If you have convictions in multiple counties that you want expunged, you will have to file separate petitions in each county. Each of these petitions must be filed within the same one-year window in order to be treated as a single petition, because the law only allows a single expungement in a person’s lifetime. We offer a discount when you sign up to expunge multiple cases.

It is generally good advice to wait until the waiting period expires and you are time eligible in every county where you have convictions before filing for expungement. For example, if you have a misdemeanor conviction in Lake County from more than 5 years ago but no convictions since that time, the misdemeanor conviction would be time eligible to file. However, if you also have a felony conviction from 6 years go in Marion County, it would not be time eligible for expungement because 8 years have not elapsed without any convictions. If you had filed for the misdemeanor conviction expungement without getting prosecutor permission to file the felony conviction expungement early, then Marion County could permanently deny the felony conviction expungement.

When seeking to expunge conviction records, your petition must be filed in the sentencing court.  If you are applying for an expungement of arrest records your petition should be filed in the court where charges were brought; or, if no charges were filed, in the court that has jurisdiction in the county where the arrest occurred.

On average, you can expect the process to take approximately four to six months; however, every case is different and the amount of time it takes for a court to process your case depends on many factors, such as whether the State objects. We want to hear about our customers’ successes so we will continue to follow up with you after we provide your documents and will do our best to answer any questions you might have.

Cases get denied for many reasons including inaccuracies in the application or court filing, additional charges pending against the petitioner, or the required waiting period to become eligible has not elapsed.

The presiding judge will provide you with a signed court order instructing the Department of Corrections, the Bureau of Motor Vehicles, each law enforcement agency, and other relevant public entities not to disclose the records to anyone without a court order. The court’s order will in most instances seal any court records relating to the allegation that the conviction was based on.

You do not have to disclose the case and can respond to any inquiry or on any employment application that you have not been arrested or convicted of any case that has been expunged. The case shall be treated for all purposes as if you had not been arrested or convicted.

No. There is a separate process that must be followed in order to restore firearm rights.

Persons convicted of crimes involving domestic violence are prohibited from possessing a firearm. IC 35-47-4-7(b) states the requirements for petitioning the court to restore firearm rights. You will have to wait 5 years from the date of your domestic violence conviction and convince the court that you deserve to have your rights restored and do not pose a danger to anyone. When considering whether to restore your firearm rights, the court can take into account a number of factors including but not limited to: (1) whether you have been subject to a protective, no contact, or restraining order; (2) whether you have completed any substance abuse or parenting programs; (3) whether you are still a threat to the victim; (4) whether you have committed any other subsequent criminal offenses; and (5) whether you have satisfied any specific conditions the court conditioned the restoration of your firearm rights upon. If a court denies your request to restore your firearm rights, you will have to wait a year before applying again.

Usually, no. However, this will ultimately depend on the level of the offense and whether you were convicted.  For certain serious Felony convictions, an expunged offense will be marked as “expunged” but still be viewable.

The court will send the signed order to all the entities referenced in your petition and order that are in possession of records and order them to seal the records.

Government agencies typically take 30-60 days to update their records.

There are no limits on the number of non-conviction expungements. However, a person can only petition to expunge convictions once in their life. This means if you are convicted of an offense after expungement, that offense will not be able to be expunged.

If the waiting period has not expired, you are only eligible to petition for expungement if the prosecutor agrees.

Cases that result in the charges being dismissed, a not guilty verdict, no charges are ever filed but a case number is created, and when charges are dismissed after successful completion of a pretrial diversion program.

An individual is representing themselves in a legal matter without the help of an attorney.

Senate Bill 182, effective July 1, 2022, streamlines the expungement process for individuals charged with a crime after June 30, 2022 and provides that if the arrest results in a non-conviction then the court shall order the expungement of the non-conviction records without the need for the defendant to file a petition for expungement. An arrest is considered to have resulted in a non-conviction when: (1) the court dismisses all charges filed and pending against the person; (2) one year has elapsed since juvenile delinquency allegations were filed, there is no disposition, and the state is not actively pursuing the allegation; (3) defendant is acquitted of all charges; (4) defendant’s conviction is vacated; or (5) the juvenile proceeding’s finding of true is vacated. Arrests where 180 days have elapsed since the date of arrest and no charges are pending shall also be expunged and it is the duty of the prosecutor to alert the court.

The fees charged by the county when a party files documents that start a legal case.

