Expungements

At Duncan Law, we love to do Oklahoma expungements. There’s nothing we like more than to help our clients wipe their slates clean and put the past behind them. When applying to a new job or educational opportunity, the first thing your future employer or school will do is run a criminal background check. We can help you ensure your criminal record is clean and doesn’t hold you back from your future goals! There are many nuances in the Oklahoma Statutes regarding whether your case is eligible for expungement, and we are here to help you find out if your case qualifies.

When we get a call from a client that has completed their sentence and is ready for an expungement we begin with an analysis of two matters: (1) which type of expungement (either Section 991(c) or Section 18 of Title 22) will best help the client meet their individual goal, and (2) is the client eligible for expungement under the law? This is how we analyze those questions:

The first type of expungement available under the Oklahoma Statutes is in Title 22, Section 991(c); and for that reason we often refer to it as a “Section 991(c) expungement.” This expungement should be done after the completion of a deferred probation sentence. The deferred probation sentence is one in which no criminal conviction has occurred. The probationer is given a term of up to seven years to complete the deferred sentence obligations (ie: community service, classes, drug and alcohol testing, etcetera) and pay all court cost and fines as ordered by the Court. Once all probationary obligations are satisfied, and all monies are paid—the Section 991(c) expungement should be done.

The Section 991(c) expungement is a dismissal of the original charges, and removes the case off of www.oscn.net. Many local Oklahoma employers are well-versed in looking up cases on OSCN, so this expungement helps greatly. More importantly, this expungement allows clients to correctly inform future employers that their deferred probation case and criminal charges have in fact been dismissed. The downside of the 991(c) expungement is that it does not clear the criminal background with the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation. For that, refer below to the Section 18 Expungement.

The second, and more complete expungement is found in the Oklahoma Statutes in Title 22, Section 18. This expungement is done after a Section 991(c) expungement has been completed. The Section 18 expungement is a more thorough and complete expungement. The Section 18 expungement removes the criminal record of a client’s arrest and jailing from the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation files. For this reason, the Section 18 expungement is generally speaking more desirable and effective for our clients.

The Oklahoma Statutes itemize whether or not a case can be expunged. The law regarding the expungement of misdemeanors and felonies is constantly changing, and therefore calling a Duncan Law attorney is best to make this determination.

Unfortunately, just because you have completed a court imposed sentence does not mean your case necessarily qualifies for expungement. There are many Oklahoma qualifications that your case must meet (or rather not meet) in order to get an expungement.

For example, one circumstance in which you can get an Oklahoma felony case expunged is if (1) the felony charge was non-violent (not listed in Section 571 of Title 57), (2) the sentence was a deferred probationary one for which all the requirements have been satisfied, and (3) five years have passed since the Section 991(c) dismissal of those charges. Clients in Oklahoma can also get misdemeanor and felony convictions expunged if (1) the mandatory five year waiting period has passed, (2) the charge did not fall under Title 57 Section 571, (3) the client has not been convicted of another felony or misdemeanor in the past seven years and (4) no felony or misdemeanor charges are pending against the client. Fortunately, there is a much shorter waiting period of just one year when a client in Oklahoma is expunging a misdemeanor for which they received a deferred probationary sentence.

Call us at Duncan Law to see if your case qualifies for expungement! We are happy to go over your case with you and see if you qualify to erase your criminal history. We would love to be a part of putting your past behind you and getting a fresh start on new opportunities.