does my son need an expungement for a juvenile offense?
Mahwah, NJ
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Posted 10 months ago in Juvenile
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when my son was 15, he pled guilty to a minor offense (harassment) for which they gave him 15 hour community service and 9 month probation. We were told that at the age of 17 his record would be wiped clean. someone mentioned expungement-(lawyer never mentioned this to us) Do we have to do anything more?
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Answers (1)Howard Woodley Bailey
This attorney is licensed in New Jersey.
Posted 10 months ago.
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In NJ, as in all other states, juvenile proceedings are not criminal in nature, but intended to facilitate the rehabiliatation of the juvenile. The proceedings are not part of a criminal record, unless the juvenile (as an adult) continues to be charged with crimes or other offenses under the criminal code. While the records are not public, the records continue to be maintained in the juvenile record bureau of the police and the courts unless the are expunged.
Under most circumstances, the records are not visible to anone (like an employer) asking about a criminal record during a background check. An expungement takes the juvenile records and further seperates them from view, by seperating them into a secured facility. The records are not destroyed. They are seperated and stored, and may in fact be viewed by the government under certain circumstances. The expungement process is initiated by formal petition to the Superior Court of the State of New Jersey, typically in the county in which the juvenile charges were originally filed. The process will take about 3 months from the time the petition is filed. If you have specific questions about the process, I suggest you contact an experienced criminal defense lawyer in your state to discuss this further. |