Folks are concerned with their criminal records. As well they should be. North Carolina keeps a tally any time you are charged with a crime. That’s charged, not convicted. So when you apply for a job, or for housing, or just about anything, it is likely your criminal history will be scoured.
A mechanism to remove charges, and convictions in some instances, is the expunction. We are allowed one expunction under North Carolina law, and it should be used wisely. I won’t delve into a full examination of every expunction out there, but you may qualify for an expunction in the following situations:
- you were convicted of a crime where the offense date was prior to your 18th birthday
- you were convicted of alcohol possession with an offense date prior to your 21st birthday
- you received a conviction of misdemeanor larceny more than 15 years ago
- you were charged with a drug offense while under the age of 21
- you were found not guilty in a trial
- your charges were dismissed
- you were pardoned
- you were the victim of identity theft
There are some interesting aspects to the expunction in North Carolina. For example, petitioners are generally limited to a single expunction in a lifetime. This means that individuals with multiple charges but no convictions can be subject to discrimination due to charges that were never proven. It seems to be a statutory admission that one is not innocent until proven guilty but is rather deemed guilty upon probable cause. This is particularly problematic given the magistrate’s warrant system utilized in North Carolina.
Another is the provision allowing expunction of a conviction for misdemeanor larceny. The statute is aimed directly at larcenies as charged under NCGS 14-72(a), which defines the elements. It does not seem to allow for the expunction of shoplifting or concealment convictions under 14-72.1. Thus, although the larceny is deemed a more serious offense under the sentencing regime, it can be erased, whereas the conviction for shoplifting is forever.
Whether to have an expunction is an important decision. An expunction carries with it the right to legally deny the existence of a prior event, and could impact one’s ability to find employment, housing, or true love. Often, defendants are unaware that their records are affected by charges. In the court of law, only convictions are important. In the court of public opinion, every charge is deemed a conviction.