Expunction in Texas

[Jay_Dawg]

In May 2003 I was arrested for Shoplifting and it resulted in a charge of a Class B misdemeanor of Theft $50>$500. I was put onto Pretrial Diversion and it was dismissed in August of 2004. How long do i have before i can file and how much time do i have to file before it is too late? What is the Cost of the Expunction Process in Texas and What is the easiest way to do it?
Thank you in advance to any one who can help!
God Bless

[aaron]

The law of expunction in Texas is set forth on the Texas Legislature website - mostly at Chapter 55 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. There does not appear to be a required waiting period before you may petition for expungement.

If you handle the expungement yourself, there is a service fee, and there may be a filing fee, but the costs should be relatively modest. It would be more expensive to use a lawyer, but generally speaking a lawyer can (a) tell you if it is premature to seek an expunction, and (b) improve your odds of gaining an expunction should you file a petition, by making sure that the petition is in proper form, and that the judge will more likely be convinced that you have truly reformed and are deserving of relief.

[vmcmurry]

You are likely not eligble for an expungement but rather an order of non-disclosure. A person may petition a court for an order of nondisclosure five years after the discharge and dismissal of enumerated misdemeanor offenses and ten years after the discharge and dismissal of felony offenses for which the person was placed on deferred adjudication and successfully completed the required community supervision [Tex. Gov't. Code 411.081(d)(1)(2) ].

[Insane]

I need to see about getting something expunged..

Charge details

Offense Date: 2003/02/17 (YYYY/MM/DD)
Nature of Offense: EVADING ARREST/DENTENTION W/VEH
Action: DEFERRED ADJUDICATION
Authority/Court: 77TH DISTRICT COURT GROESBECK
City/State/Zip: GROESBECK, Texas 77642
Country: United States

I had probation and it was dropped to a misdemeanor. I am going over seas and applying for a top secret security clearence. I already hold a secert clearence but this is a little more in depth.

[Insane]

I did find something interesting in my research


2. No Wait Misdemeanors

Defendants with misdemeanors that are not on the five-year wait list and that are otherwise eligible may petition immediately upon completion of their probation.29 Common misdemeanors on the no wait list include all thefts, marijuana possession, burglary of vehicle, evading and resisting arrest, driving with license suspended and criminal trespass.30

[vmcmurry]

You can only expunge this if it was dropped to a Class C Misdemeanor. For all other misdemeanors (with the exception of a few exempt offenses), you an seal the record using an order of non-disclosure. It isn't quite as good as an expunction as govt agencies will still have access to your records and some other exempt entities (ie: schools, hospitals, etc.) However, some agencies will honor the non-disclosure. I'm not sure how it will affect your secrurity clearance as the fed govt takes a whole different approach to these things.