Yes. You will need to obtain a Fingerprint Criminal History and Driver Record Reports. These reports help the court review and rule on your expungement petition. As a practical matter, sometimes people forget about arrests that happened a long time ago and reviewing these reports is a way to make sure of all the offenses on your record that could be expunged are included in your petition and that no disqualifying offenses are on your record. There may also be a copies and/or certification fee involved upon filing, which is collected by the Clerk’s Office.

Log In or create an account here: https://mybmv.bmv.in.gov/bmv/mybmv/default.aspx

Click View Driver Record from quick links on the left side of the page.

You can then review what is on your Driver Record. There is a key at bottom of the page also available here https://www.in.gov/bmv/resources/files/driver-record-legend-2022.pdf that can help you to understand what is on your record. Viewing your driver record is free.

To order your official Driver Record. Select Official Driver Record from the quick links on the left side of the page.

Click to add to cart and add payment information before proceeding. Make sure to save your receipt.

Please email or upload a scanned copy of your Official Driver Record to Easy Expunctions so that it can be attached to your petition for expungement.

A BMV driver record will reflect your Indiana driving history including any history of suspensions, citations, and violations. An official driving record is a certified copy of your driver record that is accompanied by a letter of certification from the BMV.

Yes. If you can demonstrate to the court that you are unable to pay the fee. You can request the fees be waived by filing a motion requesting the fees be waived. It will be up to the court to decide whether to grant or deny your fee waiver request so you will need to be prepared to provide evidence, such as bank statements, bills, paychecks, etc., that substantiate your inability to pay the filing fees.

The payment of all fines, fees, and other financial obligations imposed by the court is generally a prerequisite to being eligible to petition for expungement of a conviction. However, you can ask the court to waive or reduce the amount you owe and/or to waive the filing fee. You will need to submit a letter, motion and order asking the court to waive or reduce the amounts you owe. Indiana Code 33-37-3-2 requires a person requesting fees be waived or reduced to file a statement in court, under oath and in writing: (1) declaring that the person is unable to make the payments or to give security for the payments because of the person's indigency; (2) declaring that the person believes that the person is entitled to the redress sought in the action; and (3) setting forth briefly the nature of the action.

If you cannot physically attend but are available to attend remotely via telephone or computer, you may file a Motion for Virtual or Telephonic Appearance which asks the court if you can attend via a phone or computer and not have to go to the courthouse. If you need to request a virtual hearing, make sure to submit your request as early as possible. Filing the motion does not guarantee the judge will consent to you appearing virtually. You must attend your hearing in person unless the judge signs an order allowing you to attend virtually. If you do not object to attending in person but cannot be present at the time assigned by the court, you can request the hearing be reset to a time that you are available to attend.

Although Indiana law uses the term “expungement” the law does not mandate the destruction or deletion of “expunged” records and what actually happens is the records are restricted from being publicly accessible. Once a record has been ordered restricted (ie. sealed or expunged) information concerning the offense may only be disclosed in limited circumstances or when ordered by a judge. Certain serious felony offenses are marked as “expunged” and will still be publicly accessible. In general, law enforcement, corrections, and certain state entities will have access to expunged cases for their internal hiring/licensing purposes and an expunged case could still be used against you in a future prosecution.

If your expungement is denied because the court determines you are not eligible to petition for expungement then Easy Expunctions will refund you whatever you have paid us, as well as your case filing fee. If your case is denied because the court exercised their discretion, then you would not be entitled to a refund under our Money Back Guarantee. Deciding whether you may want to amend your petition to include additional information and refile, wait for more time to elapse before refiling, or appealing the denial are major decisions we strongly suggest retaining the services of an Indiana attorney to help navigate.

We always recommend people clear as much of their criminal record as possible before going through any background check process or traveling internationally. Canada and the United States share information so you should expect the Canadian government to have access to your criminal record information. Expunging convictions will demonstrate your cases have been resolved and are no longer considered convictions. Ultimately, it is up to the Canadian government who they decide to let in but expunging your Indiana convictions should help improve your chances of being granted entry.

In Indiana, citizens that are not incarcerated can vote. The general requirements for voting in Indiana are: (1) US citizen; (2) at least 18 years old; (3) lived in the precinct for at least 30 days; and (4) not be incarcerated.

Only an immigration attorney can advise you concerning your specific situation. In general, we believe expunging cases doesn’t hurt an immigration case as it demonstrates that Indiana does not consider the person to have been convicted.

No. Indiana Code 35-38-9-11 states any waiver of the right to an expungement in a plea agreement is invalid and unenforceable.