SEALING YOUR RECORD
Sealing Criminal Convictions
Some criminal cases are eligible for sealing. When a case is sealed, the charge or conviction is not visible to the public and should not appear on background checks conducted by private parties for purposes such as obtaining employment or housing. However, the conviction will remain visible to law enforcement and other government agencies as may be necessary for these agencies to determine criminal history, assess security clearances, and other such purposes. Sealing a felony offense restores the defendant’s right to vote but does not restore the right to carry a firearm. A defendant who desires restoration of their gun rights must seek a pardon from the Governor.
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Expungement of Criminal Convictions
In limited situations, a criminal case may also be eligible for dismissal, which means that the case is treated as if it never existed (with some exceptions). This procedure was previously referred to as “expungement.” Like sealed cases, dismissed cases will not be visible to the public but will remain visible to law enforcement. Dismissal is only available in certain types of cases, including those in which the defendant was sentenced under the First Offender Act or in which the defendant graduated from drug court or veteran’s court.
How do you do this?
To request that a case be sealed or dismissed, the defendant must file a petition with the court in which they were convicted. It is also helpful to submit a proposed order to seal to the court after the petition is filed.
Forms for petitions to seal and orders to seal are available through the Arkansas Crime Information Center (ACIC) at https://www.dps.arkansas.gov/crime-info-support/arkansas-crime-information-center/forms/criminal-history/.
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Once the forms are completed, signed, and notarized, they must be filed with the applicable court’s Clerk and served on the prosecutor’s office.
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Where to file for a Pulaski County Felony Conviction
Petitions regarding convictions in Pulaski County circuit courts must be filed with the Pulaski County Circuit Clerk, 401 West Markham Street, Room 100, Little Rock, Arkansas 72201, (501) 340-8500.
Where to file for a Perry County Felony Conviction
Petitions regarding convictions in Perry County circuit court must be filed with the Perry County Circuit Clerk, 310 West Main Street, Perryville, Arkansas 72126, (501) 889-5126.
Where to file for a Misdemeanor Conviction
Petitions regarding convictions in a district court must be filed with the Clerk of that court.
How to Serve the Pulaski County Prosecutor’s Office
All petitions for any court located in Pulaski County or Perry County must also be served on the prosecuting attorney by mailing the petition to 224 South Spring Street, Little Rock, Arkansas 72201 or by emailing it to seal@pulaskipa.org.
After you have filed
The prosecuting attorney has thirty days from the date the petition is filed or served, whichever is later, to file a response to the petition. If the case is eligible to be sealed, the prosecuting attorney’s response will indicate that the State does not object to the petition, and the court may enter an order sealing the case without a hearing. If the case is not eligible to be sealed, the prosecuting attorney will file an objection to the petition and, upon the defendant's request, the court will schedule a hearing on the petition. If an objection to a petition to seal has been filed, the defendant should contact the court in which the petition was filed to request a hearing.
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Once an order sealing a case has been signed by the judge and filed, all information about the case will be removed from the public court record. The order is also sent to ACIC for processing. Once ACIC processes the order, the charge or conviction should not appear on any background check conducted through the Arkansas State Police for private party use.