Tuesday, August 19, 2014

Recent Changes to Louisiana’s Expungement Law – Online Criminal Record Searches

Recently the legislature passed a new law (House Bill 55) that makes many changes to Louisiana’s expungement law. One of the most important changes deals with internet based companies that sell criminal records to employers performing background checks on job applicants. Because even a minor offense on your criminal record can prevent you from getting a job, it is important that you understand how the new law affects your rights with respect to your criminal record and how you can protect your privacy once you have gotten an expungement.

It is a problem that I see often in my criminal law practice: someone is denied a job because their employer discovered they have a criminal record. More frequently in past years employers are purchasing criminal backgrounds over the internet from companies that buy them in bulk from the police department or clerk’s offices (some people say they may even hack into databases). Because of the huge amounts of criminal records obtained at a time it is not unheard for these companies to make a mistake in either identification or the type of charges. In other words, the criminal records these companies sell may not be completely accurate which could cost you a job.

The new law states that after you have an arrest or conviction expunged off your criminal record and you give any company proper notice of your expungement, they can no longer sell it to a prospective employer or maintain the information on their website. Any company that sells your criminal record after you have notified them of your expungement is liable to you for damages, court costs and attorney fees. In other words you can sue them.

Another important change to the expungement law is that you are not required to disclose to a prospective employer that you were previously arrested or convicted after you receive an expungement. This means that you can check “no” on a job application if it asks if you have been arrested or convicted.

It is important to understand that when your criminal record is expunged the record of it is not destroyed, but rather removed from public view. Public records are those kept by the clerk’s office or law enforcement and does not include online companies. After you receive an expungement you must take steps to inform these online companies that your criminal record has been expunged. Hiring an experienced criminal attorney can help ensure that a potential employer does not deny you a job because they have discovered you have a criminal record (that is now expunged) from one of the many online companies.

If you need help expunging your criminal record of an arrest or a conviction please contact attorney Rhett Spano at 225-387-8327 or rspano@gmail.com for a free consultation. You can also get more information from my website at www.rhettspanolaw.com.

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