Expunge Some Misdemeanors after 1 Year
An Oklahoma law that took effect Nov. 1, 2014 allows those who complete a deferred judgment or delayed sentence on a misdemeanor charge to file for expungement of court records after one year. The new expungement law cut in half the previous two-year wait after successful completion of pre-conviction supervision.
The change is one of several reforms adopted earlier in 2014 that took effect in November. One of the other changes in Oklahoma expungement law allows those convicted of multiple misdemeanors to have their records sealed. The new measure allows Oklahoma courts to expunge criminal records of misdemeanor convictions 10 years after the most recent convictions. Multiple misdemeanors had previously been a barrier to expunegment.
Misdemeanor convictions no longer prevent expungement of a non-violent felony conviction, either. Courts can expunge a non-violent felony conviction if there are no misdemeanor convictions on the person’s record 15 years before the request for expungement.
Wirth Law Office Case Sparked Change
Another change in Oklahoma expungement law resulted from a case Wirth Law Office’s Oklahoma expungement attorney argued before the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals. Legislators stepped in to change the law so it clearly stated what our expungement attorney said it was intended to say.
On appeal the court disagreed with our arguments that the law allowed separate misdemeanor charges arising from a single incident to be counted as a single offense. Legislators did not like the court’s reading of the law, so they clarified the language. Under the new law, separate misdemeanor charges resulting from a single incident count as one offense for purposes of expungement proceedings.
Strategy Session: Tulsa Expungement Attorney
For more information about expungement in Oklahoma, or to being the process having your criminal record expunged, contact a Tulsa expungement lawyer at Wirth Law Office. To schedule your initial strategy session, call today: (918) 879-1681, or send your question using the e-mail form at the top of this page.
