(1) Every person convicted of a misdemeanor or gross misdemeanor offense who has completed all of the terms of the sentence for the misdemeanor or gross misdemeanor offense may apply to the sentencing court for a vacation of the applicant's record of conviction for the offense. If the court finds the applicant meets the tests prescribed in subsection (2) of this section, the court may in its discretion vacate the record of conviction by: (a)(i) Permitting the applicant to withdraw the applicant's plea of guilty and to enter a plea of not guilty; or (ii) if the applicant has been convicted after a plea of not guilty, the court setting aside the verdict of guilty; and (b) the court dismissing the information, indictment, complaint, or citation against the applicant and vacating the judgment and sentence.
(2) An applicant may not have the record of conviction for a misdemeanor or gross misdemeanor offense vacated if any one of the following is present:
(a) There are any criminal charges against the applicant pending in any court of this state or another state, or in any federal court;
(b) The offense was a violent offense as defined in RCW 9.94A.030 or an attempt to commit a violent offense;
(c) The offense was a violation of RCW 46.61.502 (driving while under the influence), 46.61.504 (actual physical control while under the influence), or 9.91.020 (operating a railroad, etc. while intoxicated);
(d) The offense was any misdemeanor or gross misdemeanor violation, including attempt, of chapter 9.68 RCW (obscenity and pornography), chapter 9.68A RCW (sexual exploitation of children), or chapter 9A.44 RCW (sex offenses);
(e) The applicant was convicted of a misdemeanor or gross misdemeanor offense as defined in RCW 10.99.020, or the court determines after a review of the court file that the offense was committed by one family member or household member against another, or the court, after considering the damage to person or property that resulted in the conviction, any prior convictions for crimes defined in RCW 10.99.020, or for comparable offenses in another state or in federal court, and the totality of the records under review by the court regarding the conviction being considered for vacation, determines that the offense involved domestic violence, and any one of the following factors exist:
(i) The applicant has not provided written notification of the vacation petition to the prosecuting attorney's office that prosecuted the offense for which vacation is sought, or has not provided that notification to the court;
(ii) The applicant has previously had a conviction for domestic violence. For purposes of this subsection, however, if the current application is for more than one conviction that arose out of a single incident, none of those convictions counts as a previous conviction;
(iii) The applicant has signed an affidavit under penalty of perjury affirming that the applicant has not previously had a conviction for a domestic violence offense, and a criminal history check reveals that the applicant has had such a conviction; or
(iv) Less than five years have elapsed since the person completed the terms of the original conditions of the sentence, including any financial obligations and successful completion of any treatment ordered as a condition of sentencing;
(f) For any offense other than those described in (e) of this subsection, less than three years have passed since the person completed the terms of the sentence, including any financial obligations;
(g) The offender has been convicted of a new crime in this state, another state, or federal court since the date of conviction;
(h) The applicant has ever had the record of another conviction vacated; or
(i) The applicant is currently restrained, or has been restrained within five years prior to the vacation application, by a domestic violence protection order, a no-contact order, an antiharassment order, or a civil restraining order which restrains one party from contacting the other party.
(3) Once the court vacates a record of conviction under subsection (1) of this section, the person shall be released from all penalties and disabilities resulting from the offense and the fact that the person has been convicted of the offense shall not be included in the person's criminal history for purposes of determining a sentence in any subsequent conviction. For all purposes, including responding to questions on employment or housing applications, a person whose conviction has been vacated under subsection (1) of this section may state that he or she has never been convicted of that crime. Nothing in this section affects or prevents the use of an offender's prior conviction in a later criminal prosecution.
(4) All costs incurred by the court and probation services shall be paid by the person making the motion to vacate the record unless a determination is made pursuant to chapter 10.101 RCW that the person making the motion is indigent, at the time the motion is brought.
