In the US, a felony conviction can negatively impact a person’s life, but it can be vacated or pardoned. Expungement varies by jurisdiction and may only remove the sentence from public access. In the UK, minor offenses are automatically canceled after a set period, while in Mexico, convictions are only available for a limited time. In the US, state and federal convictions remain on record for life unless legally ordered to be removed through expungement or pardon. The Office of the Pardon Attorney handles federal pardon requests, which must be approved by the President and have the same effect as expungement.
When a person is convicted of a felony, in most jurisdictions, the record of that conviction is publicly available when a background search is requested, and it can negatively impact a person’s ability to secure everything from housing to employment. In many jurisdictions, a conviction can be vacated under certain circumstances. A federal conviction generally refers to a conviction for a federal crime and, therefore, would require a federal expunging to be overturned. In the United States there is no possibility of requesting a federal expungement; however, a person can apply for a federal pardon, which has essentially the same legal effect as a federal deportation.
The exact definition and effect of deletion will vary by jurisdiction. In some jurisdictions, a writ orders the complete physical destruction of all conviction-related documents. In other cases, expungement simply removes the sentence from public access. Also, while a deportation may be granted, in many cases, the conviction record may still be available to law enforcement or judicial personnel.
In some countries, such as the UK, a conviction for a minor offense is automatically canceled after a set period of time, which eliminates the need to apply for a deportation. In Mexico, a criminal conviction, including felonies, remains in a person’s record for only a set number of years, after which it is not available to the public. In the United States, however, both state and federal convictions remain on a person’s record for life unless legally ordered to be removed through a expunging or pardon.
In the United States, a person can be convicted of a felony under state or federal law. Consequently, in order to cancel a conviction record, the offender must resort to either the state purge law or the federal purge law. Most states in the United States allow some convictions to be waived under certain circumstances. United States federal law, however, does not provide for federal expunction. An individual who has been convicted under a federal law in the United States must obtain a pardon to stricken the conviction record from public records.
The Office of the Pardon Attorney at the United States Department of Justice handles all pardon requests for federal crimes. To obtain the pardon, the applicant must submit the request to the Office of the Pardon Attorney; however, all pardons must ultimately be approved by the President. If granted, the pardon has the same basic effect as a federal strike. Similar to many expungement statutes, a federal conviction that has been pardoned will still be available to law enforcement and government agencies if the person applies for employment with the agency.
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