When juvenile records remain publicly accessible, they can impose lasting barriers to work, licensure, housing, and educational opportunities once you turn 18. California law allows eligible individuals to petition the court to seal their juvenile records, opening new possibilities for their future.

The juvenile record sealing process involves specific eligibility criteria, supporting documents, and strict filing deadlines. The sealing process differs from adult expungement because it uniquely handles ineligible offenses. While you can file on your own, having an attorney review your petition can help avoid application errors that might lead to denial.

At Monterey Criminal Attorney, we are devoted to sealing juvenile records. So, our attorneys will review your case, prepare your sealing petition, and file it promptly so you can move forward with a clean slate.

Understanding Juvenile Records

California law requires courts, probation departments, and law enforcement agencies to compile case files, including police reports, court documents, and assessment evaluations, for every juvenile proceeding. Under WIC 827(a), juvenile case files are kept confidential. They are accessible only to courts, probation, and other designated agencies to shield juveniles’ records from public exposure and support their rehabilitation.

WIC 827 allows only access to minors, their guardians, attorneys, and specific agencies, but courts can authorize limited access for other individuals. Once a sealing order under WIC 781 takes effect, your juvenile record is treated as though it never existed for most public and commercial background checks.

Why Seal Your Juvenile Record?

After you turn 18, background checks performed by employers, landlords, and licensing boards will reveal unsealed juvenile records. Sealing your juvenile records makes them invisible to the public, which allows you to state legally that the incident never happened when applying for employment and seeking housing, educational, or professional licenses.

Who Can Have Their Juvenile Records Sealed in California?

Under WIC 781, you may petition the juvenile court to seal your juvenile records. The eligible individuals can petition the juvenile court under this law, which enables them to keep their delinquency records hidden from public access.

  1. Basic Eligibility Requirements

  • Age or Time Limit: You can file a petition for record sealing after you are 18 years old or five years after the court's jurisdiction ended over your case, whichever date occurs later. The waiting period enables you to prove your growth as a mature adult who follows the law.
  • Clean Adult Record: To remain eligible, you must have no new felony convictions, no misdemeanors involving moral turpitude, and no violent crime convictions during the waiting period. A good conduct record since your juvenile proceedings demonstrates your commitment to the court through this requirement.

  1. Rehabilitation and Good Character

When you submit your petition, the court will consider:

  • Rehabilitation Evidence: The court reviews proof of personal growth, such as steady employment, educational achievements, or volunteer work.
  • Criminal History: Any additional juvenile or adult convictions may influence the court’s decision. Clear, documented evidence of rehabilitation strengthens your case and increases the likelihood of approval.

  1. Disqualifying Offenses

Certain serious crimes preclude permanent sealing if committed after age 14, as listed in Welfare and Institutions Code § 707(b). These include:

  • Murder
  • Arson with significant bodily injury
  • Armed robbery
  • Violent sexual offenses

If convicted of any of these offenses as a juvenile, your record remains permanently accessible to the court and law enforcement, even if other eligibility criteria are met.

  1. Civil Proceedings Exception

Your juvenile record cannot be sealed if you are currently involved in civil litigation arising from that offense. The court will defer sealing until related lawsuits are resolved.

  1. Preparing and Filing Your Petition

  • Gather Documentation: Collect school records, letters of recommendation, proof of employment or community service, and certificates of achievement.
  • Complete Forms: File the appropriate petition form (Judicial Council Form JV-590) with the juvenile court clerk.
  • Serve Notices: As court rules require, notify the district attorney’s office and any listed victims.
  • Attend Hearing: Present your case, focusing on rehabilitation and community contributions.
  • Records cannot be sealed if a related civil lawsuit is pending.

Offenses That Cannot Be Sealed

According to California law, most juvenile court records are eligible for sealing. Welfare and Institutions Code 707(b) and Penal Code sections prevent the sealing of serious offenses that occurred after a person turned 14. The convictions for these offenses will remain on your record regardless of other eligibility factors.

