How Can I Get My Federal Conviction Expunged from My Record?

The sad part is that the Federal criminal courts are extraordinarily unfair. Even though there's a presumption of innocence that the judges and prosecutors talk about, the reality is in federal court, the presumption really is that everyone charged is guilty, which is why you need a strong, competent, experienced criminal defense lawyer. If you're convicted of a federal crime, unfortunately, Congress doesn't allow the conviction to be expunged or to be sealed. Expungement and sealing of criminal records under certain circumstances is permitted in state courts in almost every state, including Florida. But in the federal courts around the country, there's no such thing as expungement, so you've got to apply for a pardon, a presidential pardon. It's very, very, very difficult to get that as you can well imagine. So the bottom line is, you need the best possible representation to make sure you don't get convicted of the federal felony, because it'll follow you your entire life. I've been practicing for 41 years, and there isn't a week that goes by that someone doesn't come in who says "I was convicted of a crime many years ago, I can't hold the job, I can't get a bank loan, this always comes up." And unfortunately, because the federal laws are so harsh and so unfair, there's nothing you can do about hiding a federal conviction. So call us and we can help you.

By Jeffrey S. Weiner, P.A.