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This page was designed to help our clients better understand our Pennsylvania Adult Conviction Expungement service. You will find answers to the questions we are most frequently asked. If your question is related to eligibility requirements please take the free online eligibility test.
Once expunged, all public agencies (such as the court, the prosecuting office, and the police agency or agencies involved) will seal your records. So that neither the arrest or conviction record will appear on your background check.
The prosecuting agency and the central repository in Pennsylvania (the Pennsylvania State Police) will keep records of an expunged offense and use it for future investigative purposes only, but not for purposes of impeaching your testimony in court or enhancing your sentence for a future offense.
No. Once an arrest or conviction has been expunged, you can legally deny it as though it never happened.
Pennsylvania law specifically prohibits state agencies from considering any conviction that has been expunged in deciding whether to issue a license, certificate, or registration. Furthermore, arrests that have not resulted in a conviction may not be considered, whether or not the arrest has been expunged.
Section 19 of the FDIA (Federal Deposit Insurance Act) allows banks and other financial institutions to bar prospective and current employees who have had “Breach of Trust” or "Dishonesty" convictions from jobs that they are otherwise qualified for even if they had the conviction expunged.
"Dishonesty" means directly or indirectly to cheat or defraud; to cheat or defraud for monetary gain or its equivalent; or wrongfully to take property belonging to another in violation of any criminal statute. Dishonesty includes acts involving want of integrity, lack of probity, or a disposition to distort, cheat, or act deceitfully or fraudulently, and may include crimes which federal, state or local laws define as dishonest. "Breach of trust" means a wrongful act, use, misappropriation or omission with respect to any property or fund which has been committed to a person in a fiduciary or official capacity, or the misuse of one's official or fiduciary position to engage in a wrongful act, use, misappropriation or omission.
Whether a crime involves dishonesty or breach of trust will be determined from the statutory elements of the crime itself. All convictions for offenses concerning the illegal manufacture, sale, distribution of or trafficking in controlled substances are included. Other offenses can include but is not limited to the following: petty theft, grand theft, insufficient checks, burglary, possession of drugs for distribution or sales, embezzlement, fraud, fraud to obtain aid or benefits and money laundering.
If you believe you have a “breach of trust” or "dishonesty" conviction and were denied a position or were terminated from a financial institution because of that offense, there still is another way to obtain that job with a waiver from the FDIC. It is important to speak with an attorney about your specific circumstances to see if you would qualify for such a waiver from the FDIC.
You have an attorney to (1) make sure it is done right the first time so it does not get rejected or cost you months of delay (2) handle objections from the district attorney (3) send an attorney to court to argue the case if need be and (4) write letters to potential employers letting them know that the case has been reopened and will soon have the case off of your record.
No, we go for you. If the court requests your presence and you are unable to make it then we will request for your presence to be excused.
Once you sign up we have you fill out a questionnaire on your personal online account. The questionnaire asks questions that influence the outcome of the case and allows us to argue the case before a judge. Although some of the questions may seem simple, the more information and detail that you provide in your answers the better we are able to argue the case in your favor.
Typically, the case takes about three to four months.
We base our estimates of how long a case will take on how long the average is for that service in that state. However, some cases can take less or more time depending on the facts of the case, whether the DA is agreeing or objecting, the age of the case, etc. We work on your case as fast as we can and assist the court and DA in anything they need to get your case heard.
The courts work on a first-come, first-served basis. Therefore, the sooner you sign up, the sooner it is heard and decided. If it helps, we would be glad to write your employer or potential employer a letter letting them know we have reopened the case and are in the process of having it expunged.
We have an online tracking system that is just for your case or cases. You will have a user name and password for the account and it will have the information specific to the case. Whenever anything happens in your case we post it in your online account so that you can view the status of the case and the progress that is made. If there is no post on your online account then that means that there is no update in the case. For example, once we update your online account to reflect that we have filed the motion with the court we will update the notes when we hear a response from the court or District Attorney. Depending on the court, it can take several weeks to months to hear from the court or District Attorney whether there is an objection, hearing, or anything else. If something is taking longer than usual for the court we will call to obtain status of the case and update your online notes. In addition to posting the status updates in your online account, we will post your case information in the case information so you are aware of the case and future hearings.
Moreover, we post your contract and payment plan information on the online account for you so that you can view all the information and print it.
If we are unable to succeed on your case, we have a money back guarantee for certain services. Please view the pricing for details regarding the money back guarantee.
We can create a payment plan that meets your needs. Please view the pricing for details regarding the payment plans.
We will be glad to work with you to get a copy of your record and to review what can be done. We charge a researching fee and we apply that to the cost of any service that you hire us to perform.
No, it does not matter. We can expunge your conviction regardless of what you pled as long as that arrest or conviction is eligible for expungement.
If you were not arrested or charged for another offense within five (5) years following the “summary offense” that you want to expunge, then that summary offense is eligible for expungement.
