If you are living in San Diego County and looking for information related to expungement then you are in the right place. Expungement is the type of lawsuit in which the defendant files a petition in the court to seal the court record. This court record can include the following points.
- Record of arrest
- Charge
- Conviction
The majority of people wrongly think that a complete criminal record is removed from the court after the expungement is rewarded. In San Diego, expungement allows you to deny ever having conviction in the past. If you file a petition for expungement and suppose grans you expungement then-new court record will show that case was dismissed leading to release all penalties and liabilities of your criminal case. The court considers the following elements when a petition for expungement is filed.
- The court opens your old case
- Withdraw the plea of guilty
- Replaces that with permanent guilty of not guilty
- Dismiss the charges
To do so, you are required to fill the proper form and file this form along with other necessary documents which give proof that you are an upstanding and retaliated citizen.
In case of misdemeanor cases, the court can take 8-10 weeks to decide your expungement. If expungement is granted then your criminal record will show that you were not convicted. People usually get expungement to get jobs, or house on rent, or to apply for commercial licenses.
Benefits of expungement in San Diego County
People spend their time and money to get record expungement to get the following benefits.
- To get Jobs
Many employers don’t hire people for their organization without checking their background. It is almost not possible to job with a criminal history. The only expungement can clear you from the past to get the job.
2. To rent a house to live
Landlords go for the option of a background check before letting their house rent to someone. It becomes very difficult to get a house to live in with a criminal background. Get clearance from the court through expungement and live happily.
3. Apply for loans
Some loan giving companies thick that people with criminal backgrounds will give a tough time returning loans. So, they deny loan sanctions to such people with criminal backgrounds. Such people should get record expungement to get their loans sanction.
4. Admissions in College/ Universities.
Candidates have to write on the application form that they are not having a criminal background to get admissions to educational institutions. This is possible to claim after getting record expungement for the people with the criminal background.
5. Free of tension mental health
If a court grants you expungement then you can be in good peace of mind and relaxed that criminal record is not behind you.
All the process of expungement in San Diego is governed by California panel Code 1203.4 PC. Following is the explanation of California Panel Code 1203.4 PC.
You can represent yourself in court to get clearance from criminal background. But it is not advisable to do so, because the expungement process involves many legal steps and requires prior technical preparations. It is very difficult for someone who is not a lawyer to understand all complexities of the case and proceeding. It will be a good option to hire a professional attorney to follow all the important steps of your case. You can also get support and help from the California Courts Website.
Why hire an attorney to get the expungement
If you are willing to get expungement and decided not to hire an attorney. Then first of all try to learn that either you qualify for expungement or not. The expungement law is written by legislators. The law includes three types of statutes used for different types of criminal records to be expunged. Each condition requires its own set of filing, services, and evidence requirements. These expungement laws contain thousands of legal words, restrictions, exceptions, and legal requirements. It is very difficult to understand these laws for a non-technical person. Only the professional attorney can understand these difficult laws and can translate them into easy words for clients. The attorney can tell you whether you qualify for expungement or not.
An expungement also requires the collection and compiling of some important documents. These documents are difficult to collect especially if they are old enough to be found. First of all, identity which document is needed and then start collecting it. Professional attorney know which important documents are needed and from where can be collected.
There is a possibility that your judge denies your expungement even you qualify under the law. Only technical qualification for expungement case is not alone key of success. The judge considers some other factors. These factors are given below.
- Habits and conduct: The Judge evaluates that your habits and conduct are safe for the public or not.
- Expungement is consistent with public welfare
- The interest of justice warrant the expungement
An experienced attorney can satisfy the judge about the above-mentioned factors that a judge can consider.
There is a possibility that another party is also contesting your expungement. They will be having an attorney at the time of hearing to argue that you don’t qualify or deserve expungement. This is the condition that is best understood by your attorney. Your attorney will be able to protect you from surprising objections raised by the other party’s lawyer.
Expungement preparations and their procedure is not the only length but also tougher. Many hours are spent completing the preparation. If you are trying this on your own then it requires many weeks to complete documentation and legal preparation. Even drafting a petition is not easy work. It requires legal knowledge in depth and familiarity with relative legal terminology. Common people can’t do it on their own. Professional and expert San Diego expungement attorney can understand all the legal terminology required to complete expungement draft and preparation. The expungement process can be very stressful. So, the attorney can save a lot of your precious time and keep you out of the reach of stress.
Everyone who files for expungement wants to have successful results in his/her favor. So, make sure that every step is taken on time and accordingly. If the judge denies your expungement then there is a waiting period of one year to apply.
Unnecessary expenses and miscommunication are common when expungement is handled by an unprofessional and irrelevant person. This can result in denial of expungement by the judge. Professional attorneys help you in the process to avoid unnecessary expenses and miscommunication.
How to hire an attorney for expungement in San Diego
Conduct a complete search to select an attorney for your expungement case. Start asking from your friends and colleagues who already have gone through the process of expungement and hired an attorney. If anyone recommends an attorney then don’t hire blindly. Instead, ask the following questions from your attorney.
A. Is my case eligible for expungement?
Ask the attorney that your case qualifies for the expungement or not. Tell your file number of the case to the lawyer. He will immediately tell you that if your case is eligible. Even if you don’t remember your case number, the attorney can tell whether the conviction is expugnable or not.
B. How do you know my case is eligible for statutory expungement?
This is a very important question to be asked by your attorney. Ask him that which specific provision of the law allows you to file a petition of expungement. You should aware that what exactly your lawyer is telling in legal terminology and this specific provision will enable you to get an expungement in your favor. Many lawyers are unable to give satisfactory answers to this question. This is your right to ask these questions because you are spending thousands of dollars to get expungement.
C. How many of your clients are of expungement (Percentage-wise)
There will be many attorneys who will offer to help your petition to be filed in court. These attorneys will be criminal defense attorneys. You will notice that few attorneys spent more time in serving the people for getting an expungement. Attorneys who spend more time of practice in expungement usually have a system to proceed with the case smoothly and accurately. If you hire such an organized lawyer for your case then there are good chances that your criminal record will be sealed soon.
D. How much you will cost?
This question will enable you to arrange for finances to get expungement. A fee of attorney can vary from attorney to attorney. Some attorneys charge by hours and some have a flat rate.
E. What will be my return on investment
Ask this question to know at which steps your attorney will help and how he will prepare the case and how he will collect the document. All this is necessary because you want to get the reward in terms of expungement.
F. Expectations from me
Your attorney will need input in terms of important information needed for the case proceeding.
G. Duration of case
It can take 6-8 months
In the last, if you want to get an expungement in San Diego, then try to know about the rules and laws of your state in getting expungement and also hire the services of an attorney.
