When people are convicted of a crime in Indiana, they will have many understandable concerns to address. In addition to the potential for incarceration, fines, lost standing in the community and other consequences, they will be worried about how a criminal record will negatively affect them even after they have completed their sentence. In these situations, it is important to understand the value of getting an expungement.
What discriminatory behaviors are prevented by expungement?
Having a criminal record cleared through expungement is a pathway to move forward without a conviction following a person around. However, there are times when discrimination still occurs. Knowing the law about expungements and how they protect a person whose record has been expunged is important. It also shows why having the record expunged is valuable.
There are circumstances under which sealed records can be disclosed. There are also certain types of jobs that a person cannot get if they have had a record expunged. Still, in general, people cannot be discriminated against. That means they cannot: be suspended; expelled; face a refusal to employ; face a refusal to admit; not be granted or renewed a license, permit or certification to take part in activities, jobs or professions; or discriminated against because they had a record expunged.
Prospective employers, those administering a license or giving other rights or privileges can ask about a person’s criminal record, but only in ways that will exclude a crime that was expunged. The expungement means that the criminal conviction is perceived as never having happened at all and should be treated as such by employers, schools and other entities.
Expungements can be important to a person’s future
People who have been arrested and convicted should first know the details of getting their records expunged. Then they should be cognizant of the necessary steps for an expungement and the eligible offenses.
Once it has been granted, there may still be challenges that arise from the past encounter with the law. Expungements are meant to prevent that. For help with getting an expungement and understanding all it entails, it is useful to have experienced and sympathetic advice from professionals who know all aspects of criminal defense from the time of the arrest and throughout the case.