A criminal record can affect many aspects of daily life. Adults with criminal records may struggle to secure competitive employment. They may find that they are ineligible for enrollment at the most prestigious schools. Even if they gain admission, they may struggle to secure private financial aid, as many scholarship programs conduct background checks.
Criminal records can permanently limit people’s opportunities. The situation is slightly different in cases involving juvenile defendants. In some states, the law requires that the courts automatically seal the records of juvenile defendants who avoid subsequent convictions.
Do parents and teenagers in Georgia need to worry about a youthful mistake or misunderstanding following a young adult into their adulthood and forever diminishing their opportunities?
Georgia does not automatically seal records
Unlike some states, Georgia does not generally require the automatic sealing of juvenile criminal records after teenage defendants become legal adults. Instead, they must petition the courts for an expungement.
To do so, they must show that they actually qualify. Georgia state statutes impose several restrictions on those seeking record sealing or expungement. Provided that the person with the juvenile record has no pending charges and has waited at least two years since the final discharge of their case, they can petition the courts to seal the record of their juvenile offense.
Doing so generally also requires proof that they have undergone rehabilitation and do not pose much risk of reoffending. The young adult with the record must file a motion with the courts and attend a hearing where a judge reviews any documentation that they submitted about rehabilitation and the records of the initial crime. Juvenile defendants convicted of minor shoplifting offenses have a better chance of securing an expungement than those convicted of violent criminal offenses.
Pursuing an expungement can be a way to move on from a youthful mistake. Concerned parents of juvenile defendants may also want to invest in a defense attorney from the earliest stages of the criminal case. Doing so could help avoid a conviction or reduce the charges that show up on the young adult’s record.
Consulting with a criminal defense attorney familiar with George’s unique juvenile justice system and criminal record expungement rules can be beneficial for parents who want to help their teenagers move forward after weathering this particularly difficult situation.