The following statutes will be amended or adopted regarding expungements. The changes will take effect on April 1, 2018 and October 1, 2018. They revise the procedures for expunging criminal and other records and information, including decreasing certain waiting periods for expungement eligibility and increasing the number of convictions which may be expunged.
N.J.S.A. 2C:52-2 is amended to read as follows:
2C:52-2. Indictable Offenses.
a. In all cases, except as herein provided, a person may present an expungement application to the Superior Court pursuant to this section if:
the person has been convicted of one crime under the laws of this State, and does not otherwise have any prior or subsequent conviction for another crime, whether within this State or any other jurisdiction;
The preceding paragraph used to only address convictions that occurred before the offense at issue regarding the instant expungement application. Now it addresses “prior or subsequent convictions.”
[Or]the person has been convicted of one crime and less than four disorderly persons or petty disorderly persons offenses under the laws of this State and does not otherwise have any prior or subsequent conviction for another crime, or any prior or subsequent conviction for another disorderly persons or petty disorderly persons offense such that the total number of convictions for disorderly persons and petty disorderly persons offenses would exceed three, whether any such crime or offense conviction was within this State or any other jurisdiction;
The preceding paragraph used to require that prior offenses not be “closely related in circumstances or time.” The requirement that the applicant “has not been convicted of a disorderly persons or petty disorderly persons offense on more than two occasions” was also removed. These changes were made to broaden expungement eligibility.
[Or] the person has been convicted of multiple crimes or a combination of one or more crimes and one or more disorderly persons or petty disorderly persons offenses under the laws of this State, all of which are listed in a single judgment of conviction, and does not otherwise have any prior or subsequent conviction for another crime or offense in addition to those convictions included in the expungement application, whether any such conviction was within this State or any other jurisdiction.