If you have ever been arrested in Morris County, New Jersey you will have a criminal record. In Morris County, New Jersey, the State Police, county prosecutor's offices, superior courts, municipal courts, and municipal police departments, all keep records of arrests. These records are searchable. Therefore, if you have been arrested in Morris County, New Jersey, your present and future employer(s) may be able to uncover your criminal history. This is true even if the charges were ultimately dismissed.
In Morris County, New Jersey, an individual who has previously been arrested, and satisfies certain criteria pursuant to N.J.S.A. 2C:52-1 et. al., may bring a motion to expunge their criminal record. An expungement is a process where an individual's arrest record is sealed. A sealed criminal record is treated as though it does not exist. A sealed criminal record may only be opened under very limited circumstances; otherwise, it is only retrievable by court order.
When an individual applies for an expungement they are known as a "petitioner." For an expungement application to be granted, a petitioner must satisfy certain statutory requirements. For example, a petitioner must serve the appropriate agencies with his/her petition pursuant to N.J.S.A. 2C:52-10. A petitioner must also list all previous arrests on his/her petition pursuant to N.J.S.A. 2C:52-7. These are only two of the many filing requirements that must be satisfied.
It is the Morris County Prosecutor's obligation to determine the validity of the petitioner's expungement application. N.J.S.A. 2C:52-24. In New Jersey, a petition for expungement is most often reviewed by an assistant prosecutor. If an assistant prosecutor finds a deficiency in a submitted petition, that prosecutor will notify the court by letter of its objection. If the deficiency can be rectified, the petitioner must then file an amended petition. In other cases, however, the assistant prosecutor's objection may reveal a permanent bar to expungement.
It is very important that your petition for expungement be properly submitted. If you are looking for an expungement, the law office of Bramnick, Rodriguez, Mitterhoff, Grabas & Woodruff has many years handling these matters. Attorneys Casey Woodruff and Gary Grabas are former prosecutors. If you are seeking an expungement, you can contact us at any time at (908) 322-7000.
Free Consultations Available – Morris County Expungement Lawyer (908) 322-7000
