Atlanta Expungement Attorneys: GA Record Restriction Lawyers

Possessing a criminal history can significantly impede your prospects of securing a job, getting financial assistance, and locating suitable accommodation. This article on expungement in Georgia is applicable statewide, but focuses on metro Atlanta record restrictions, which many citizens call "expunctions."

Due to a legal change in Georgia laws that went into effect July 1, 2013, the process and procedures started in 2010 were revised. So, lawyers for expungement now are attorneys for record restrictions. The law, OCGA Section 35-3-37, has been updated and amended 5 times.

To be more precise, the current process would be better described as the "record sealing" of criminal charges, and not erasing all information about the existence of a conviction. This means you don't have to worry about job or housing background checks revealing potentially harmful details from your previously "open" criminal record.

Fortunately, with the aid of our DeKalb County and Fulton County expungement lawyers near me, you can have many types of prior crimes on your criminal record put under what is called "record restriction." Our expungement lawyers in Georgia handle many of these requests for assistance who need lawyers to expunge records, including felony expungement, in some situations.

If your criminal record is expunged or restricted, only law enforcement and government agencies can access it. After record restriction is obtained, private citizens and companies cannot access or gather information from these sealed records. This means that you can rest assured that background investigations will not expose any details from this prior history, that is now sealed.

Should you believe that expunging these qualifying previous convictions or restricting access to these past crimes on your record could be advantageous, seize the opportunity for our FREE initial consultation with Larry Kohn. He now has over 560 AVVO 5-star reviews and is a seasoned legal book co-author and criminal lawyer in Georgia, currently in his 25th year of legal practice in the Peach State. He is a partner along with Cory Yager, Atlanta DUI lawyer former cop, and NCDD Board Certified DUI lawyer William C. “Bubba” Head, who is in his 48^th year of law practice in Georgia.

As mentioned above, having a criminal record restricted should prevent the general public from accessing information about them. Expungement can also prevent curious individuals from uncovering information about certain aspects of a criminal past online showing your record in Georgia.

But, unlike several other US states (Michigan, Mississippi) that have enacted record restriction for drunk driving first offenses, but not for a 1st DUI in Georgia or any other DUI conviction. Plus, Georgia’s laws (since the original 2021 law took effect) bars any DUI --- including a first offence DUI that was reduced to reckless driving from being expunged. Even if a nolo contendere plea was accepted the conviction cannot be restricted.

Security personnel, law enforcement agents, and judicial agencies will still have access to the full records, but the expunged details of past alleged crimes will not be accessible during standard background checks. If a person wishes to have items on their record expunged or restricted, they need to petition the court, and if the judge approves the request, certain elements of their criminal record will be restricted.

Expunging or redistricting can often remove arrests, especially if they were dismissed or never reached the office of the state prosecutor. Hiring a Fulton County record restriction lawyer can help an alleged offender get their record expunged, even after a denial. In Georgia, restriction and the commonly used word "expungement" are talking about the same thing.

If an alleged offender wants items on their record expunged or restricted, they need to submit a petition to the court for the request for restriction. If a request is granted, the information can be removed within a few weeks.

This can be immensely beneficial, but for a conviction or arrest to be removed, the following standards must be met:

• The event is not currently on record in a court file
• The event has been totally dismissed by a court
• The person requesting expungement is no longer facing prosecution (on this charge) in the future
• The conviction was entered under either the first offender or under a court's diversion program or conditional discharge guidelines.

Should an individual and their beliefs align with the aforementioned criteria, the likelihood of their appeal being approved is high. Nonetheless, legal matters can be intricate, and without the assistance of an Atlanta expungement attorney from Fulton County or DeKalb County to guide them through the procedure, they may end up in an unfavorable position.

Not all individuals will be eligible for record expungement. The following factors can lead the prosecution to deny an expungement request in Georgia:

• If a person was convicted or pleaded guilty, generally a restriction (for qualified crimes) should be available.
• This includes a criminal conviction after a bench trial or trial by jury.
• Being prosecuted for a similar charge in another court
• Entering a plea of “first offense” or “no contest”
• Not being prosecuted while in jail due to the inability to bond out.
• Perjury or witness tampering charges in your case are proven, such that the conviction was illegal.
• A motion to suppress illegal 4th Amendment violations or warrantless searches was granted by a Judge.
• Witness unavailability when the case was called for trial and the Judge dismissed the case.

If your request is denied, you can hire a lawyer to help you challenge the decision and possibly get it overturned. Talk to our Legal Firm's expungement attorneys near me on a FREE lawyer consultation to see if other favorable options may be undertaken. Partner Larry Kohn is a record expungement lawyer nearing his 25th anniversary of being a criminal defense attorney.

If you want to clear your record, talk to Mr. Kohn since over 80% of his cases are in the four metro counties of Gwinnett, DeKalb, Fulton and Cobb. Our legal warriors know these courts and the prosecutors handling expunction. Call us at 404-567-5515. Our phone is answered 24 hours a day.

If the prosecutor denied you already, it may still be valuable to have that decision reviewed. An experienced criminal lawyer near me in the metro counties can help guide you through the process.

Our lawyers know a lot about the laws in Georgia that seal records. They will work hard on your case. You can find out the cost of expungement by talking to us.

We need to know about your criminal history first. It won't cost you anything to learn more.