When a person is charged with a crime or convicted of a crime, the information stays on the person’s criminal record and may be accessed by the court or other federal, state, municipal, or county agencies—or by private persons or entities conducting a background check. Under limited circumstances a person with a criminal record of arrest or conviction may be able to have the criminal record expunged—meaning the record will be permanently destroyed or deleted so it is no longer accessible by the court or other federal, state, municipal, or county agencies—or by private persons or entities conducting a background check.

Such an expungement or expunction of a criminal record is different from having a record sealed—which means the record still exists, but access to it is limited. A person whose only criminal record has been expunged may truthfully answer “no” when asked on an employment, licensing, or other application whether the person has ever been convicted of a crime. Under both state and federal law, in most cases it is not possible to have a person’s criminal conviction expunged.

Under state laws a person who has been convicted of a crime, pleaded guilty, or pleaded no contest (nolo contendere) is often ineligible to have their criminal record expunged. When a person is eligible to have a criminal record expunged, it is often dependent upon the person successfully completing a probation or deferred adjudication program. And in some states juveniles may be eligible to have a criminal record expunged if the criminal offense was committed before they turned 17 years of age, for example.

Expungement or expunction laws vary from state to state and are generally located in a state’s statutes—often in the penal or criminal code.

In Indiana, expungement laws allow individuals to have certain criminal records expunged, meaning the records are permanently destroyed or deleted. Indiana Code Title 35, Article 38, Chapter 9 outlines the state's expungement process. To be eligible for expungement, individuals must meet specific criteria, such as the type of crime, the amount of time that has passed since the conviction, and whether they have successfully completed their sentence, including probation. Not all crimes are eligible for expungement; for example, sex offenses and violent crimes are typically excluded. If an expungement is granted, the individual can legally state they have not been convicted of that crime when applying for jobs or licenses. Juvenile records may also be expunged under certain conditions. It's important to note that expungement is different from having a record sealed, which restricts access to the record but does not destroy it. The process can be complex, and individuals seeking expungement may benefit from consulting with an attorney to navigate the legal requirements.