  1. Violent Crimes

The following violent offenses are permanently ineligible for sealing:

  • Murder (Penal Code § 187)
  • Arson causing significant bodily injury or involving an inhabited structure (Penal Code § 451(a))
  • Kidnapping (Penal Code § 207 or § 209)
  • Drive-by shooting (Penal Code § 246.3(c))
  • Carjacking (Penal Code § 215)
  • Robbery (Penal Code § 211)
  • Assault with a firearm (Penal Code § 245(a)(2))

  1. Sexual Offenses Involving Force or Minors

Any sex crime that includes force, threats, or victims under 14 years old is also excluded from sealing:

  • Forcible rape (Penal Code § 261(a)(2))
  • Forcible sodomy (Penal Code § 286(c))
  • Lewd or lascivious acts on a minor under 14 by force or violence (Penal Code § 288(b))
  • Forcible oral copulation (Penal Code § 287(c)(2))

Other violent sex crimes involving force or a child victim

According to California law, most juvenile court records are eligible for sealing. Welfare and Institutions Code § 707(b) and Penal Code sections prevent the sealing of serious offenses that occurred after a person turned 14. The convictions for these offenses will remain on your record regardless of other eligibility factors.

Completing probation or youth supervision in juvenile court allows California law to seal records without needing an additional petition. The court has a legal obligation to seal cases that do not contain serious or violent offenses specified in § 707(b) according to Welfare and Institutions Code §§ 781(a) and 786. The automatic sealing process by the court ensures that completed court-imposed obligations lead to record concealment from public access, thus allowing access to education, housing, and job opportunities without requiring disclosure of your juvenile justice system involvement.

The automatic sealing process applies exclusively to juvenile cases, which remain entirely within the juvenile court system because cases transferred to adult court are excluded from its benefits. The automatic sealing system does not extend to murder convictions or offenses that include arson causing significant bodily injury or forcible sexual crimes and serious comparable offenses, which require a formal petition and judicial review process. All other juvenile court matters require no additional filing process since the court system updates its records upon case completion.

The process of record sealing encounters administrative issues because law enforcement databases and court indices sometimes fail to quickly and adequately display the sealed status. Obtain official documents from the clerk’s office that verify the date of sealing and its extent to ensure complete record sealing. You need to seek a court order to enforce automatic sealing provisions if you find that sealed records remain accessible. This protects your rights to move ahead without carrying an outdated juvenile history.

Sealing Without Conviction

The right to clear your record becomes available after your juvenile case ends without conviction through any dismissal based on evidence shortage or release under Welfare and Institutions Code 781 or a not-guilty verdict. The laws of California, through WIC 781 and Penal Code 851.7, establish that mere arrests or charges should not burden your future. After your juvenile case ends through dismissal or acquittal, you can file a petition to the juvenile court that handles your matter for sealing all associated records, starting with police reports and court files.

Your arrest and subsequent charge become nonexistent when you qualify under these provisions. After court approval of your petition, the records become inaccessible to the public, while background checks conducted by employers, educational institutions, and housing providers no longer find these records. According to the law, you can declare that you have no criminal record involving the specified offense.

Start by submitting your petition to the juvenile court division that handled your case. The judge must verify that your case resulted in dismissal and that you qualify under state laws. After court approval, the judicial system will issue an order to seal all documents, which will later destroy them, thus removing your juvenile history as a barrier to educational and employment prospects.

Consulting a qualified attorney or the court clerk immediately becomes essential because proper timing and procedure matter. The promptness of your actions guarantees the securement of your “fresh start” while avoiding administrative complexities and unnecessary delays. Your sealed record ensures past criminal charges remain out of reach when defining your upcoming opportunities.

The Process of Sealing Juvenile Records

The laws of California ensure that mistakes made during your youth will not prevent you from achieving your future goals. A Welfare and Institutions Code § 781 juvenile record seal eliminates public file access, allowing you to advance beyond past court actions. Knowing every step in this process will enable you to move through the system quickly and prevent delays.

