2C: 52-1  Expungement is the extraction and isolation of all records on file within any court, detention, or correctional facility, law enforcement or criminal justice agency concerning a person's detection, apprehension, arrest, detention, trial or disposition of an offense within the criminal justice system.

Expunged records shall include complaints, warrants, arrests, commitments, processing records, fingerprints, photographs, index cards, "rap sheets", and judicial docket records.

If you had a criminal case that was dismissed after completing a PreTrial Program (PTI) or a conditional discharge your case is not automatically dismissed. You must file for an expungement to have the record cleared; otherwise the case will show up on your record as Dismissed.

Also, if you were arrested or a complaint was filed against you and the case was dismissed, that case may still be on your record. The best thing to do is to call the Municipal Court or Criminal Case Management  where the case happened to see if your name is in their system. If it is, your case needs to be expunged.

Depending on the type of case that you had there is a different waiting period for you to become eligible for an expungement. The waiting period could be immediately up until 10 years. Contact us if you have questions on when you would be eligible.

Criminal Homicide

Kidnapping

Luring or enticing

Aggravated Sexual Assault

Aggravated Criminal Sexual Contact or Criminal Sexual Contact

Robbery

Arson

Perjury 

False Swearing 

Certain drug offenses (possession with the intent to sell, sale, or distribution of cds is over 25 mg or over 5 g of hashish

Charges involving minors that are victims:

Endangering the Welfare of a Child

Criminal Restraint

False Imprisonment

If you were 21 or younger and you were convicted of possessing, selling, or distributing a certain amount of cds you may be able to apply for an expungement one year after being convicted.

In New Jersey a petition is granted by certain requirements that must be met. If you do not meet the requirements a lawyer will not be able to get your petition granted for you. The rules of eligibility for expungements cannot be bent.

If you plan on leaving a position to look for new employment and you have a criminal record, you may want to get your record cleared so that your past will not get in the way of your future. Employers now search farther into your past than they did before. What didn't come up before may come up now.

Motor vehicle offenses are not eligible to be expunged.

If you have a case and you were sentenced to 3 years probation in 1997. The waiting period is after your probation is done or your fines are paid, whichever is later. If you finished your probation in 2000 but paid your fines in 2003, you will not be eligible until a waiting period beginning in 2003.