NJ Expungements of Criminal Records — An Overview
Expungement (or expunction) is the isolation of a criminal record so it becomes not publicly available. The New Jersey Criminal Code specifies the objectives of the statutes relating to expungements, including expungement of a felony conviction. The primary objective is to provide relief to the one-time offender who has led a life of rectitude and disassociated himself from unlawful activity.
Why Have Your NJ Record Expunged?
Who steals my purse steals trash; 'tis something, nothing;
'Twas mine, 'tis his, and has been slave to thousands;
But he that filches from me my good name
Robs me of that which not enriches him,
And makes me poor indeed.
Othello Act 3, scene 3, 155–161
A clean criminal record is an asset. A very important asset. It often determines whether an applicant gets a particular job. Getting a criminal record expunged sometimes determines whether a person who already has a particular job can keep that job, or advance to a better job. It can also affect decisions of professional licensing boards. In our increasingly uptight society, criminal record checks are required of nurses, volunteer sports coaches, day care center workers, persons seeking to be foster parents, or adopt children, applicants for a firearms permit, and persons applying for school positions, to name but a few. Expungements enable an applicant to avoid unpleasant consequences of past situations.
What Are the Benefits of Expungements in NJ?
Expungements result in the "isolation" of records of convictions. They also isolate records of arrest, regardless of whether those arrests resulted in convictions. Thus expungement of criminal records enables a person to confidently answer questions that otherwise would have been embarrassing.
Not everyone qualifies for expungement of criminal records. Whether or not a person qualifies to have their record expunged depends upon many factors, and combinations of factors. These factors are defined in statutes, presented in other pages on this site.
About NJExpungements.com
This site provides information on expunging New Jersey records of arrests and convictions. It discusses, in considerably more detail, concepts touched upon on this page. This site will hopefully assist the visitor to learn the benefits of expungement of criminal records, as well as limitations on when records can be expunged. It will answer questions like these, and many more:
If you would like to expunge your NJ criminal record, Allan Marain can help.
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