In this video, our Elmhurst expungement attorneys explain the process of having your criminal records physically destroyed or returned to you and of removing the record from public view. To do this, first, you must file a petition and pay a fee with the circuit clerk in the county in which the arrests occurred or the charges were brought.  If you were arrested or charged in multiple counties, then you must file a petition in each of those county.  If you fall below federal poverty guidelines, you may be able to have the fee waived.

‍The circuit clerk will serve notice of the petition to the State’s Attorney or prosecutor who prosecuted the offense, the Department of State Police, the arresting agency, and the chief legal officer of the unit of local government that made the arrest.  Any of these agencies has the right to file an objection to the petition within 60 days of being served notice.  

The judge will then either hold a hearing, or, if there are no objections to the petition, the judge may simply enter an order granting the petition.  Even if you are eligible for expungement or sealing, the court will have discretion to grant or deny the petition.  ​

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In this video, our Elmhurst expungement attorneys explain how to challenge your Illinois criminal history. In order to request a correction or modification of your Illinois criminal record, you should fill out the Record Challenge form that is received from the Illinois State Police after submitting an Access and Review request and send it to the Illinois State Police. The Illinois State Police will provide you with a written response to the Record Challenge form, which will inform you either of any action taken to correct the criminal record or a statement that the Illinois State Police have decided not to make a correction.

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In this video, our Elmhurst expungement lawyers discuss what type of marijuana drug charges can be expunged and how to do so. Under the new law some drug possession convictions will be automatically expunged. If you received a conviction for possession of up to 30 grams of cannabis and the conviction was not related to a more serious crime, your conviction is likely to be automatically pardoned and expunged from your record.  If you have a conviction for possession of between 30 and 500 grams of cannabis or possession of drug paraphernalia, your conviction will not be automatically expunged, but, beginning in 2020, you will have the opportunity to affirmatively petition the court to expunge the conviction.

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