Expungements

You may qualify for an expungement of your criminal record in Missouri.  This is what you need to know:

1.  Only certain crimes can be expunged under the statute.  We can help you determine whether or not your offense qualifies.

2. The petition for expungement must be filed in the county where you were charged or found guilty of any offenses, violations, or infractions.

3. You must name all law enforcement agencies, courts, prosecuting attorneys, state repositories of criminal records or others you may believe possess the records for each offense you are seeking to have expunged, and this can be a challenging task.  We can undertake this responsibility for you.

4. There is a period of time after your conviction or plea that you must wait before applying for an expungement.  The statue implies that you must wait seven (7) years for a felony and three (3) years for a misdemeanor.  Many state entities have attempted to extend this time even longer under their interpretation of when that time should begin.  We can help you determine the appropriate time to apply.

5. The State has 30 days to file objections to your petition and a court must hold a hearing within 60 days following the objection or 30 days after filing, if no objection.  The experienced attorneys at Martin & Birdsong will represent your interests if any objections are filed.

6. There is an application fee, you must have all the proper parties served, and have all of the required records in order for your application to be granted. 

 

This process can seem overwhelming.  Our experienced attorneys at Martin & Birdsong have successfully represented numerous clients that have had their criminal records and/or convictions expunged.  State agencies are habitually objecting to expungements under this new law, making it even more important to seek the assistance of counsel.

Please contact us at (573) 348-4500 to see if we can help get your record expunged.

 

To view the full statute you may visit https://law.justia.com/codes/missouri/2016/title-xxxix/chapter-610/section-610.140/