(5) The clerk of the court in which the vacation order is entered shall immediately transmit the order vacating the conviction to the Washington state patrol identification section and to the local police agency, if any, which holds criminal history information for the person who is the subject of the conviction. The Washington state patrol and any such local police agency shall immediately update their records to reflect the vacation of the conviction, and shall transmit the order vacating the conviction to the federal bureau of investigation. A conviction that has been vacated under this section may not be disseminated or disclosed by the state patrol or local law enforcement agency to any person, except other criminal justice enforcement agencies.
Termination of suspended sentence — Restoration of civil rights — Vacation of conviction.
(1) Upon termination of any suspended sentence under RCW 9.92.060 or 9.95.210, such person may apply to the court for restoration of his or her civil rights. Thereupon the court may in its discretion enter an order directing that such defendant shall thereafter be released from all penalties and disabilities resulting from the offense or crime of which he or she has been convicted.
(2)(a) Upon termination of a suspended sentence under RCW 9.92.060 or 9.95.210, the person may apply to the sentencing court for a vacation of the person's record of conviction under RCW 9.94A.640. The court may, in its discretion, clear the record of conviction if it finds the person has met the equivalent of the tests in RCW 9.94A.640(2) as those tests would be applied to a person convicted of a crime committed before July 1, 1984.
(b) The clerk of the court in which the vacation order is entered shall immediately transmit the order vacating the conviction to the Washington state patrol identification section and to the local police agency, if any, which holds criminal history information for the person who is the subject of the conviction. The Washington state patrol and any such local police agency shall immediately update their records to reflect the vacation of the conviction, and shall transmit the order vacating the conviction to the federal bureau of investigation. A conviction that has been vacated under this section may not be disseminated or disclosed by the state patrol or local law enforcement agency to any person, except other criminal justice enforcement agencies.
(1) Every offender who has been discharged under RCW 9.94A.637 may apply to the sentencing court for a vacation of the offender's record of conviction. If the court finds the offender meets the tests prescribed in subsection (2) of this section, the court may clear the record of conviction by: (a) Permitting the offender to withdraw the offender's plea of guilty and to enter a plea of not guilty; or (b) if the offender has been convicted after a plea of not guilty, by the court setting aside the verdict of guilty; and (c) by the court dismissing the information or indictment against the offender.
(2) An offender may not have the record of conviction cleared if: (a) There are any criminal charges against the offender pending in any court of this state or another state, or in any federal court; (b) the offense was a violent offense as defined in RCW 9.94A.030; (c) the offense was a crime against persons as defined in RCW 43.43.830; (d) the offender has been convicted of a new crime in this state, another state, or federal court since the date of the offender's discharge under RCW 9.94A.637; (e) the offense is a class B felony and less than ten years have passed since the date the applicant was discharged under RCW 9.94A.637; (f) the offense was a class C felony, other than a class C felony described in RCW 46.61.502(6) or46.61.504 (6), and less than five years have passed since the date the applicant was discharged under RCW 9.94A.637; or (g) the offense was a class C felony described in RCW 46.61.502(6) (felony DUI) or46.61.504 (6) (felony DUI) and less than ten years have passed since the applicant was discharged under RCW 9.94A.637.
(3) Once the court vacates a record of conviction under subsection (1) of this section, the fact that the offender has been convicted of the offense shall not be included in the offender's criminal history for purposes of determining a sentence in any subsequent conviction, and the offender shall be released from all penalties and disabilities resulting from the offense. For all purposes, including responding to questions on employment applications, an offender whose conviction has been vacated may state that the offender has never been convicted of that crime. Nothing in this section affects or prevents the use of an offender's prior conviction in a later criminal prosecution.
