My 20yr old stole something from a mall store and was offered a class (Cognitive Behavior Intervention Program) for $400.00 to have no record. Scared she did not tell me, so now I have paid the fee for the theft but I want to know if it can be expunges or sealed. She is a 3rd yr student and just made a really bad mistake following behind some people she thought were her friends.
If she came out of this with no criminal record, then the offense was likely dismissed upon payment of the fine. But she would have to take proactive steps to petition the court to get the expungement from there. She would appear to be eligible for one in that her case was dismissed after successful completion of her sentence, and the statute does not say that a deferment would not constitue a dismissal for purposes of an expungement. Your daughter would have to apply to the court where she appeared. She would need to get a hearing. Here's the North Carolina law, some how-to information and the form you can download. This can be done without a lawyer if she's comfortable with do-it-yourself law and wants to represent herself at a hearing. Otherwise, there are lawyers who specialize in pardons, expungements and the restoration of rights, and she could find one by contacting the NC Bar Association's Lawyer Referral Service.
She did not do the class so she does have the record. She was to scared to tell me, so I paid a fine to a the people representing Macy's, but without that class the charges applied.
Hi,The fine you paid to Macy's was a civil penalty and not a criminal penalty. Did your daughter appear in criminal court as well? Sometimes stores just accept the civil penalty and the criminal matter never gets prosecuted at all. If she's never appeared in criminal court there's likely nothing to expunge.FranL41113.6599037847
Hi,
Hi,Sorry for the delay. I was making myself some lunch.What you paid Macys was, as I mentioned before a civil fine. Macy's is entitled to that under civil law, whether or not your daughter attended the program. You believe that she only got the civil fine because she didn't attend the program, but that's not so. If she was mandated to attend the program and didn't there would be a criminal court warrant presently out there against her.Or, the matter might never have been prosecuted. Did she plead guilty to anything or sign anything stating her guilt at the courthouse?I'm not trying to be confusing. You need to be sure of what's going on here. If there's no criminal case, there's nothing to expunge. If there IS a criminal case and there's a warrant for her failure to complete the program, that must be addressed before any expungement happens.Have your daughter call the court where she found out about the program. Give her name to the court clerk and ask him to look up her case and see what its status is. (I don't know that they will tell you). If they say they have no record of it, they never filed anything, If they say she has a warrant, she should get herself a lawyer and return on that and resolve this case. If they say it's still open, ask when the next court date will be. But if there's NO conviction, there is no need for an expungement.
Hi
Hi,I'm glad that I put you through all of those steps. I knew that the fine could not have resolved the case.Your daughter made a mess of it that has to be undone. She will definitely need a lawyer, and it would be best for her if the lawyer is with her when she returns to court to vacate the warrant. Without a lawyer, the judge may put her in jail and she will have to be bailed out. With one, she has a better chance of resolving this while at liberty, and of getting a second shot at the program or some other disposition that could keep her record clean.
Hi,You're very welcome. I'm glad I was able to assist. I wish your daughter good luck with her case!