Navigating the complexities of expungement
Hi, I’m Oklahoma City Attorney Aaron Easton, specializing in criminal defense and post-conviction representation throughout Oklahoma. Welcome to another installment of Case Closed, where I share real-life success stories from the courtroom and the valuable lessons learned along the way. Of course, to protect client confidentiality, I won’t be sharing any names or identifying details, but the key takeaways from these cases can, and hopefully will, help someone facing similar challenges.
Today, we’re discussing a case involving an expungement, typically kind of a boring subject. So, to begin, it’s important to note that the challenge typically in an expungement is first interpreting the very lengthy statute correctly to determine whether or not you qualify for an expungement, and then going through the process in getting that expungement, which typically is all done on paper via motions and proposed orders. Point being, there’s not a lot of litigation or time in the courtroom on these matters.
Overcoming Objections to Secure an Expungement
We had a client who retained our services to receive an Oklahoma County expungement for a previous conviction of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon. This particular client had called several law firms prior to ours to question other attorneys about getting this expungement and was told that he didn’t qualify. Luckily, he did call our firm, we spoke with him, investigated the specifics of his case, his criminal history, things of that nature, and determined he did, in fact, qualify, and upon him retaining, we motioned the court for that expungement.
The first thing we got in this case was Oklahoma County District Attorney’s Office submitting an objection, filing an objection to our expungement, claiming he did not qualify. That was followed by OSPI, the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation, likewise filing an objection to that expungement request, forcing us to then set a hearing date and file a response to that objection. Luckily, we gave our response well enough, explained the statutes and his legal right to such an expungement well enough that both of those entities withdrew their objections.
Call to Action: Schedule Your Free Consultation
If you are someone or someone you know is facing criminal charges or seeking a post-conviction relief of some sort, don’t wait. Reach out to me to discuss how I might be able to help. And if I can’t help, I will at least give you an understanding of where you stand. So thanks for watching this episode of Case Closed, and I’ll see you next time with another success story and some more lessons learned from the courtroom. In the meantime, if you would like to speak with somebody at my firm, give us a phone call at 405-888-5400 or look us up online at oklahomacitycriminaldefenseattorney.pro.