Violent Offense
(50) "Violent offense" means:
(a) Any of the following felonies:
(i) Any felony defined under any law as a class A felony or an attempt to commit a class A felony;
(ii) Criminal solicitation of or criminal conspiracy to commit a class A felony;
(iii) Manslaughter in the first degree;
(iv) Manslaughter in the second degree;
(v) Indecent liberties if committed by forcible compulsion;
(vi) Kidnapping in the second degree;
(vii) Arson in the second degree;
(viii) Assault in the second degree;
(ix) Assault of a child in the second degree;
(x) Extortion in the first degree;
(xi) Robbery in the second degree;
(xii) Drive-by shooting;
(xiii) Vehicular assault, when caused by the operation or driving of a vehicle by a person while under the influence of intoxicating liquor or any drug or by the operation or driving of a vehicle in a reckless manner; and
(xiv) Vehicular homicide, when proximately caused by the driving of any vehicle by any person while under the influence of intoxicating liquor or any drug as defined by RCW 46.61.502, or by the operation of any vehicle in a reckless manner;
Sex Offenses
(42) "Sex offense" means:
(a)(i) A felony that is a violation of chapter 9A.44 RCW other than ***RCW 9A.44.130(11);
(ii) A violation of RCW 9A.64.020;
(iii) A felony that is a violation of chapter 9.68A RCW other than RCW 9.68A.080; or
(iv) A felony that is, under chapter 9A.28 RCW, a criminal attempt, criminal solicitation, or criminal conspiracy to commit such crimes;
(b) Any conviction for a felony offense in effect at any time prior to July 1, 1976, that is comparable to a felony classified as a sex offense in (a) of this subsection;
(c) A felony with a finding of sexual motivation under RCW 9.94A.835 or 13.40.135;
Criminal history record information which consists of nonconviction data only shall be subject to deletion from criminal justice agency files which are available and generally searched for the purpose of responding to inquiries concerning the criminal history of a named or otherwise identified individual when two years or longer have elapsed since the record became nonconviction data as a result of the entry of a disposition favorable to the defendant, or upon the passage of three years from the date of arrest or issuance of a citation or warrant for an offense for which a conviction was not obtained unless the defendant is a fugitive, or the case is under active prosecution according to a current certification made by the prosecuting attorney.
Such criminal history record information consisting of nonconviction data shall be deleted upon the request of the person who is the subject of the record: PROVIDED, HOWEVER, That the criminal justice agency maintaining the data may, at its option, refuse to make the deletion if:
(1) The disposition was a deferred prosecution or similar diversion of the alleged offender;
(2) The person who is the subject of the record has had a prior conviction for a felony or gross misdemeanor;
(3) The individual who is the subject of the record has been arrested for or charged with another crime during the intervening period.
Nothing in this chapter is intended to restrict the authority of any court, through appropriate judicial proceedings, to order the modification or deletion of a record in a particular cause or concerning a particular individual or event.
(1) Any individual shall have the right to inspect criminal history record information on file with the section which refers to the individual. If the individual believes such information to be inaccurate or incomplete, he or she may request the section to purge, modify or supplement it and to advise such persons or agencies who have received his or her record and whom the individual designates to modify it accordingly. Should the section decline to so act, or should the individual believe the section's decision to be otherwise unsatisfactory, the individual may appeal such decision to the superior court in the county in which he or she is resident, or the county from which the disputed record emanated or Thurston county. The court shall in such case conduct a de novo hearing, and may order such relief as it finds to be just and equitable.
(2) The section may prescribe reasonable hours and a place for inspection, and may impose such additional restrictions, including fingerprinting, as are reasonably necessary both to assure the record's security and to verify the identities of those who seek to inspect them: PROVIDED, That the section may charge a reasonable fee for fingerprinting.
Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, the definitions in this section apply throughout RCW 43.43.830 through 43.43.845.
(1) "Applicant" means:
(a) Any prospective employee who will or may have unsupervised access to children under sixteen years of age or developmentally disabled persons or vulnerable adults during the course of his or her employment or involvement with the business or organization;
(b) Any prospective volunteer who will have regularly scheduled unsupervised access to children under sixteen years of age, developmentally disabled persons, or vulnerable adults during the course of his or her employment or involvement with the business or organization under circumstances where such access will or may involve groups of (i) five or fewer children under twelve years of age, (ii) three or fewer children between twelve and sixteen years of age, (iii) developmentally disabled persons, or (iv) vulnerable adults;
(c) Any prospective adoptive parent, as defined in RCW 26.33.020; or
(d) Any prospective custodian in a nonparental custody proceeding under chapter 26.10 RCW.
