Kansas Expungement Laws

The basis of our judicial system is that a person is presumed innocent until proven guilty. In theory, that's a solid foundation for our society. In practice, an arrest results in a criminal record whether you are proven innocent or not. Any person can access these records and see that you were clearly once arrested. The rest of the story might not be part of the file. All they will know is that you were once considered a criminal by the state of Kansas.

That's not a reputation anyone wants especially when it comes to applying for a new job or bank loan. If you have the change to clear that record and have it wiped out wouldn't you want to take advantage of that? In Kansas, you can have that arrest record expunged. This means that for all practical purposes, the arrest never took place. That can be of a great benefit for anyone who wants a fresh slate.

When a Kansas expungement is granted all the files pertaining to your arrest are either destroyed or given directly to you. The simplest way to get an expungement in Kansas is if you were mistakenly arrested or your cased was ultimately dropped. There are some other categories of criminal offenses in Kansas that are eligible for an expungement. These include minor traffic incidents, some types of misdemeanors offenses, or Class D or E felonies that were committed before July 1, 1993. Also if you were arrested without probable cause or the crime was non drug related you may be entitled to an expungement in Kansas.

In the cases of a conviction of those minor crimes, you can apply for an expungement three years after your sentence has been complete or you have been taken off of any form of parole. With the more serious Class A, B or C felonies, you will have to wait five years before filing. It will be assumed by the courts that during that waiting period you didn't get into any other trouble. If so, your expungement will probably be denied. There will be absolutely no expungement granted with crimes involving rape or murder.

To file for an expungement in Kansas you should be working with an experienced attorney who is well versed in these matters. The information needed on the petition should be readily available but navigating through the intricacies of the court system isn't something you should concern yourself especially with such an important matter.