Certificate of Rehabilitation – Information – California Penal Code 4852.01
Orange County Felony Defense Attorney
If you are not eligible for an expungement, the next best thing to clear your criminal record would be to apply for a certificate of rehabilitation and a governor’s pardon.
This usually applies to anyone convicted of a felony and was sentenced to state prison or someone convicted of certain sex crimes that are unable to be expunged because of state law.
Complete Prison Sentence
To qualify for a certificate of rehabilitation, you must also have completed probation (if given) and completed your prison sentence or released on parole.
California Residency Requirement
You must also be a California resident for a minimum of 5 years preceding the date of the application. However, certain convictions require additional years of California residency on top of the minimum of five years.
If you were convicted of California Penal Code 187, 209, 219, 4500, or 18755, or Military and Veterans Code section 1672(a), or any crime which carries a life sentence: You must add 4 years to the five years requirement. This means you must show proof that you have been a California resident for 9 years prior to applying for the certificate of rehabilitation.
If you were convicted of an eligible sex crime, you must add 5 years to the 5 years requirement for a total of 10-year residency requirement.
Ineligibility
A certificate of rehabilitation is not available:
- To those only convicted of a misdemeanor (outside of certain sex crimes)
- To those in the military
- To those convicted of Penal Code section 286(c), 288, 288a(c), 288.5, or 289(j)
- To those serving mandatory life parole
- To those committed to prison under a death sentence
If you were convicted of a felony, consult an experienced Orange County Expungement Attorney to see what your options are for cleaning up your criminal record. At the Law Offices of Nam Q. Doan | OC Legal Defense, I will sit down with you and review your record to see what your best options are. Call today at (714) 248-DOAN (3626) and visit www.OCLegalDefense.com for more information.
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