Changes to Marijuana-Related Expungements (Part 15)

by Fred Sisto | Mar 3, 2020 | Blog, Criminal Law, Drug Crime, Marijuana, Monmouth County, New Jersey, Ocean County

The amendments to N.J.S.A 2C:52-6 continue:

(2) A court order vacating an expungement that is granted to a person pursuant to this subsection may be issued upon an action filed by a county prosecutor with the court that granted the expungement, if filed no later than 30 days after the expungement order was issued, with notice to the person, and a hearing is scheduled at which the county prosecutor shows proof that the expungement was granted in error due to a statutory disqualification to expungement that existed at the time the relief was initially granted.

d. Any public employee or public agency that provides information or records pursuant to this section shall be immune from criminal and civil liability as a result of an act of commission or omission by that person or entity arising out of and in the course of participation in, or assistance with, in good faith, an expungement. The immunity shall be in addition to and not in limitation of any other immunity provided by law.

6. (New section) a. (1) No later than three months after the effective date of this section, the Administrative Office of the Courts shall develop and maintain a system for sealing records from the public, upon order of a court, pertaining to offenses or delinquent acts involving marijuana or hashish as described in this section. Once the system is developed, unless otherwise provided by law, a court shall order the nondisclosure to the public of the records of the court and probation services, and records of law enforcement agencies with respect to any arrest, conviction, or adjudication of delinquency, and any proceedings related thereto, upon disposition of any case occurring on or after the development of the system for sealing records that solely includes the following convictions or adjudications of delinquency:

c.101 (C.2C:35-7) or subsection a. of section 1 of P.L.1997, c.327 (C.2C:35-7.1) for distributing, or possessing or having under control with intent to distribute, on or within 1,000 feet of any school property, or on or within 500 feet of the real property comprising a public housing facility, public park, or public building;

This section becomes effective on June 15, 2020. Therefore, the Legislature is requiring the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) to implement the new system for sealing marijuana-related records by September 15, 2020. There may be litigation surrounding the separation of powers issue between the Legislative and Judicial branches of our state government if the AOC fails to get the proposed system in place by September 15. The AOC falls under the Judicial branch of government.

      Excellent rating  
 Based on 288 reviews 
    
  
 
 
      Mr Sisto is an excellent lawyer. The tickets I received were nothing compared to the charges i had originally. I got the best possible outcome for my case, and Mr Sisto was incredibly understanding and patient and responded to any questions I had within about 30 minutes of me asking them. I'll be going to him again for any legal trouble I have in the future
     Brandon K 
 
 
 
 
    mr. fred sisto esq. was very professional, answered all questions i had, & made my husband & i feel more at ease about our criminal case.
     Meridith T 
 
 
 
 
    Fred never represented me but been in touch with him a few times and was a very professional experience from the minute I called the office
     Jj B 
 
 
 
 
    Fred is a very competent attorney.  He is knowledgeable, thorough, effective and possesses outstanding interpersonal skills. He provided excellent representation in my case and obtained a favorable outcome.
     Michael G 
 
 
 
 
    Fred Sisto's attention to detail, his representation and unwavering advocacy for me made all the difference in my case.
     Jill F 
 
 
 
 
    Hired Mr.Sisto to handle a case of mine a couple of months ago and while the service was okay the customer service was awful. When I had inquired about a charge I was unsure of on my bill, Mr. Sisto immediately got defensive and had the unprofessionalism to ask me if I “was high” for asking this question. I wonder if Mr. Sisto asks all of his clients this question or only the ones who have jobs in the cannabis industry? Regardless, I don’t believe this was an appropriate question to ask, regardless of the industry one works in, and therefore Mr. Sisto needs to heavily work on his customer service. Edit: Mr. Sisto had the UNPROFESSIONALISM to reach out to my family and ask them to ask me to take down my review instead of reaching out directly towards me when it was I who was his client, not my family. Clearly speaks to the unprofessionalism surrounding this practice. This has not been the only time Mr.Sisto has gone directly to my family instead of me, his client, for important legal matters and I will not seek out his services again. For those who may not understand Spanish, the email starts with “You should speak to your daughter regarding the review she has just published.” Edit to Response: As an attorney, one should be able to make appropriate questions and comments regardless if a client is “uncooperative” or “disrespectful.” The fact that rather than apologizing for the awful interaction with your firm, and I was not released  “within hours” as you claim shows how low value your firm is and how you openly  instead chose to harass my family through email for my initial review rather than actually revomy case which I ended up doing and you chareged me for . Regardless of results, your character speaks volumes and anyone who reads this would know better than to give their money to an awful person such as yourself. What a shame
     Ximena C 
 
 
 
 
    Mr. Sisto was knowledgeable preofessional and experienced. He knew the right steps to take every step of the way and went above and beyond to make sure that I understood the situation. Mr. Sisto will have your back in any legal matter!
     Corey S 
 
 
 
 
    2 👍🏻👍🏻 up
     Cc 
 
 
 
 
    Very informative. Would not hesitate to use Attorney Sisto.
     Rose C 
 
 
 
 
    Realmente es un gran abogado, me ayudo muchísimo en todo este proceso y sobre todo que habla español que es una de las cosas importantes para mi. Por que lo hizo mas entendible y facil cada una de las cosas que tenía que hacer y su amabilidad y paciencia para poder explicarme qué tenía que hacer. Además que mi caso fue un éxito gracias a él ya cada uno de sus conocimientos y a su apoyo en todo momento. Lo recomiendo 100%.
     Luis A