Criminal Record Expungement Options

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There exists more than one way to obtain an expungement of a Kentucky criminal record involving more than one misdemeanor.
In Kentucky, KRS 431.078 generally governs when a person may expunge a misdemeanor conviction, a dismissal, or amended charges. However, this statute limits expungments to only ONE criminal offense within a 5 year period. Upon learning this fact most people with more than one criminal record over several years simply give up.
Individuals with criminal records experience difficulty obtaining gainful employment, entering into and staying in the military, or obtaining credit. Many of these people are basically good but may have made an error in judgement, or in some cases, chose to plead guilty to a crime they did not commit because they did not have the money to retain an experienced criminal defense attorney and did not want to remain in jail waiting for trial ( I note that with the help of an experienced criminal defense attorney, many of these people might have qualified for a pre-trial diversion program which would have resulted in an automatic expungement of their criminal charges once they fulfilled the requirments of the program.). Additionally, for some, the court system helped them reform and want to pursue a lawful path in the community.
Some of Kentucky's 120 counties recognize the problem and have expungement programs in place which may not be advertised nor well known to the public nor known by all criminal defense attorneys. Based on the county, the programs go by various names with the criteria for expungement set either by the county attorney or the individual judges. The programs are very fact dependent and are not available to all criminal offenders. These programs typically require advance payment of program and court costs, the meeting of certain conditions by the applicant, agreement by the prosecutor, petitions made to the courts, and more.
As an example, a college student who had committed three misdemeanors (alcohol intoxication) over a period of time feared that he would not be able to obtain gainful employment after graduation and would not be able to pay his student loans. Working with the county attorney, we entered the student into a program so he would not have a criminal record on graduation.
These special program expungments typically require the services of an experienced criminal defense attorney knowledgable about the various county programs.

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What Are Some Options When Being Arraigned For OUI In Massachusetts?

The last time the Massachusetts OUI laws saw a significant modification the legislature had one thing in mind. They wanted to get accountability as soon as possible. The changes to the law made the prospect of immediately pleading guilty extremely attractive. The statue made provisions for the issuance of hardship licenses almost soon as your case gets resolved. Simply put, for first time offenders once you plead guilty you can, three days after registering for the alcohol awareness program apply for a hardship license. For all practical purposes you will be driving shortly after you plead out. Consequently, many of my clients now ask about their options when being arraigned for OUI in Massachusetts. This post discusses some of the pros and cons associated with expeditious drunk driving pleas.

Massachusetts OUI Defense Lawyer

The Benefits to Pleading Guilty at Your Arraignment

Oftentimes when people get arrested for OUI the bail commissioner sets a bail. This is usually forty dollars. Once bail is paid you will be released. Because run of the mill drunk driving cases are not the most serious offenses your arraignment might not be scheduled for a couple of days. If this happens your lawyer will be able to bet a copy of the complaint and police report before the arraignment. This will permit time to evaluate the case prior to arraignment. If the arraignment is the day after your arrest you will get these documents at that proceeding. Regardless, you should have some time to discuss your options with your lawyer. A good DUI lawyer can quickly evaluate the likelihood of success in fighting your case.

So what should you do? If the case is one that you will not likely win pleading guilty at arraignment might make the most sense. You will get your driver’s license back rather quickly. You can get into the alcohol awareness program right away and get this behind you. Most judges will continue your case without a finding and impose the 24D program. Upon a successful completion of your probation you will not have a criminal record. No perspective employer will know that you had an OUI case. It is usually less expensive to plead guilty at arraignment most lawyers will charge you somewhere between one thousand and two thousand dollars to plead you out at arraignment. The additional court appearances associated with litigating your case will increase the cost of your defense. Trial first offense DUI cases in Massachusetts cost between three thousand five hundred dollars and ten thousand dollars.

When You Should Not Plead Guilty At Arraignment

If the motor vehicle stop violated your constitutional rights you will want to file a motion to suppress. If you win the case will be over. If you did not take a breathalyzer test and there was no accident you might want to try your case. If the breathalyzer test was administered improperly your lawyer will try to get the results excluded. If you took a breathalyzer test and the result was under a .08 you might want to refrain from pleading guilty at your arraignment. Basically, in cases where you are likely to win or where discovery might lead to success you probably should not plead guilty. A good lawyer can advise you about your rights in this regard. Remember, once you have been charged hire a lawyer. There are many things to discuss prior to arraignment all of which will help you make the decision of whether to plead or pursue your defense.

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