Cleaning Your Record
There are multiple ways to clean your record, whether you have an infraction, misdemeanor, or felony.
There are multiple ways to clean your record, depending on the type of conviction. For infractions, misdemeanors, and felonies, applicants must not have any pending cases and cannot be on probation or parole at the time of their petition. For infractions, applicants must also wait for at least one year from the conviction date to apply. To request dismissal for an infraction or misdemeanor, applicants should submit forms CR-180, Petition for Dismissal, and CR-181, Order for Dismissal, for the judge to sign. A judge can reject the dismissal if the terms or conditions of an applicant’s probation were not satisfied. Felony convictions with probation or a country jail sentence can be petitioned for dismissal or reduced to a misdemeanor. Regardless, applicants must satisfy all conditions of their probation and submit CR-180 and CR-181 to request a dismissal.
Individuals convicted of a felony drug possession with a value less than $950 before November 2014 are eligible to apply to reduce their felony to a misdemeanor conviction. Proposition 47, passed in 2014, reclassified drug possession from a felony to a misdemeanor. Other low-level and non-violent theft convictions with values under $950, such as petty theft, grand theft, and commercial burglary can also be dismissed. The deadline to apply is November 4, 2022; anyone who files after the deadline must provide a “good cause” as to why the deadline was missed. If the court grants the petition, the conviction will be reduced. California does not have a statewide Proposition 47 form, so please contact your local court for your county’s respective form. Los Angeles County uses form CRIM-235, Application/Petition for Resentencing and People’s Response, to file under Prop 47.
For more information on cleaning your record, please refer to the California Court system’s instructions on the process. Their website includes a feature to help individuals determine what resources and specific steps are available to them depending on their offense. To learn more about cleaning a misdemeanor or felony from your record, or cleaning your record as a non-citizen, check out the court’s dedicated overview for each. The California Court website also offers an overview on Proposition 47 to learn more about your eligibility.