Establishing Your Eligibility

Start your application only after verifying that you fulfill the legal requirements. The process requires either reaching age 18 or passing five years since the juvenile court ceased having jurisdiction over your case. Subsequent convictions for crimes with moral turpitude can lead to disqualification, while violent or sexual offenses from age 14 onward remain unsealable. Your remaining law-abiding behavior is crucial because the court uses your rehabilitation progress against public safety considerations.

Preparing and Filing Your Petition

You must submit your petition for sealing to the juvenile court that maintained your previous case. The petition form for juvenile record sealing can be accessed through online channels, county probation offices, and courthouse locations. It requires personal information, juvenile case number, and a brief description of your original charges. The application requires you to present your rehabilitation history through school documents, employment records, recommendation letters, and community work logs. A complete petition with strong evidence demonstrates to authorities that sealing benefits you while benefiting public interests.

Judicial Review and Assessment of Rehabilitation

After petition submission, the court clerk sends your request to probation officers and the district attorney, who review your conduct since juvenile court termination. The judge examines juvenile records together with these reports before scheduling a hearing. You or your attorney can use this hearing to demonstrate your personal growth through presentations of academic success and job stability, volunteer work, and other proof of good citizenship. The court will initiate the sealing process once it recognizes your genuine transformation and establishes your safety to the community.

Issuance and Distribution of the Sealing Order

The court issues the sealing order to every organization that maintains your juvenile records, including courts, law enforcement agencies, probation offices, and background-check services. Once the records are distributed, they become inaccessible to the public, and your case appears nonexistent. Completing this process allows you to lawfully state that you have no juvenile adjudications, so you can access education, employment, and housing opportunities free from the stigma of past mistakes.

What Happens When a Record Is Sealed?

A juvenile record becomes inaccessible to public view after it undergoes sealing procedures under California state laws. All records of juvenile files become invisible to Courts, probation departments, law enforcement agencies, background-check companies, employers, landlords, licensing boards, and other entities. Your education and housing goals, employment opportunities, and professional licensing applications remain free from the judgment of your past youthful errors.

Sealed records function as if they were erased from the system, with only limited exceptions available to view them. Law enforcement agencies at the state and federal levels can access sealed files to assess candidates who want to join government departments or law enforcement organizations. Judges possess the authority to unseal records when new criminal charges arise, since your past conduct must be considered during bail decisions, sentencing, and plea discussions.

Impact on Employment, Licensing, and Applications

Background checks that do not include sealed records enable you to honestly declare that you have no criminal record during job applications, college admissions, or housing applications. The licensing boards of medicine, law, real estate, and finance are prohibited from reviewing juvenile records unless the licensure involves safety or trust responsibilities (such as law enforcement candidates). Special permission from the board or agency must be acquired before they can access your sealed file during those limited situations.

Your Right to Deny the Record

In most scenarios, the legal authority to deny details about your arrest and charges, along with adjudications, emerges after your record receives the sealing status. You have the right to protect your sealed juvenile history from disclosure to employers, schools, landlords, and other private entities that cannot use this information against you. Specific security-clearance positions and immigration benefit applications within federal agencies may request information about sealed records despite the general non-disclosure rule because statutes provide explicit exceptions.

Mandatory Destruction of Sealed Records

Under California law, the state further implements a fresh start policy through mandatory destruction of juvenile files after specific periods. According to Welfare and Institutions Code § 781, all sealed records become subject to permanent destruction after five years from the sealing order. When you turn 38, after destruction, agencies, courts, and background-check services lose access to the records while you maintain the right to claim their nonexistence.

Limited Access for Special Purposes

The wide-ranging confidentiality protections in sealed records permit selected authorities access to these records if they need to protect public safety or achieve fair proceedings. Evaluating your eligibility for diversion or alternative sentencing by prosecutors requires them to review your sealed juvenile history. Child-welfare and foster-care professionals need access to sealed records during work planning and service delivery. During new criminal proceedings, judges can allow prosecutors to use juvenile records provided the evidence directly relates to determining community safety and rehabilitation requirements.

