In Florida, expunction is governed by Florida Statute 943.0585. When a court grants it, every criminal justice agency holding the record must physically destroy or obliterate its copy, except the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, which retains a confidential copy released only on a court order.
From that point you may lawfully deny the arrest in most situations. Section 943.0585(6)(b) lists nine exceptions where you must still disclose it, and knowing whether one of them applies to you matters more than anything else about the process.
Understanding Expungement
Expunction removes an arrest record from public access. Under Florida Statute 943.0585(6)(a), the arresting agency and every other agency it sent the record to must destroy their copies, and the FDLE copy that remains is confidential and exempt from Florida's public records law. Sealing under Florida Statute 943.059 is the related remedy for records that are not eligible for expunction: a sealed record still exists and is restricted rather than destroyed.
Eligibility Criteria for Expungement
Florida sets its eligibility criteria in Florida Statute 943.0585(1), and they are narrower than most people expect. Court-ordered expunction is available where:
- No charging document was filed in the case, or the charge was dismissed, nolle prossed, or ended in an acquittal or a not guilty verdict. Florida Statute 943.0585(1)(a) and (1)(b).
- You have never been adjudicated guilty of a criminal offense in Florida, and never adjudicated delinquent for a felony or for one of the 13 misdemeanors listed in Florida Statute 943.0585(1)(d).
- You were not adjudicated guilty or delinquent for anything arising out of the arrest you want expunged, and you are no longer under court supervision for it. Florida Statute 943.0585(1)(e) and (1)(f).
- You have never had a record sealed or expunged in Florida before. Florida Statute 943.0585(1)(g) makes this a one-time remedy, with a narrow exception for a record already sealed for 10 years.
- The offense is not one that Florida Statute 943.0584 makes ineligible for court-ordered expunction.
- Before petitioning the court, you must obtain a certificate of eligibility from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement under Florida Statute 943.0585(2), which requires a state attorney's certified statement, a certified copy of the disposition, and a $75 processing fee.
A conviction, meaning an adjudication of guilt, cannot be expunged in Florida at all. Where adjudication was withheld, the record may instead be eligible for sealing under Florida Statute 943.059. A criminal defense attorney can pull your disposition and tell you which of the two, if either, your record qualifies for.
Benefits of Expungement
The practical value of expunction comes from one provision. Florida Statute 943.0585(6)(b) lets you lawfully deny or fail to acknowledge the arrests covered by the expunged record, and section 943.0585(6)(c) says you cannot be charged with perjury or held liable for a false statement for doing so. Here is where that helps, and where it does not.
Employment Advantages
For most private employers, an expunged arrest will not appear on a background check and you may lawfully answer no when asked about it. Florida Statute 943.0585(6)(b) lists the exceptions where you must still disclose: applying for employment with a criminal justice agency; being a defendant in a criminal prosecution; petitioning for further relief under section 943.0583, 943.059, or 943.0585; applying for admission to The Florida Bar; seeking employment, licensure, or a contract with the Department of Children and Families, the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation, the Agency for Health Care Administration, the Agency for Persons with Disabilities, the Department of Health, the Department of Elderly Affairs, or the Department of Juvenile Justice in a sensitive position with direct contact with children, the disabled, or the elderly; working in a school, charter school, or child care setting; seeking a license from the Division of Insurance Agent and Agency Services; seeking appointment as a guardian under section 744.3125; or being screened through the Care Provider Background Screening Clearinghouse under section 435.12. FDLE discloses the existence of the record to those entities under section 943.0585(6)(d).
Housing Opportunities
Landlords are not on the exception list in Florida Statute 943.0585(6)(b), so a rental application is one of the situations where you may lawfully deny the expunged arrest. Private tenant screening services build their reports from public records, and an expunged record has been removed from those.
Improved Education Access
Applying to a college or for a scholarship also falls outside the exception list, so an expunged arrest does not have to be disclosed on those applications. Working at one is different: seeking employment or a license with the Department of Education, a school district, a charter school, a private or parochial school, or a virtual instruction program is an exception under Florida Statute 943.0585(6)(b)6., and the arrest must be disclosed there.
Reduction of Stigma
The last benefit is the one clients mention most: not having to explain an old arrest to strangers. Under Florida Statute 943.0585(6)(c), you are not committing perjury when you answer no in a situation outside the exception list, which is what makes the relief usable rather than theoretical.
Speak To An Attorney About Record Expungement In Florida
Whether your record can be expunged depends on facts that are already fixed: how the charge was resolved, whether adjudication was withheld, and whether you have used the one-time remedy before. An attorney can pull the disposition and tell you which relief, if any, is available to you.
Call Weinstein Legal Team at 888.626.1108 or click here to schedule a free case review with an attorney today.
