Administrative Expungement in Miami

The City of Miami is the county seat of Miami-Dade County. The county’s crime rate in 2018 was 3,617.5 per 100,000. One of the most common types of crimes in the Miami area is drug possession, which results in thousands of arrests each year. The Miami Police Department serves the City of Miami. It keeps public records that can be accessed and requested online. If you were arrested by mistake or unlawfully, however, you may be able to obtain an administrative expungement, which is a less time-consuming and less expensive procedure than court-ordered expungement. You should consult the Miami administrative expungement lawyers at Hanlon Law for advice on whether you may be eligible.

It is easy for people to find criminal arrest records online. It can be important to have this information removed. In most situations, removal of the record is accomplished through expungement or sealing. However, court-ordered expungement and sealing can be obtained only once. You may be able to obtain an administrative expungement if your arrest was mistaken or contrary to law. Unlike with court-ordered expungement, with administrative expungement, there is no rule about obtaining this relief only once.

Administrative expungement is governed by section 943.0581. This code section provides that the Florida Department of Law Enforcement can adopt a rule for administrative expungement of any non-judicial record of an arrest of an adult or minor that was made contrary to law or by mistake. It also allows a law enforcement agency to apply to the Department in the way prescribed under the rule for the administrative expungement of any non-judicial record of any arrest of a minor or adult who is later determined by the agency or by a final order of a court of competent jurisdiction to have been arrested by mistake or contrary to law. It is rare for the arresting agency to apply for an administrative expungement, though, so you likely will need to retain an administrative expungement attorney in Miami to help you handle this process.

If you apply, you may need an endorsement from the state attorney or the head of the arresting agency. If you cannot get this, you will need a final order from the court that found that your arrest was illegal or mistaken. A supporting endorsement needs to identify the date and time of the arrest and your offender-based tracking system (OBTS) number, as well as your name, any aliases, your sex, your race, your date of birth, your Social Security number, any FBI and FDLE Numbers, and the reason why the record should be administratively expunged.

Your application must also include important information like your OBTS number, the date and time of the arrest, and the crimes at issue. The application that you submit cannot be admitted as evidence in judicial or administrative proceedings. It cannot be used as an admission of liability. If you have concerns about completing it, our Miami administrative expungement attorneys can address them with you.

If your application for administrative expungement meets the statutory criteria, the FDLE is supposed to inform the arresting agency, whether that is the Miami Police Department or the Miami-Dade County Police. The arresting agency becomes responsible for expunging its arrest records and informing other agencies to which it gave the record about the administrative expungement order. In a court-ordered expungement, identifying information like fingerprints stays in non-public records. By contrast, in an administrative expungement, all identifying information obtained during the arrest, including fingerprints, is destroyed.

Administrative expungement is seldom used but can provide significant relief in connection with criminal background checks. You should take advantage of this procedure if you are eligible to use it. At Hanlon Law, our criminal defense attorneys can use our deep and broad experience to help you pursue an administrative expungement. We have expunged and sealed thousands of criminal records across Florida. Call us at 800.373.1974 or contact us through our online form to get assistance from an administrative expungement lawyer in Miami.