The New Jersey Supreme Court concluded with the following in relevant part: Courts and legal scholars recognize that a pardon removes the legal disabilities that stem from the fact of a conviction but does not erase what happened when an offense was committed or restore a person’s good character. Thus, although a pardon renders a […]
Gubernatorial Pardons and Expungements (Part 1)
On January 11, 2021, a unanimous New Jersey Supreme court decided the Hudson County case of In re Petition for Expungement of the Criminal Record Belonging to T.O. The principal issue under N.J.S.A. 52-1 was whether T.O.’s gubernatorial pardon permitted the granting of his expungement petition notwithstanding the statutory bars to expunging his drug and […]
Expungeable Offenses
The following repealed offenses from our old criminal code cannot be expunged under New Jersey law: murder, manslaughter, treason, anarchy, kidnapping, rape, forcible sodomy, arson, perjury, false swearing, robbery, embracery, or a conspiracy or any attempt to commit any of the foregoing, or aiding, assisting or concealing persons accused of the foregoing crimes. The current list offenses that cannot be expunged under New Jersey […]
Crime Spree Expungements (Part 2)
Judge O’Malley concluded with the following: The documents submitted do not indicate that police sought or executed a search warrant on petitioner or that any narcotics were recovered outside of the small amounts purchased by the “friend” and undercover officer. As a result, the manner in which the distribution was accomplished suggests that the events […]
Crime Spree Expungements (Part 1)
On November 12, 2019, Judge Jill O-Malley of the Monmouth County Law Division decided the case od State v. A.R. The principal issue under N.J.S.A. 52-1 concerned whether the “crime spree” exception made the defendant eligible for an expungement of convictions for offenses that occurred over six weeks. Judge O’Malley held in relevant part: In […]
