RÉSUMÉ DIGEST
ACT 200 (HB 284) 2015 Regular Session Lopinto
Existing law provides for the expungement of criminal records of arrest and convictions of
certain criminal offenses.
Existing law provides that an arrest that did not result in a conviction may be expunged if the
time period for prosecution has expired and the person was not prosecuted, the district
attorney declined to prosecute any offenses arising out of the arrest, or proceedings were
finally disposed of by dismissal, sustaining a motion to quash, or acquittal.
New law provides that no person arrested for a violation of operating a vehicle while
intoxicated and placed by the prosecuting authority into a pretrial diversion program shall
be entitled to an expungement of the record until five years have elapsed since the date of
arrest for that offense.
New law provides that motions to expunge a record of arrest that did not result in a
conviction shall be served in the same manner as all other expungement motions.
New law provides that when service of a motion of expungement is made by U.S. mail, the
motion shall be accompanied by a certificate of service indicating the date the motion was
placed in the U.S. mail for service.
Prior law provided that a misdemeanor conviction which arose from circumstances involving
a sex offense cannot be expunged.
New law changes the provisions of prior law to provide that if the misdemeanor conviction
is the result of an arrest for a sex offense, the record cannot be expunged.
New law adds that a misdemeanor conviction for the crime of stalking cannot be expunged.
Existing law provides that the court shall order the clerk of court to mail to the DPS&C,
office of motor vehicles, a certified copy of the record of the guilty plea, fingerprints, and
proof of eligibility to make the plea when records involve DWI violations.
New law provides that when a defendant who has entered a plea pursuant to existing law in
a DWI case seeks an expungement, the clerk of court may send a copy of a letter issued by
DPS&C in lieu of sending the documents and fingerprints again, if the clerk had previously
sent those documents at the time of the plea.
New law authorizes the clerk of court to change the statutory forms to provide for the
appropriate name of the court ordering the expungement.
Existing law provides that juveniles who successfully participate in a drug court program are
exempt from expungement fees.
New law amends the expungement forms to include participation in drug court programs as
eligible for a fee exemption.
New law makes additional changes to the forms to make them consistent with existing law
and to provide for additional identification information and clarity to form language.
Effective August 1, 2015.
(Amends C.Cr.P. Arts. 976, 977(C)(intro. para.) and (1), 978(B)(1) and (3), 979, 980(C) and
(D), 984(C), 988, 989, and 992; Adds C.Cr.P. Arts. 894.5, 977(C)(3), 984(D), 986(C), and
996)