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 North Dakota, expungement of a criminal record is a legal process that allows an individual to have their criminal record destroyed or deleted under certain circumstances, making it inaccessible to courts, agencies, and private entities conducting background checks. Expungement is different from having a record sealed, where the record still exists but is less accessible. Generally, under both state and federal law, expunging a criminal conviction is not commonly possible, especially for those who have been convicted, pleaded guilty, or pleaded no contest. Eligibility for expungement in North Dakota often hinges on the completion of probation or a deferred adjudication program. Additionally, juvenile records may be eligible for expungement if the offense occurred before the individual turned 18. The specifics of expungement laws are detailed in North Dakota's state statutes, which outline the types of offenses that may be expunged, the procedures to apply for expungement, and the effects of an expungement on an individual's criminal history.