Expunging or Sealing a Felony in Alabama

A felony conviction can be expunged only if the person has received a pardon from the Board of Pardons and Paroles with restoration of civil and political rights, all forfeited rights have been restored, and 180 days have passed since the pardon was issued. Violent offenses, sex offenses, crimes involving moral turpitude (with a narrow exception) and serious traffic offenses are excluded, along with certain commercial-driver offenses. A few listed violent offenses may be expunged by human-trafficking victims. Only one pardoned-felony expungement is allowed in a lifetime.

First get a certified copy of your criminal history from ALEA. File a sworn Petition for Expungement of Records (Form CR-65) in the criminal division of the circuit court in the county where the charges were filed, attaching a certified arrest record, disposition or case action summary and the certified ALEA record. The form allows one charge per petition. Serve the district attorney, the law enforcement agency and the clerk of court. The district attorney and any victim have 45 days to object; if an objection is filed, the court sets a hearing no sooner than 14 days later and weighs factors such as the offense, the person's age and evidence of rehabilitation. If no objection is filed, the court may rule without a hearing.

After expungement, the proceedings are deemed never to have occurred, and courts and agencies respond to inquiries that no record exists. The person does not have to disclose the record on applications for employment, credit or other applications, but must disclose it to government regulatory or licensing agencies, utilities, and banks or other financial institutions, which may inspect the expunged records after giving notice to the court. Expunged records are kept by ALEA and remain available to criminal justice agencies for investigations. Expungement under state law may not change how federal immigration authorities treat a record.