Everyone makes a mistake now and then. Whether driving after drinking one too many or assaulting someone during your college years, there are a number of situations in which good people make poor choices. Often, however, these offenses continue to haunt an individual as they mature and seek employment.
With a host of electronic resources at their fingertips, employers have become quite sophisticated at performing background checks and potential employees. Once a criminal record is discovered, job offers quickly vanish. The good news is that Minnesota law allows an individual to seek an expungement of their criminal record.
An "expungement" involves sealing or destroying a court record. The process is relatively straightforward.
First, the party seeking to have their record expunged (the "Petitioner") files a petition with the court in which their prior conviction occurred. The petition is a sworn statement given under oath that provides a written basis for the request to expunge. The petition outlines the nature of the conviction (including dates and offenses), describes the rehabilitation that the petitioner has experienced since the conviction, addresses the reason the expungement is sought (most often to improve opportunities for employment or travel internationally) and confirms that no subsequent convictions have occurred.
Next, the petition is served on the county attorney and any victim involved in the conviction. The victim has a right to receive notice of any expungement petition and may appear at the hearing or submit a written statement in opposition to the petition.
Not sooner than 60 days from the date of filing, a hearing on the petition takes place. The court will hear argument from the petitioner's attorney about the need for the expungement as measured against the state's interest in maintaining the criminal record of the petitioner. The less serious the prior crime and the more time that has passed since the prior conviction, the more likely it is that the court will grant the petition.
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