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Can a misdemeanor in NY be sealed or expunged?

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Barbara McKeon

Junior Member
What is the name of your state? NY
A young man I am working with was arrested when he was 17 with a group of others his age as they were accused of not paying a taxi fare. It was a case of mistaken identity however it was 3 AM and he had a knife in his pocket that could open and close (more like a large pocket knife not a switchblade) they arrested him for that and he was tried as an adult and given community service. He has since gone on to college and work for two years in a good job. He wants to teach but is concerned that a background check will show all that happened. Is there any way he can get this off his record --its been 7 yrs.
 


To be honest getting your record expunged is almost impossible unless you were pardoned or wrongfully convicted. Sealing your criminal record can cause more damage than just leaving it public. When you seal a criminal record you are not erasing it, you are essentially just blocking the contents of your criminal history. So when a potential employer performs a background check and his record comes back as sealed they are going to wonder what exactly is he blocking, could it be a murder, rape, sexual assault, burglary etc. These are the reasons why it’s more damaging to seal your record instead of leaving it public. I know this sucks and the CORI system does need to be reformed badly, but until then we have to learn how to deal with these situations as best as possible.

If he is persistent on sealing his record all he has to do is file a petition to seal in his local court and hire a lawyer to advocate his argument. Same applies for him trying to expunge his record.
 

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