If you have successfully completed deferred adjudication in Houston, you may be eligible for a petition for non-disclosure. It is important to note that completion of deferred adjudication does not automatically seal your record; you must file a petition of non-disclosure to seal the record.
First, you must successfully complete your deferred adjudication probation.
If you completed deferred adjudication for a felony, five (5) years from the date of the discharge must elapse before a petition for non-disclosure can be filed. For most misdemeanors, you can file immediately after completing the deferred adjudication. However, for some misdemeanors, you must wait two (2) years after the date of discharge before seeking a petition for non-disclosure.
Misdemeanors that require a two-year waiting period include assault, deadly conduct, disorderly conduct, and unlawfully carrying a weapon.
If the two or five year waiting period applies to you, you cannot be convicted or put on deferred adjudication for another offense during that period. Traffic tickets during the waiting period are okay.
Finally, you cannot have ever been convicted of certain offenses or placed on deferred adjudication for certain offenses. These offenses include any crime that requires registration as a sex offender, aggravated kidnapping, murder, injury to a child, stalking, and any offense that involves family violence.
Effect: If you are granted non-disclosure, criminal justice agencies will not be allowed to disclose information about the offense. Furthermore, you may deny that you were ever arrested, except in a future criminal prosecution.
The law allows for certain government agencies to obtain information about your offense. Some of those agencies include the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, the Texas Department of Health, and the TABC.
Non-disclosure orders do not apply in a few other limited instances. For example, if you apply to be a teacher, a school may get information about your arrest. If you apply to be a nurse or a lawyer, the Boards that regulate those professions in Texas may get information about your offense. Or if you want to adopt a child, a non-disclosure order will not apply.
Please Note: I usually take clearing record cases in Harris County and surrounding counties. If your offense occurred outside of Harris and surrounding counties, please contact a criminal defense lawyer in that county.
If your case was in Harris or a surrounding county, and you are interested in having your case handled correctly, please contact me via this at (713) 487-7575. However, while my rates are reasonable, if you are looking for the lowest price possible, it will not be me. Thank you.