Found Not Guilty. What do I do now?

[michaelmoore196]

What is the name of your state? Texas

To make a long story short I was charged in a class c misdemeanor for thefy which I did not commit. They claimed to have all this evidence against me. I decided to go to court and fight it and not make a plea with the prosecutor because I was innocent. The witness's did not even show up and I was found not guilty and charges were dismissed. My concern is that will the accusation that I commited theft be on my record though? For example if a company I am interviewing with does a background check will the charge or accusation of theft come up even though I was not guilty? Do I need to take further action or have nothing else to worry about. Thanks for all the help. your state?

 

[Kane]

Were you found not guilty, or were the charges dismissed?

Either way you're entitled to an expunction. But, at least according to the Code of Criminal Procedure, if you'd been acquitted, the prosecutor is supposed prepare the Petition for Expunction for you. (Not that he'd have any any idea how to do it, or even know that he was supposed to.)

Art. 55.02. Procedure for Expunction

Sec. 1. At the request of the defendant and after notice to the
state, the trial court presiding over the case in which the
defendant was acquitted, if the trial court is a district court, or
a district court in the county in which the trial court is located
shall enter an order of expunction for a person entitled to
expunction under article 55.01(a)(1)(a) not later than the 30th day
after the date of the acquittal. Upon acquittal, the trial court
shall advise the defendant of the right to expunction. The
defendant shall provide to the district court all of the
information required in a petition for expunction under Section
2(b). The attorney for the defendant in the case in which the
defendant was acquitted, if the defendant was represented by
counsel, or the attorney for the state, if the defendant was not
represented by counsel, shall prepare the order for the court's
signature.

Click http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/statutes/cr.toc.htm for the CCP. Expunctions are explained in Chapter 55.

Expunctions are not automatic. There are records of the arrest and of the disposition of the case. Whether any particular company will find them, or whether anyone would care, I don't know.

A class C is not a serious offense. But a lot of companies - I'm told - don't like thefts.

 

[michaelmoore196]

The just called for the witness's to come up and no one showed up and the judge said not guilty and said the charges would be dismissed. I asked if I needed to do anything else on my side and they said no. I even asked if I should expect to get any paperwork in the mail and they said no. What actions do I need to take to get it expunged. It seems that they are not going to do anything and I have to do it on my end. Should I contact the court tomorrow and find out more. The case was today, but I want to get it taken care of as soon as possible. Please get back with me Kane and if anyone has any advice please let me know.

 

[Kane]

It seems that they are not going to do anything and I have to do it on my end.

That seems likely to me.

As a practical matter, you'll probably need to get a lawyer.

When a person gets arrested, a record gets made at the police agency. When the police forward the case to the prosecutor, the prosecutor's office makes a record. When they file the case in court, the court makes a record of it too.

Records might also wind up in a county or district clerk's office or in other state agencies. DPS usually gets records sent to it too.

If you want to get all those records deleted or destroyed, you have to file an expunction with a District Judge, obtain a court date, and get a copy of the petition served on the affected agencies (police, prosecutors, etc.)

That's so they can come to the hearing if they have any objections to the petition.

The judge will review the petition and decide whether to grant it. If he does, he'll sign an order (that you provide with the petition) and the order will get sent back to all the agencies you originally listed in your petition.

The order will say they have to destroy the records you list in your petition.

Then it's up to them to actually follow through and do it.

The order will not affect private companies who make money by combing through public records and then selling the information to third parties. (Which is where companies like publicinfo.com get their information.) It will only affect the agencies you specifically name in your petition. Of course, once it gets deleted off state records, it won't be there for them to find anymore, so it's reasonably effective.

The costs of filing the petition (filing fees + service of process) where I live run from three to four hundred dollars. Lawyers will charge whatever they charge, but expect to pay a minimum of another three to four hundred if you hire a lawyer to do it for you.