Governor Signs Two Laws Regulating Sealing of Juvenile Records

San Jose Regulating Sealing Of Juvenile Records Lawyer And Santa Clara Criminal Defense Attorney

Crimes committed by adolescents can have devastating consequences on their futures, as having a criminal record can make it much more difficult to obtain housing, employment, and a higher education. Two new bills recently signed into law by Governor Jerry Brown will have a significant impact on the sealing of juvenile court records in delinquency cases, making it much easier for youths who have met all of the requirements to start over with a clean slate.

Sealing of Juvenile Criminal Records

The new laws were spurred by last year’s passage of Senate Bill 1038, which created a new court process for the auto-sealing of juvenile records when a qualifying youth satisfactorily completed probation. Despite the positive changes made by last year’s law, a significant amount of confusion continued to make it difficult for youths to have their records sealed. The new laws address some of those issues.

Assembly Bill 666

The first bill to be signed in to law, Assembly Bill 666, focuses on the uniform application of auto-sealing of juvenile records. Its provisions include:

• Requiring the Judicial Council of California to adopt court rules and forms to ensure that auto-sealing is applied uniformly across the state;
• Extending the court’s sealing order to cover law enforcement, probation agencies, and the
• Department of Justice’s records;
• Providing a definition of “satisfactory completion” of probation;
• Helping youth with outstanding restitution orders gain access to employment; and
• Permitting the court to seal prior petitions.

Lawmakers delineated some exceptions to auto-sealing in the new law, which contains provisions that still:

• • Allow prosecutors, courts, probation officers, and counsel to access previously sealed records for narrowly defined uses; and
  • Ensure that auto-sealing will not disrupt agency data collection by permitting agencies to access sealed records for that purpose and for the completion of court-approved studies.

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The new law also maintains the existing ban on record sealing for juveniles with a history of serious and violent offenses.

Senate Bill 504

The second bill signed into law by the Governor also amends certain aspects of the process of sealing by petition. This law waives all court, county, and city fees for anyone under the age of 26 who is trying to seal a juvenile record. Previously, the required payment of fees was a significant hardship to many youths who did not have the financial resources to pay fines, which could be as high as $150.

Having a juvenile record can have lifelong consequences for youths who have been convicted of crimes. Getting your record sealed is the best way to eliminate these hardships and move on with your life. If you want to seal your criminal record, please contact skilled San Jose criminal defense attorney Wesley Schroeder today to schedule an appointment.

Sources:

http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201520160AB666

http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201520160SB504