Sealing Your Arrest Record in St. Petersburg, Florida
A criminal record can appear in background checks performed by landlords and employers, which can keep you from finding a job or new place to live. In addition, anyone who wants can run a background check on you if they have an internet connection and the desire to pay for the information. In general, unsealed arrest records are public record, so anyone can delve into your past and print the information, causing you some embarrassment or worse. Luckily, depending on the offense you were arrested for and how it was adjudicated, you might be eligible for arrest record sealing in Florida.
Florida Arrest Record Sealing Law
Florida Statute Section 943.059 allows people to petition the court to seal criminal history records if they were acquitted of the crime or if adjudication was withheld. However, the court cannot grant a petition for arrest record sealing, even if adjudication was withheld, for the following offenses:
• Abuse of elder or disabled adult
• Act of terrorism
• Aggravated assault or aggravated battery
• Aircraft piracy
• Arson
• Burglary of a dwelling
• Carjacking
• Child abuse or aggravated child abuse
• Computer pornography
• Domestic violence
• Florida Communication Fraud Act
• Homicide
• Illegal use of explosives
• Kidnapping
• Lewd, lascivious, or indecent assault or act with a child under 16
• Lewd or lascivious offenses upon an elder or disabled person
• Luring or enticing a child
• Manslaughter
• Manufacturing drugs
• Offenses by public officers and employees
• Procuring person under 18 for prostitution
• Registered sexual offense or any predicate offense for sex offender registration
• Robbery and home-invasion robbery
• Selling or buying minors
• Sexual activity with a child over 12 but under 18
• Sexual battery
• Sexual misconduct with a developmentally disabled person or mental health patient
• Sexual performance by a child
• Showing or selling of obscene literature to minor
• Stalking and aggravated stalking
• Trafficking drugs
• Voyeurism
The crime of attempting any of the offenses listed above is also ineligible for arrest record sealing in Florida.
The court will only order sealing for one arrest or one incident of alleged criminal activity unless the other arrests directly relate to the original arrest. However, the court is not required to seal the whole criminal history record – it can choose to seal only part of an arrest record for one incident of alleged criminal activity.
Once an arrest record sealing is ordered by the court, law enforcement agencies cannot release the case information. This is because sealed records are considered confidential, and thus, they are unavailable to the public, employers, landlords, or other inquiring parties.
Florida Arrest Record Sealing Process
Before petitioning the court to seal an arrest record, it is necessary to get a valid certificate of eligibility for sealing issued from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE). The FDLE will issue a certificate of eligibility to a person provided that they:
• Submitted a certified copy of the disposition of the charge to which the petition to seal pertains;
• Submitted a $75 processing fee, unless the fee is waived;
• Are not seeking to seal a criminal history record that relates to a prohibited offense;
• Have never been adjudicated guilty of a crime or comparable ordinance violation in Florida or any other state;
• Have never been adjudicated delinquent for any felony or misdemeanor specified in Florida Statute Section 943.051(3)(b);
• Were not adjudicated guilty for any offense stemming from the arrest or alleged criminal activity;
• Have not previously sealed or expunged a criminal record; and
• Are no longer under court supervision stemming from the arrest or alleged criminal activity.
Once the FDLE reviews the application and issues the certificate, it will be valid for 12 months after the date stamped on it. During this time, a person can petition the court to have their arrest record sealed. In addition to the certificate of eligibility, a petition to seal an arrest record must include a sworn statement from the petitioner stating that their petition meets all the statutory requirements.
Sealing your arrest record in Florida can be a complicated process, so it best to contact an experienced William Hanlon Criminal Defense Attorney in St Petersburg, Florida.
