Sealing Orders

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The California Department of Justice (Department) is providing the below information as a general overview of sealing orders and the actions the Department takes under them. It should not be considered legal advice and is current as of December 2, 2024.

A priority for the Department is to ensure Californians granted sealing of their criminal history record information have timely access to all the rights afforded by the sealing. The following is a partial list of statutes that authorize the Department to seal criminal history records maintained by the Department in state summary criminal history information.

Statutes authorizing juvenile criminal history records to be sealed include: Penal Code sections 851.7 and 1203.45; and Welfare Institution Code sections 389, 781, 781.5, 786, and 786.5.

Statutes authorizing adult criminal history records to be sealed include: Penal Code sections 236.14, 653.29, 851.8, 851.85, 851.86; and Health and Safety Codes section 11361.8.

Question:

How do I find out if my criminal history record, maintained by the Department, has been sealed?

Answer:

You may follow the instructions described on the “Criminal Records - Request Your Own page to request your criminal history information.

You may also contact either the local court or the arresting law enforcement agency.

Question:

My records were supposed to be expunged, why are they still on my criminal history record maintained by the Department?

Answer:

The only time criminal history records are removed from the Department's state summary criminal history information is when the statute explicitly requires the Department to destroy or purge records. Most commonly statutes require the Department instead to seal criminal history records. Sealed criminal history records are not disclosed for applicant, licensing, or certification purposes but remain in the state summary criminal history information database and may be disclosed for criminal justice purposes as specified consistent with other provisions of law.

However, the term “expungement” is often used to describe situations other than sealed records, such as record relief or dismissals, neither of which deletes records from a person's record. In these situations, an individual's criminal history record is retained by the Department and what is commonly referred to as “expungement” will be effectuated by other means as specified in California law, like Penal Code Section 11105, which directs the Department about what criminal history can be disclosed, to whom, and under what circumstances.

  • For example, you may believe that a conviction in your criminal history record was supposed to be expunged but the court reported to the Department that your conviction was only vacated, set aside and dismissed, or dismissed. In those scenarios, because those actions do not constitute expungements, the conviction is not removed from your criminal history record. These dispositions are added to your criminal history record and then used to determine which criminal history records may be disclosed for applicant, licensing, or certification purposes as specified.
  • For example, you may believe that an arrest in your criminal history record was expunged but the court reported to the Department the arrest was only granted record relief under Penal Code section 851.92. Accordingly, the arrest is not removed from your criminal history record. Rather, as provided by Penal Code section 851.92, a notation is added to the arrest in your criminal history record and then used to determine what criminal history records may be disclosed for applicant, licensing, or certification purposes as specified. See "Additional Record Relief - Penal Code section 851.92“.
  • For example, you may believe that an arrest or conviction in your criminal history record was expunged under Penal Code sections 851.93 or 1203.425. But record relief provided under Penal Code sections 851.93 or 1203.425 does not remove an arrest or conviction from your criminal history record. A notation is added to the record and then used to determine what criminal history records may be disclosed for applicant, licensing, or certification purposes as specified. See "Automatic Record Relief - Penal Code sections 851.93 and 1203.425“.