The New Jersey Supreme Court has decided that prior juvenile court convictions do not qualify as “prior crimes,” excluding expungement of an adult criminal record.
In the Matter of Expungement Application of D.J.B. was decided by the Court on January 23, 2014. While a teenager, D.J.B. was adjudged delinquent on several occasions for offenses that, if committed by an adult, would amount to indictable criminal charges, including burglary, theft, and various drug-related offenses.
D.J.B. also had an adult record, including a conviction for receiving stolen property.
Sixteen years later, D.J.B., who was married and had been gainfully employed for many years, filed a petition for expungement of the conviction and juvenile adjudications.
The trial judge ordered that the juvenile record be expunged but denied the petition to expunge the adult conviction. He held that the New Jersey expungement law prevented a petitioner with an indictable crime from obtaining expungement if he has a prior juvenile record of adjudication.
On appeal to the New Jersey Supreme Court, D.J.B. sought to expunge his criminal conviction for receiving stolen property. He argued that the law upon which the lower courts relied applies only to the way juvenile adjudications are evaluated for expungement and, therefore, a juvenile adjudication is not considered a “prior crime” and does not bar the expungement of an adult criminal conviction.
The New Jersey Supreme Court agreed, and held that an adult who is otherwise eligible for expungement of an adult conviction is not disqualified because of a prior juvenile adjudication.
In New Jersey, you are entitled to expungement of certain criminal offenses, as well as disorderly persons offenses, Municipal ordinance violations, and juvenile charges, whether or not they resulted in a conviction. The experienced New Jersey Criminal Defense Attorneys of Schwartz & Posnock can help you turn your life around by obtaining an expungement of your criminal record.
If you seek to expunge your adult or juvenile record, call Schwartz & Posnock for a consultation at any of our convenient offices in Monmouth County (Eatontown), Middlesex County (East Brunswick), and Essex County (Livingston), to discuss how we can assist you in obtaining a positive result in your case.