The new year means a new lease on life for many Minnesotans with the beginning of the automatic expungement process.
Included in the 2023 public safety bill but officially in effect on January 1, 2025, the automatic expungement process will make it much easier for certain non-violent offenders to have criminal offenses expunged from their records. Previously, in order for these low-level offenses to be expunged, a person had to petition for an expungement, have it approved by a prosecutor and go through a court process. Now, the process has become much simpler and automated.
New Automatic Expungement
Under the new law, a person will be eligible for automatic expungement relief if charges were dismissed based on a finding that the person was incompetent to proceed, the proceedings were dismissed pursuant to certain drug offenses, or all pending charges were resolved in favor of the person. Moreover, a person who completes a diversion program or the term of probation for a stay of adjudication will be eligible for automatic expungement if they are not convicted of a new offense other than a petty misdemeanor for one year immediately following the completion of their diversion program or one year before a subsequent review.
The law also establishes that a person is eligible for automatic expungement if they were convicted of a qualifying offense and have not been convicted of any other offense in Minnesota during the applicable waiting period, which ranges from 2-5 years depending on the offense, and not be charged with an offense at the time of review. Qualifying offenses include:
• Petty misdemeanors, other than traffic and parking offenses;
• Misdemeanors, other than DWI and offenses related to domestic violence; and
• Gross misdemeanors, other than DWI and offenses related to domestic violence.
Additional aspects to note about the automatic expungement process in Minnesota include:
• The court must notify a defendant of automatic expungement eligibility when dismissing charges. And, to an extent possible, prosecutors, defense attorneys, supervising agents, and diversion program coordinators or supervisors must notify eligible individuals.
• The Bureau of Criminal Apprehension must identify individuals eligible for automatic expungement and make an initial determination of eligibility within 30 days of the end of the applicable waiting period.
The law officially went into effect on January 1, 2025, and it applies to offenses that meet the eligibility criteria on or after that date, but it also retroactively applies to offenses that met those qualifications prior to January 1, 2025. This means that many Minnesotans will soon find that previous convictions will be expunged from their records!
We’re still learning more about this automatic expungement process, but if you currently need help beating criminal charges and avoiding a stain on your criminal record, reach out to Avery and the team at Appelman Law Firm today at (952) 224-2277.
