Expungement is the process of destroying, erasing, or sealing arrest and conviction records. In most states, adults and even juveniles are allowed to partake in expungement for specific offenses. In Florida, the process to determine eligibility usually takes 12 weeks from the day a completed application is received.
To qualify for record expungement, your charges must have been dropped or dismissed by a judge or jury, you must have never been convicted of a criminal offense in Florida, and you must have never sealed or expunged another arrest record in Florida (unless expunging an arrest that has been sealed for ten years). For Juveniles, the charges must also have been dropped, along with felonies and specified misdemeanors that ended up in adjudication of delinquency has been expunged under certain circumstances (see s. 943.0515, Fla. Stat for more information).
In Florida, you can be found guilty but not convicted, which may allow for qualification of record sealing.
Any charges such as assault, battery, unlawful possession of a weapon or firearms, arson, neglect of a child, and animal cruelty are a few changes that can keep you from qualification. Visit the extensive list of statutes for more information.
Typically, there are eight ways to seal and expunge records :
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Administrative expungements
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Court-ordered sealing or expungements
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Juvenile diversion expungements
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Automatic juvenile expungements
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Early juvenile expungements
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Lawful self-defense expungements
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Human trafficking expungements
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Automatic sealing
It is recommended that you first apply and see if you qualify before reaching out to a Miami traffic attorney. If you are eligible, give Hochman Goldin a call. We represent clients in expungements, red light camera violations, and traffic tickets. Our red light camera violation attorney can help.