A criminal record can be a bar to certain types of employment, licensing,
holding public office, and even the right to vote. Most states allow for a
process called expungement that will remove certain arrests or criminal convictions from the offender's
record.

Depending upon the laws of the state in which you live and the nature of the
crime, you may be able to get an arrest or conviction sealed or erased from
your legal record. After the expungement process is complete, you will not
need to disclose the conviction on a job or school application, and in most
instances no record of the arrest or conviction will show up during a public
records inspection or background check commonly done by potential employers,
landlords, and educational institutions.

If a criminal record is expunged, or annulled, in New Hampshire, it does not
just disappear, but it cannot be accessed for general law enforcement or
civil use. The person whose record is expunged is treated as if he had never
been arrested, convicted or sentenced. The only exception is that, upon
conviction of any crime committed after the order of annulment has been
entered, the prior conviction may be considered by the court in determining
the sentence to be imposed, and may be counted toward habitual offender
status under motor vehicle laws.

For a full overview of expungement law in the state of New Hampshire, see the
USLegal website.