(2) "Business or organization" means a business or organization licensed in this state, any agency of the state, or other governmental entity, that educates, trains, treats, supervises, houses, or provides recreation to developmentally disabled persons, vulnerable adults, or children under sixteen years of age, including but not limited to public housing authorities, school districts, and educational service districts.
(3) "Civil adjudication proceeding" is a judicial or administrative adjudicative proceeding that results in a finding of, or upholds an agency finding of, domestic violence, abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, or exploitation or financial exploitation of a child or vulnerable adult under chapter 13.34, 26.44, or 74.34 RCW, or rules adopted under chapters 18.51 and 74.42 RCW. "Civil adjudication proceeding" also includes judicial or administrative orders that become final due to the failure of the alleged perpetrator to timely exercise a right afforded to him or her to administratively challenge findings made by the department of social and health services or the department of health under chapter 13.34, 26.44, or 74.34 RCW, or rules adopted under chapters 18.51 and 74.42 RCW.
(4) "Conviction record" means "conviction record" information as defined in RCW 10.97.030 and 10.97.050 relating to a crime committed by either an adult or a juvenile. It does not include a conviction for an offense that has been the subject of an expungement, pardon, annulment, certificate of rehabilitation, or other equivalent procedure based on a finding of the rehabilitation of the person convicted, or a conviction that has been the subject of a pardon, annulment, or other equivalent procedure based on a finding of innocence. It does include convictions for offenses for which the defendant received a deferred or suspended sentence, unless the record has been expunged according to law.
(5) "Crime against children or other persons" means a conviction of any of the following offenses: Aggravated murder; first or second degree murder; first or second degree kidnaping; first, second, or third degree assault; first, second, or third degree assault of a child; first, second, or third degree rape; first, second, or third degree rape of a child; first or second degree robbery; first degree arson; first degree burglary; first or second degree manslaughter; first or second degree extortion; indecent liberties; incest; vehicular homicide; first degree promoting prostitution; communication with a minor; unlawful imprisonment; simple assault; sexual exploitation of minors; first or second degree criminal mistreatment; endangerment with a controlled substance; child abuse or neglect as defined in RCW 26.44.020; first or second degree custodial interference; first or second degree custodial sexual misconduct; malicious harassment; first, second, or third degree child molestation; first or second degree sexual misconduct with a minor; patronizing a juvenile prostitute; child abandonment; promoting pornography; selling or distributing erotic material to a minor; custodial assault; violation of child abuse restraining order; child buying or selling; prostitution; felony indecent exposure; criminal abandonment; or any of these crimes as they may be renamed in the future.
(6) "Crimes relating to drugs" means a conviction of a crime to manufacture, delivery, or possession with intent to manufacture or deliver a controlled substance.
(7) "Crimes relating to financial exploitation" means a conviction for first, second, or third degree extortion; first, second, or third degree theft; first or second degree robbery; forgery; or any of these crimes as they may be renamed in the future.
(8) "Unsupervised" means not in the presence of:
(a) Another employee or volunteer from the same business or organization as the applicant; or
(b) Any relative or guardian of any of the children or developmentally disabled persons or vulnerable adults to which the applicant has access during the course of his or her employment or involvement with the business or organization.
(9) "Vulnerable adult" means "vulnerable adult" as defined in chapter 74.34 RCW, except that for the purposes of requesting and receiving background checks pursuant to RCW 43.43.832, it shall also include adults of any age who lack the functional, mental, or physical ability to care for themselves.
(10) "Financial exploitation" means "financial exploitation" as defined in RCW 74.34.020.
(11) "Agency" means any person, firm, partnership, association, corporation, or facility which receives, provides services to, houses or otherwise cares for vulnerable adults.
This content is provided free of charge. It was verified by the Law Offices of Mathew K. Higbee