felonies, including drug offenses. In the past, only very few crimes were eligible for expungement.

Having a criminal record can exclude you from being eligible for employment, loans and many government benefits. While the expungement process does not work as a pardon, it does begin to return you to the position you were in before you were arrested, charged or convicted of a criminal offense.

If you have questions or concerns if a crime is eligible for expungement, please don’t hesitate to contact our office via our contact form or by calling 417-882-9300.

What Is Expungement?

Expungement is a court-ordered process in which a legal record of an arrest or criminal conviction is sealed. In other words, if you were to be asked in the future “Have you ever been convicted of a crime?” and the criminal record had been expunged, you would be able to answer “no” in most situations. Under Missouri’s new expungement law, only in rare circumstances would an individual have to disclose an expunged criminal record.

Eligibility For Expungement

Since an expungement can offer a new start, one of the most important actions that people who have been arrested or convicted can take is to figure out whether or not they are eligible for expungements. Every case has different eligibility requirements.

We invite you to consult with us for free to learn about your options. We will give you a straightforward assessment of your case when we answer these questions:

• Is your criminal record eligible for expungement?
• What steps do you need to take in order to expunge your criminal record?
• What would be the benefit of expunging your criminal record?

Take The First Step Toward Learning About This Process

You can easily reach our Springfield office using our online contact form or by calling 417-427-6800. We respond to emails and phone messages promptly because we know that your concerns are urgent.