Employment and Professional Licensing Advantages

Sealing a juvenile record creates significant benefits for obtaining employment and professional licenses. The sealing process blocks background checks from showing information about your past, so you can truthfully claim a clean criminal record for the sealed incident and open new opportunities.

The process of record sealing does more than remove past mistakes; it gives you back your ability to fight for professional advancement and employment opportunities. The process of record sealing guarantees your qualifications will be the deciding factor for future opportunities, regardless of your past mistake, when you seek positions in corporate or government sectors or state-certified fields.

Educational and Financial Opportunities

Your ability to pursue higher education and financial stability becomes more challenging after your juvenile record is sealed. Educational institutions that admit students sometimes need to know about their applicants' criminal history, yet juvenile records do not automatically result in rejection. Still, they may cause admissions officers to doubt applicants' trustworthiness.

An unsealed juvenile record forces you to reveal your history, which could lead to potential discrimination, extra investigation, or denial. Under WIC 781, your juvenile record becomes legally nonexistent, so you can pursue college admission and university enrollment without facing judgment for previous mistakes.

An unsealed juvenile record becomes a barrier to financial aid applications and college admissions. Applicants who have specific criminal records may face denial of assistance from both federal and state grant programs that include Pell Grants and Cal Grants. Private scholarship foundations use background checks to evaluate the character traits of their applicants. A sealed record allows students to obtain educational funding by eliminating barriers from their past juvenile offenses.

You will find it easier to obtain housing after your juvenile record is sealed. Housing authorities and landlords perform background checks on all applicants wanting to rent their properties. Any criminal history, including juvenile offenses, will result in application denials or force you to explain yourself. You can obtain housing more easily after record sealing since background checks will not display your previous offenses.

After your juvenile record is sealed, access to better educational opportunities and the removal of financial and housing barriers are possible. Your ability to advance legally and socially enables you to dedicate yourself to creating a prosperous and stable future.

Relief from Juvenile Sex Offender Registration

The process of juvenile record sealing under California Penal Code Section 290 can bring significant life improvements to people who need to register as juvenile sex offenders. After completing rehabilitation, sex offender registration continues to be a burden on you through social stigma and legal restrictions, which limit your ability to find work, secure housing, and integrate typically into society. WIC 781 allows you to terminate your registration requirement through record sealing, enabling you to create a new future free from outdated labels.

A sealed record makes the legal system ignore the existence of the previous offense. Law enforcement agencies, employers, and licensing boards lack access to your juvenile record, which they cannot use against you.

Your name gets removed from the Megan’s Law website, which prevents the public from linking you to previous offenses. The benefits of record sealing become essential when the offense falls into the category of non-violent crimes or youthful mistakes or poses no danger of future criminal behavior.

Record sealing provides a relief of emotional and psychological trauma that surpasses all immediate legal advantages. Having to live with the burden of sex offender registration requirements isolates you from others, while it prevents opportunities and causes emotional harm to your mental state. A record sealing procedure enables you to recover your dignity and join society without enduring the ongoing terror of discrimination or exposure.

The record sealing process enables you to progress without enduring the lifelong consequences of youthful missteps. Taking this step allows you to rebuild your future while regaining your good reputation and receiving fair treatment as your current self instead of your past self.

Find a Los Angeles Criminal Attorney Near Me

Sealing juvenile records helps you regain control of your future. California acknowledges that previous errors should not determine your identity permanently. A sealed record clears all barriers that prevent you from obtaining employment, education, or professional licenses, thus allowing you to start anew.

The record-sealing process requires multiple steps. To obtain record sealing, you must fulfill the eligibility requirements and file a petition while undergoing judicial evaluation. After your record is sealed, it becomes unavailable to employers, landlords, and agencies, helping you avoid discrimination.

At Monterey Criminal Attorney, we assist juveniles in having their criminal records sealed. If you or your child needs to petition for a record sealing, reach out to our consultation service at phone number 831-574-1791. We will lead you through the record sealing process to help you start with a clean slate.