FELONY REDUCTIONS & EXPUNGEMENTS
In California, many felony convictions
can be expunged. If you were granted
probation, rather than sent to state
prison, your conviction should be expungeable
(with some rare exceptions) as long
as you have successfully completed
all of the terms of your probation.
Although successful completion of all
terms of one’s probation is a requirement,
the law provides courts the discretion
to expunge convictions where probation
was violated but later successfully
completed. The court will also want
to know whether you have been convicted
of a new offense, charged with any
new offense, or currently on probation
for any other offense. At WILL & WILL,
LLP, our lawyers will recommend that
you obtain some character reference
letters for us to include in the motion/petition
filed on your behalf.
If, however, you were sent to state
prison, meaning that upon release,
you were on parole rather than probation,
you cannot expunge or reduce
your felony conviction. In such cases,
you may still be eligible to obtain
a certificate of rehabilitation and/or
governor’s pardon.
Many felony violations are
really “wobblers,” meaning that depending
on the circumstances, they can be filed
as a misdemeanor or a felony. If your
felony conviction falls into this category,
you may be able to have your matter
reduced to a misdemeanor and then subsequently
expunged from your record. Once your
felony is reduced, you will no longer
be considered an “ex-felon” and you
will be relieved of the restriction
imposed on ex-felons such as certain
denial or loss of state licenses, possession
of firearms, jury duty, etc… To find
out if your felony conviction was for
a “wobbler” offense, call or fill out
the online contact form for a free
consultation with a WILL & WILL,
LLP expungement attorney.
If your felony conviction was not
for a “wobbler” offense, but you were
granted probation (and your conviction
was not for certain felony offenses*),
it can still be expunged without first
being reduced to a misdemeanor. Consult
the knowledgeable and experienced attorneys
at WILL & WILL, LLP to find out
if your prior felony conviction can
be expunged.
Once your record is expunged, you
can legally answer “no” to direct inquiries
regarding whether you were convicted
of that crime. There are 3 exceptions
to this general rule: 1) in an application
for peace officer or public office,
2) in an application for a state license,
or 3) contracting with the California
Lottery Commission. In all other cases,
you can deny the conviction. In addition,
certain licensing agencies like the
Department of Real Estate require that
you expunge your record as criteria
for licensure.
The Process of Obtaining a Felony
Expungement
The felony expungement process starts
with the filing of a motion and petition
with the court wherein the original
felony conviction took place. The matter
is then normally sent to the district
attorney’s office and the probation
department for review. Probation then
submits a report to the court and the
matter is set for a hearing. Your appearance
in court will most likely be necessary
when dealing with a prior felony offense.
At the hearing, the court will determine
whether or not to grant your request
to reduce and/or expunge your prior
felony conviction. Once the expungement
and/or the motion to reduce is granted,
the felony is reduced to a misdemeanor
(if applicable), the conviction is
set-aside, a plea of not-guilty entered
and the case dismissed. The court then
sends a copy of the order to the Department
of Justice to update your criminal
record.
* The following convictions cannot
be expunged: convictions for violations
of Vehicle Code section 42001(b) or
Penal Code sections 286(c) , 288 , 288a(c) , 288.5 , 289(j) or
any felony conviction of Penal Code
section 261.5(d) .
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