- This page, Request a non-time-based expungement of your criminal record, is offered by
- Massachusetts Court System
- District Court
- Boston Municipal Court
- Juvenile Court
- Superior Court
Request a non-time-based expungement of your criminal record
Contacts
Massachusetts Court System
Online
The Details
What you need
Having a criminal record expunged means that the record will be permanently destroyed so that it's no longer accessible by the court or any other state, municipal, or county agencies. It's not the same as having a record sealed.
In order to get an expungement based on a fraudulent record or decriminalized offense, you must demonstrate to the judge that the court record was created because of one of these reasons and that expunging the record would be in the interests of justice. You will need to fill out the Petition for Expungement Form. You should include all of the charges connected to the case that you're asking the judge to expunge. If you want to ask a judge to expunge records in different cases, you should file separate petitions for each case. When you fill out this petition, you should provide as much detail as possible. You can give the judge copies of documents that support your reasons for asking for expungement.
On the petition, there is a box to check for a hearing. At a hearing, you can tell the judge why your petition fits under of of the reasons above, and why granting the petition would be in the interests of justice.
Please note that this form may not display properly in your browser. Please download the form you need and open it in Acrobat Reader. For more information, please see What to do if you can't open court PDFs.
How to request
File the petition in the clerk's office in the court where the case was heard. You must also provide a copy of this petition and any documents that you file with the petition to the District Attorney's Office that prosecuted the case on or before the day that you file the petition in court. You can do this by bringing a copy to the District Attorney's Office or by mailing a copy to the District Attorney's Office.
More info
The judge can order expungement of your court record only if they determine that the record was created because of one of the reasons listed on the form and that expungement of the record would be in the interests of justice.
If the expungement is granted, the clerk will provide you with a copy of the expungement order. However, if you want copies of the records, any documents that you filed, or the petition, you must make copies before the court orders expungement. Once the record is destroyed, you won't be able to get a copy from the court.