EXPUNGEMENT SUMMARY

The statute that governs expungment in Georgia is O.C.G.A. 35-3-37. I have summarized the major components of the statute below:

1.  An individual who was: 

(A) Arrested for an offense under the laws of this state but after the  arrest is released by the arresting agency(police department, sheriff’s department or other law enforcement agency) without the offense being referred to the prosecuting attorney for prosecution; or

(B) After the offense is referred to the proper prosecuting attorney, and the prosecuting attorney dismisses the charges without seeking an indictment or filing an accusation

The individual may request the original agency(police department or sheriff’s department) in writing to expunge the records of such arrest, including any fingerprints or photographs of the individual taken in conjunction with such arrest, from the agency files.

2. Once the arresting agency receives the request, the agency shall provide a copy of the request to the proper prosecuting attorney.

RIGHT TO EXPUNGEMENT
An individual has the right to have his or her record of an  arrest expunged, including any fingerprints or photographs of the individual taken in connection with the  arrest, if the prosecuting attorney determines that the following criteria have been satisfied:


   ****Note:  You must satisfy ALL of the requirements not just 1 or 2 ****

(A) The charge was dismissed under the conditions that  was listed above in Paragraph 1;

(B) No other criminal charges are pending against the individual; AND

(C) The individual has not been previously convicted of the same or similar offense under the laws of this state, the United States, or any other state within the last five years, excluding any period of incarceration

What do I do if I meet the criteria:
Go to your police department or sheriff’s department to obtain the form or if you google” expungment in georgia”  you can view a copy of the form that is used.

There are administrative fees that are charged to complete this process.