How to Read California Criminal History Information

What is a rap sheet? – Key information yous demand to know

A rap canvas is a list of a person's arrests and convictions. The sheet is commonly referred to as a person's criminal history record or a tape of arrests and prosecutions. A rap sheet lists both misdemeanors and felonies from throughout the United states.

You tin request a copy of your rap sail. It is a good thought and so that the person tin can cheque it for accuracy. Record check requests are made to the FBI and DOJ.

Otherwise, a rap sheet isconfidential and tin merely be viewed by a limited group of people. Some of these include:

• constabulary officers, judges, prosecutors and defense force attorneys (for purposes of criminal cases),
• law enforcement agencies / criminal justice agencies (for job applications), and
• land and canton governments (for task applications).

At that place are means that a political party tin can effort to articulate up his or her ain rap canvas. A few examples are to:

1. obtain an expungement,
2. file for a certificate of rehabilitation, and
3. seek a governor's pardon.

Our California criminal defense attorneys will explicate the following in this article:

• 1. What is a rap canvass?
• 2. How tin can a person get a copy of his or her rap canvass?
• three. Who tin see or admission a person's rap canvass?
• 4. Is it possible to get criminal records deleted in California?
• five. Is a rap canvas the aforementioned matter as a criminal record?

A rap canvass is also referred to as a person's criminal tape.

ane. What is a rap sheet?

A "rap sheet" is a listing of all of a person'south arrests and convictions. The canvas is also referred to as:

• a person's "criminal tape," or
• a "Record of Arrests and Prosecutions."

A rap sheet lists both misdemeanor convictions and felony convictions also as arrests and awaiting charges on court records. They are confidential documents and can but be accessed by a limited group of people.^ane

Official rap sheets are compiled and maintained past:

• the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and
• the Department of Justice (DOJ)
• the CLETS organization operated by California police force enforcement agencies.

Notation that, in addition to these agencies, individual tape search companies:

• compile publicly available criminal courtroom information, and
• organize information technology into "criminal records."

These companies and then provide the information (for a fee) to entities that request it. These "entities" are private employers who run criminal groundwork checks on potential employees.

two. How tin a person get a copy of his or her own rap canvass?

A person can request a copy of his or her own rap sheet. It is a proficient thought so that the person can check information technology for accuracy. Requests are made to the FBI and DOJ.

For an FBI rap canvass, a political party has to submit a written request to the bureau's Criminal Justice Information Services Division. This request must include:

• proof of identity (which means a copy of the political party's fingerprints), and
• payment of an $eighteen processing fee.

There are many fingerprinting services throughout most cities that charge a modest fee.

The FBI does non provide copies of abort records to individuals other than the subject area of the record. The Identification Tape webpage contains further information and forms.

With respect to the DOJ, a person has to request the rap sail from the state DOJ for which he/she resides in. This request must include:

• a completed application (including name, date of birth, etc.),
• proof of identity (which ways a copy of a party's fingerprints), and
• payment of a processing fee.

Like with the FBI, the DOJ will just provide a rap sheet to the person that is subject to information technology.

Defense attorneys are entitled to seeing a client's rap canvas for cases.

3. Who can see or access a person's rap sheet?

An Official authorities rap sheet is confidential, and it is only available to certain people/entities.^two

Depending on the circumstances, these people and entities can include:

• police, judges, prosecutors and defense attorneys (for purposes of criminal cases),
• peace officer agencies (for task applications),
• state and county governments (for job applications),
• land licensing agencies (for granting country licenses), and
• the person named on the rap canvas (to review for accurateness).

Annotation that private employers tin can run background checks on candidates for employment. They can do this past reviewing any publicly bachelor criminal information on the candidate.

As to criminal history, though, it is unlawful for an employer to gain access to information on:

• an abort that did not lead to conviction (unless the arrest is pending),
• a conviction dated more than than 7 years from the appointment of the check,^three
• a confidence for which the person checked received a pardon,⁴
• an arrest leading to the completion of a successful diversion programme,⁵
• expunged and sealed convictions,⁶ and
• sure marijuana offenses.

4. Is it possible to get criminal records deleted in California?

At that place are several ways a person can try to "articulate up" negative data on his/her California rap sheet. These include:

1. expungements,
2. Certificates of Rehabilitation,
3. governor'south pardons,
4. sealing of juvenile records, and

four.1. Expungements

An expungement erases a conviction from a rap sheet.

A person convicted of a criminal offense is entitled to an expungement if he:

1. successfully completes probation, or
2. completes a jail term (whichever is relevant).

If a conviction is expunged, then it does not need to exist disclosed to potential employers. This holds true fifty-fifty if a conditional offer of employment is made.

4.2. Certificates of Rehabilitation

A Certificate of Rehabilitation ("COR") is a:

• courtroom order that says,
• someone has been rehabilitated following a criminal conviction.

In full general, a certificate is available to people who were bedevilled of:

1. a felony and were sentenced to a California state penal institution or bureau, or
2. a felony and were sentenced to probation and the conviction has been expunged, or
3. sure misdemeanor sex offenses and the confidence has been expunged.

A Certificate of Rehabilitation does not remove a confidence. Merely "rehabilitation" shows that a person has remained out of trouble.

iv.3. Governor's Pardons

A governor's pardon is an accolade granted to people who have been rehabilitated of a crime.

Most anyone convicted of a crime can seek a pardon after a satisfactory period of rehabilitation. Depending on the crime, this menstruum can be anywhere from vii to ten years.

The exact manner to obtain a pardon will vary depending on the state in which a person resides.

Note that a pardon does not erase a confidence from a rap canvas. The criminal offence is just "pardoned," or prepare aside.

4.4. Sealing juvenile records

The "sealing" of juvenile records means that the court closes a person's file. The documents in information technology so stop to exist. They are no longer public records.

Under the laws of well-nigh states, a person can effort to seal his juvenile records if all of the following are true:

1. he is18 or older, or five years have passed since the jurisdiction of the juvenile court concluded,
2. he has not been bedevilled of an criminal offense involving moral turpitude as an developed, and
3. he has not been bedevilled in juvenile court, after turning 14, of certain serious offenses (like murder, torture, or robbery).⁷

5. Is a rap canvass the same matter as a criminal record?

People utilize the terms "rap sail" and "criminal record" interchangeably. But a rap sheet is just a type of criminal record.

About publicly available criminal record background checks do not include rap sheets. This is because rap sheets are accessible only by the defendant, constabulary, prosecutors, defense attorneys, authorities employers, and country licensing agencies. Otherwise, rap sheets are confidential.⁸

Therefore, the criminal record background checks that employers, lenders, and landlords use contain only publicly bachelor data from court records. These records might non include everything from a person'south rap sheet. And private employers are blocked from fifty-fifty seeing convictions more seven years old unless some other law requires the employer to wait dorsum further.⁹

For boosted help…

Contact our police force firm for legal advice.

For additional guidance or to talk over your instance with a criminal defense attorney, we invite you lot to contact usa hither at Shouse Law Group. Also, see the Division of Criminal Justice Services in California at aog.ca.gov.

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Legal References:

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Source: https://www.shouselaw.com/ca/defense/background-checks/rap-sheets/

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