Can You Expunge Pretrial Diversion Records in Indiana?

Expungement Attorneys Indiana | XpungeIndy

When you successfully complete a pretrial diversion program in Indiana, you don’t have a criminal conviction on your record – but you still have a criminal record. This guide explains whether you can expunge what’s left after completing your program (and how to do it).

Pretrial diversion is a program that allows people a little bit of grace. If you get into trouble with the law, you may be eligible to participate in this program to avoid a criminal conviction – and thousands of people complete their programs and go on with their lives, never committing another crime.

Usually, pretrial diversion programs are available to first-time offenders who haven’t committed a violent offense. Participants have to meet certain conditions and pay necessary fees during the pretrial diversion program period. In a way, it’s a little similar to probation – but it doesn’t require things like weekly reporting or random drug tests.

When a judge allows someone to participate in pretrial diversion, their charges remain “pending” until they complete the program. After the program is complete, only the arrest and charges remain on the person’s criminal record. The state of Indiana allows people to expunge arrest and charge records that never led to a conviction, so you can clear your record if you participated in a pretrial diversion program.

Expunging Arrests and Charging Records After Completing Pretrial Diversion

After you complete your pretrial diversion program, you’re eligible to expunge your arrest and charging records. You’re allowed to do so as long as:

The arrest and charges never led to a conviction. Because you successfully completed a pretrial diversion program, you don’t have to worry about that – your charges remained pending and you were never convicted of the crime.
You are not currently participating in a pretrial diversion program.

The Waiting Period to Expunge Arrests and Charging Records

You must wait at least one year from your arrest or one year from the date charges were filed to expunge these records.

Can You Only Expunge Arrests and Charges Once?

In the state of Indiana, you’re typically only allowed to petition for expungement once in your lifetime (though you may petition in multiple counties for multiple offenses, as long as you complete all your petitions within a year of each other).

But with arrests and charges, you may apply for expungement as many times as you need to. The catch is that the arrest or charges must have been a dead-end for the state of Indiana; that means the state never convicted you of a crime, or that you successfully completed a pretrial diversion program.

For example, if you were arrested in 2019, 2021, and 2022, but none of those arrests ever lead to a criminal conviction, you may apply for expungement.

What Happens if You Don’t Complete Your Pretrial Diversion Program?

If you fail to successfully complete a pretrial diversion program after a judge has allowed you to participate in it, your charges will be refiled. That means you may be convicted of a crime. However, it’s important to note that even if, in the past, you failed to complete a pretrial diversion program, you may still be eligible to expunge your criminal record. That’s because you can expunge misdemeanors and many felonies in the state of Indiana – as long as you’ve successfully completed your sentence and waited the required amount of time.

Do You Need to Talk to an Indiana Expungement and Sealing Attorney?

If you’re ready for a fresh start, we may be able to help. Call us at 317-647-5476 or fill out the form below for a free consultation on expungement. We’re here to answer your questions and get you the fresh start you deserve.