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. To obtain an expungement in Pennsylvania, an individual must petition the court with jurisdiction over such records and the court must send a certified order to the agency having control over the records.

According to 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 9102, an expungement removes information from a criminal record so that there is no trace or indication that such information existed; eliminates all identifiers which may be used to trace the identity of an individual, allowing remaining data to be used for statistical purposes; and allows for the maintenance of certain information required or authorized under the provisions of section 9122(c) when an individual has successfully completed the conditions of any pretrial or post trial diversion or probation program.

But the records do not simply disappear. Certain records may be retained to determine future eligibility for diversion or probation programs or to identify a person in a criminal investigation. Criminal history record information related to the expunged offense may be expunged. These types of records consist of identifiable descriptions, dates and notations of arrests, indictments, and other formal criminal charges and any dispositions arising therefrom. Criminal history record information does not include intelligence information, investigative information or treatment information, including medical and psychological information.

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