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Asked over 1 year ago - Atlanta, GA
Flagif so what should they do
There is a difference between a dismissal and an expungement. Upon completion of deferred adjudication a person gets the case dismissed. When a criminal record is viewed, the arrest will still be there. In certain circumstances, a person can apply to have the record expunged. Such expungement must be agreed upon by the prosecutor. As a result, it is best to have the expungement agreed upon prior to the plea bargain and as a condition therein. Otherwise, they may not agree to it after the fact.
The way I read your question is as a hypothetical. I would suggest the following: If someone has this experience, he or she should ask for a copy of their own criminal history from the local sheriff's department and see what it says. If there is a problem, start by talking to the attorney who represented when the guilty plea was entered. You can also get a copy of the final disposition and send it the GCIC center and see if that will correct any errors.
Finally, "deferred adjudication" could mean either First Offender (or the drug plea alternative) or it could mean Pre-trial Diversion. These are vastly different with respect to what shows up on a criminal history. Not knowing which is which in your question, it is hard to know what to say. Again, though, the attorney who represented at the guilty plea is the BEST person to ask of these types of questions.
It all depends on what the agreement was between you and the State when you entered your plea or pre-trial diversion as the case may be--"Deferred Adjudication" can mean a broad range of things. If you were promised a dismissal upon completion of this "Deferred Adjudication" then it appears someone--a clerk, a prosecutor or someone at GCIC--may have made a mistake. If this is the case, then you need to find out where the mistake was made and contact the appropriate people to get it fixed. A lawyer would be most usefull for this. On the other hand, sometimes these "Deferred Adjudication" situations will go down as a conviction if the defendant somehow violates the terms of the agreement, so this is another possibility as to why it is showing up as a conviction. Either way, I would consult with the attorney you had when you entered into the agreement and go from there.
If you have successfully completed your case (pre-trial diversion, etc.) then you must file an application for expungement for the arrest to be taken off of your record. Remember that law enforcement officers and agencies, DA's, etc. can almost always run a source code (level of background check) that will reveal every arrest. Anytime you are fingerprinted that information goes into AFIS. Other 3rd parties, like employers, can only see limited information on your record. So if your case was dismissed, no convictions may show up for an employer but someone from a law enforcement agency may see that you were arrested, the charges and the disposition of your case.
Expungement papers are usually available at the DA's office or somewhere in the courthouse (call to ask before you go all the way down there). Otherwise, you may be able to use a template from another county to create your own expungement package. Look online for an example application. Make sure to follow the instructions of the county where the charge is located. Expungements are always discretionary with the District Attorney's office.
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