Sealing A Record

As we close out 2024 and everyone starts posting their resolutions and their “new year, new me” mantras, you might find yourself struggling to make your own list of things to work on. While some goals seem easy, it can be even easier to get lost in making a list that only serves to get you down when you think about the limitations that can keep you from really being your new-you. One of the biggest setbacks my clients face is having a criminal record, but what if I could offer you the freedom of a true fresh start so that you can make 2025 your best year ever?

Arizona has allowed for the sealing of a criminal record for the past two years, but not enough people take advantage of it, or understand the process or benefits to doing so. Sealing your record is exactly as it sounds - any criminal record you have becomes sealed off from access to the general public. This means your criminal charges will no longer come up when a general background check is run on you, meaning no future employer, education institution, or potential landlord can see that you have a prior record. By sealing your record, you’d appear in a background check the exact same way as someone with no record would: squeaky clean!

There are some conditions that limit your ability to seal a record, but generally speaking, if you were:

• found not guilty;
• arrested, but were never charged;
• convicted and sentenced but met all conditions of your sentence;

then you should be eligible to seal your record. It should be noted that sealing your record is not the same as expungement, in which the charges are removed from your record entirely, so some institutions would still have access to your criminal record, but these institutions would be much more limited to courts or investigative authorities. While Arizona does not yet allow for expungement, sealing is the next best thing you can do to keep your record exactly where you want it: in the past.

If you’ve been trying for years to make next year your year, then there’s no new year’s like this one to get your record sealed and get on
living the life you deserve. If you’re interested in sealing your record, call us at Palestini Law today, so we can keep your hope alive in 2025!