Seal & Destroy California Arrest Records

Our California expungement lawyers help clients to seal, destroy and expunge their criminal arrest records. We practice throughout all Southern California courts, including Los Angeles, Long Beach, Van Nuys, San Bernardino, Riverside and Newport Beach.

Why Get My Criminal Arrest Records Sealed & Destroyed?

Suppose you get arrested for a crime in California. The arrest does not result in conviction because (1) the prosecutor never files criminal charges, or (2) charges are filed but later dismissed in court, or (3) you are acquitted by jury.

The arrest record—police reports, finger prints, booking photos—do not just go away. These crime reports remain on file indefinitely with the police agency and the Department of Justice.

Moreover, many employers and state licensing boards ask applicants not only whether they’ve been convicted of a crime, but also whether they’ve ever been arrested. Even if it does not result in a conviction, a mere arrest can create a stigma and raise questions that will adversely affect your opportunities.

But our California expungement lawyers can petition the court to declare you “factually innocent” and to order the arrest records sealed and destroyed. If this happens, according to California Penal Code 851.8, “The arrestee is thereby exonerated…the arrest shall be deemed never to have occurred and the person may answer accordingly any question relating to its occurrence.”

After successfully getting the arrest record destroyed:

• The police agency will must seal the arrest records for three years and thereafter purge and destroy the arrest records.


• You will no longer need to inform an employer or licensing board of the arrest.


• The arrest can no longer be used against you by the police, prosecutors, or the DMV.


• You will no longer face adverse immigration consequences.

The Process to Seal & Destroy Arrest Records

To get arrest records sealed and destroyed, our California expungement lawyers conduct a two-step process.

First, we petition the police agency (that made the arrest) to destroy its records of arrest. If the police agency agrees that you are factually innocent, then they themselves can grant the petition. This means they will seal the arrest records for three years, and afterwards destroy the arrest records.

If the police agency refuses to grant the petition, or does not respond within 60 days, then we proceed to the second step: filing a petition asking the court to order that the arrest records be destroyed.

Before the court will order the destruction of the arrest records, it must hold a hearing and find you “factually innocent” of the crime. The prosecutor receives notice of the hearing and has the opportunity to oppose your request. At the hearing to determine factual innocence, the court may consider the police reports from the case, testimony of witnesses and any other relevant evidence.

To find you factually innocent and order the arrest records destroyed, the court must find that “no reasonable cause exists to believe that the arrestee committed the offense for which the arrest was made.”

If the court finds in your favor, the court will order the police department to seal the arrest records for three years, and then destroy the arrest records. The Department of Justice will delete references to the arrest from your rap sheet. And the police agency must furnish you a written declaration stating that it finds you “factually innocent” of the criminal offense and you have been “exonerated.”

Internet Resources:

Los Angeles Police Department Clearance Letters
Information on obtaining clearance letters and related services from the LAPD.

Search criminal arrest records
Search national criminal arrest records on a county by county basis.

Arrest Record Expungement in California
Article discussing law and policies behind expungement of arrest records.

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