Otherwise, if your offense was not a “summary offense,” you can only expunge under one of the following circumstances: Your arrest did not result in a conviction The conviction is under section 6308, title 18 (relating to the purchase, consumption, possession, or transportation of liquor or malt or brewed beverages), and you are least 21. You are at least 70 years old, and have not been arrested or charged with any offense for at least 10 years following the completion of your most recent sentence, or You have been dead for at least three years.
A summary offense is any offense that is not a felony or misdemeanor. They include very minor offenses like underage drinking, retail theft or obstruction of the highways.
ARD stands for Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition and it is a court program that is typically given to first offenders who are unlikely to commit another crime. If the person successfully completes ARD then the case is dismissed and the person is considered not convicted of the crime.
At this time, there does not appear to be any law in Pennsylvania that allows for a felony to be reduced to a lower offense.
You will receive a court order expunging your conviction. The general public will no longer have access to the records, and state agencies may no longer consider your conviction for any reason even if they find out about the conviction.
The court will send the granted order to the Pennsylvania State Police as well as the Department of Transportation, who will then expunge your information from their records. The prosecuting agency and the Pennsylvania State Police may keep records of an expunged offense and use it for future investigative purposes only, but not for purposes of impeaching your testimony in court or enhancing your sentence for a future offense.
The court updates the court records within 48 hours and the Pennsylvania State Police may take up to 30 days to update their records. The Pennsylvania State Police typically updates their records before the 30 days expire. However, Northampton county takes longer and typically runs six to eight months after the order is granted for all the records to be updated.
If it is denied, it is usually because of (1) an inaccuracy in the court file, (2) an inaccuracy in the application, (3) the court does not believe it will be in the interest of society to grant you the expungement, (4) you violated your probation or have not paid all your fines, or (5) you or the offense is otherwise not eligible for expungement.
If the case is denied, we evaluate the reason for the denial and determine the best way to proceed. If we do not believe that refiling would be successful or we recommend the person wait longer to refile, then there is the money back guarantee for certain services.
No. An offense that requires sex offender registration would not be eligible for expungement. So, the fact that you get other non-sex offenses expunged would have no effect on your requirement to register if you have sex offenses that require registration.
Yes. An expungement order will require the Department of Transportation to expunge all of its administrative records pertaining to that offense.
If you have been convicted of minor offenses (including assault, dangerous driving, DUI, theft, shoplifting, unauthorized possession of firearms, possession of illegal substances, etc.) or indictable criminal offenses (including assault with a deadly weapon, manslaughter, etc.) you may be prohibited from entrance and further action is required to find out whether you will be allowed entrance. The Canadian government has entered into an information sharing agreement with the United States; so the Canadian government will have whatever information the United States has on record. Therefore, the first thing you should do is clear your criminal record to the fullest extent possible before submitting to a background check. The benefit of this will show the Canadian government that the matter was resolved and no longer considered a conviction and improve the odds of not being denied entry to Canada or being stuck at the border for lengthy interrogation.
The Border Patrol has discretion in granting or denying Sentri passes. So the only thing we can say for sure is that it would help; so it would be wise to invest in record clearing before applying for a pass. A modest investment in expungement could be the difference between having your request accepted or denied. It will show that you have resolved all matters with the court.
In Pennsylvania, a person can register to vote the moment he is released from incarceration. You lose your right to serve on a jury if you have ever been convicted of a crime punishable by more than 1 year prison. This right can only be restored through a governor's pardon. You lose your right to hold public office (elected/appointed office)if you've been convicted of embezzlement of public money, bribery, perjury or “other infamous crime” (any felony basically). his, too, can only be restored through a governor's pardon.
Criminal violations may have severe consequences for immigrants, even if the crime is expunged/vacated/sealed. Even minor offenses such as petty theft can make someone deportable or inadmissible, while more serious offenses such as burglary may not have the same consequences. Since each case is unique, it is important to get a case-by-case analysis tailored to your specific facts. To find out if your criminal conviction will impact your immigration case it is imperative you contact a qualified immigration attorney. Our in-house immigration attorney is available to answer questions at 714-617-8395.
You can only expunge certain cases. Typically, you have to show that the conviction was wrongful or unconstitutional. Additionally, a person can apply for a pardon through the President. We do not handle federal cases.
There is a separate process under Pennsylvania state law in which you can petition a court to restore your gun rights if they have been taken away. Getting an expungement does not automatically restore your gun rights.
Furthermore, under federal law there is a lifetime ban on gun ownership for all those convicted of a misdemeanor domestic violence offense (as defined by the federal law). The federal definition is different than most state's definition, so your domestic violence conviction in Pennsylvania might not trigger the federal law. Again, getting an expungement will not automatically lift the federal ban if it applies to you.
Call us 412-568-1432 or Toll Free 877-573-7273
Please take the free online eligibility test before calling.
Law Firm of Higbee & Associates
501 Cambria Ave., Mailbox #332
Bensalem, PA 19020
*By Appointment Only
