Gonzalez, FL Criminal Defense Law Firms & Lawyers

Yes, expungement will help in obtaining and keeping employment. When applying for a job in the private sector, you generally do not have to disclose a conviction if it was expunged. The costs are about $126 fees to the court and about an hour of fees to the attorney.

You should absolutely try immediately. You can get a misdemeanor conviction "expunged" as soon as you complete probation. This legally is a withdrawal of the guilty or no contest plea, and entrance of a not guilty plea, and a dismissal of the accusatory pleading against you under Penal Code section 1203.4. If you successfully completed probation without a violation, you are entitled to have your request granted. You will need to fill out and file the appropriate forms and pay a filing fee of approximately $120.00 Keep in mind, however, that an expungement does not provide you total protection. The federal government still treats it as a conviction for immigration purposes. Also, an expungement does not preclude law enforcement and district attorneys from seeing the expungement in your Department of Justice record. Finally, government jobs and licensing applications still often require that you acknowledge if you have ever had a conviction expunged.