Expungement Lawyer In Conway, SC

You may have an arrest or conviction on your record that is well and truly behind you, but that still marks your record and carries social consequences. In some cases, there is a do-over – in the form of an expungement. While expungement is a highly complex legal matter, the advantages can be significant, and an experienced criminal defense attorney in Conway, South Carolina, is standing by to help.

The Expungement Process

In South Carolina, expungement means that the criminal records related to an arrest or conviction are destroyed. As such, if you have a charge expunged from your record, your record will be restored to the pristine condition it was in prior to the incident in question.

There are a range of factors that guide expungement eligibility in the state, and if you qualify, you’ll file your application with the solicitor’s office, which will be funneled to the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED). From here, your application will make its way to the Circuit Court of South Carolina, which – if it elects to do so – can issue a court order expunging the record of your arrest, your conviction, or both.

Qualification

In South Carolina, there are a variety of highly specific instances in which a charge can be expunged, and each of them has its own qualification requirements. Consider the following examples:

• Not Convicted – If the charge against you was dismissed, if you weren’t prosecuted, or if you were found not guilty, the charge can be expunged for no fee.
• Conditional Discharge – If the court handed down a conditional discharge and you fulfilled each of its terms, expungement is a possibility.
• Completed Pretrial Intervention Program – If you successfully completed a pretrial intervention program that bypassed the trial, the original charge can be expunged.
• Successfully Completed Alcohol Education Program (AEP) or Traffic Education Program (TEP) – if you successfully completed a court-ordered AEP or TEP in lieu of sentencing, expungement is available.
• Fraudulent Check Charge – If the charge in question was a first-offense fraudulent check misdemeanor, you can seek an expungement after one year has passed – as long as you have no subsequent convictions.
• A General Misdemeanor – If the offense in question was a misdemeanor that carried a maximum sentence of 30 days in jail and fines of up to $1,000 and at least three years have passed since your conviction – with no subsequent convictions – expungement is available.

Expungements can also be denied for a variety of reasons, including the following:

• You already had a charge expunged.
• You have another criminal charge pending.
• The dismissal of your charge was part of a plea deal.
• You have a felony conviction on your record.
• You were convicted of another offense in the three-year period after the offense you’re attempting to expunge.

Turn to an Experienced Conway Criminal Defense Attorney Today

The practiced criminal defense attorneys at the Law Offices of L. Morgan Martin, P.A. – proudly serving Conway, South Carolina, appreciate the important role an expungement can play in your future and have the experience, drive, and resources to help. We’re on your side, so