KRS § 431.078 — KY Code / Title XL / Chapter 431 / Section 431.078
431.078 Expungement of misdemeanor, violation, and traffic infraction records of convictions and dismissed or amended charges
Status: in_force

431.078 Expungement of misdemeanor, violation, and traffic infraction records of

convictions and dismissed or amended charges.

(1) Any person who has been convicted of:

(a) A misdemeanor, a violation, or a traffic infraction not otherwise classified as a

misdemeanor or violation, or a series of misdemeanors, violations, or traffic

infractions arising from a single incident; or

(b) A series of misdemeanors, violations, or traffic infractions not arising from a

single incident;

may petition the court in which he was convicted for expungement of his

misdemeanor or violation record within that judicial district, including a record of

any charges for misdemeanors, violations, or traffic infractions that were dismissed

or amended in the criminal action. The person shall be informed of the right at the

time of adjudication.

(2) Except as provided in KRS 218A.275(8) and 218A.276(8), the petition shall be

filed no sooner than five (5) years after the completion of the person's sentence or

five (5) years after the successful completion of the person's probation, whichever

occurs later.

(3) Upon the filing of a petition, the court shall set a date for a hearing, no sooner than

thirty (30) days after the filing of the petition, and shall notify the county attorney;

the victim of the crime, if there was an identified victim; and any other person

whom the person filing the petition has reason to believe may have relevant

information related to the expungement of the record. Inability to locate the victim

shall not delay the proceedings in the case or preclude the holding of a hearing or

the issuance of an order of expungement.

(4) For a petition brought under subsection (1)(a) of this section, the court shall order

expunged all records in the custody of the court and any records in the custody of

any other agency or official, including law enforcement records, if at the hearing the

court finds that:

(a) The offense was not a sex offense or an offense committed against a child;

(b) The person had not in the five (5) years prior to the filing of the petition for

expungement been convicted of a felony or a misdemeanor;

(c) No proceeding concerning a felony or misdemeanor is pending or being

instituted against the person; and

(d) The offense is not one subject to enhancement for a second or subsequent

offense or the time for such an enhancement has expired.

(5) For a petition brought under subsection (1)(b) of this section, the court may order

expunged all records in the custody of the court and any records in the custody of

any other agency or official, including law enforcement records, if at the hearing the

court finds that:

(a) The offense was not a sex offense or an offense committed against a child;

(b) The person had not in the five (5) years prior to the filing of the petition for

expungement been convicted of a felony or a misdemeanor;

(c) No proceeding concerning a felony or misdemeanor is pending or being

instituted against the person; and

(d) The offense is not one subject to enhancement for a second or subsequent

offense or the time for such an enhancement has expired.

(6) Upon the entry of an order to expunge the records, the proceedings in the case shall

be deemed never to have occurred; the court and other agencies shall cause records

to be deleted or removed from their computer systems so that the matter shall not

appear on official state-performed background checks; the persons and the court

may properly reply that no record exists with respect to the persons upon any

inquiry in the matter; and the person whose record is expunged shall not have to

disclose the fact of the record or any matter relating thereto on an application for

employment, credit, or other type of application.

(7) The filing fee for a petition under this section shall be one hundred dollars ($100).

The first fifty dollars ($50) of each fee collected pursuant to this subsection shall be

deposited into a trust and agency account for deputy clerks and shall not be

refundable.

(8) Copies of the order shall be sent to each agency or official named therein.

(9) Inspection of the records included in the order may thereafter be permitted by the

court only upon petition by the person who is the subject of the records and only to

those persons named in the petition.

(10) This section shall be deemed to be retroactive, and any person who has been

convicted of a misdemeanor prior to July 14, 1992, may petition the court in which

he was convicted, or if he was convicted prior to the inception of the District Court

to the District Court in the county where he now resides, for expungement of the

record of one (1) misdemeanor offense or violation or a series of misdemeanor

offenses or violations arising from a single incident, provided that the offense was

not one specified in subsection (4) and that the offense was not the precursor

offense of a felony offense for which he was subsequently convicted. This section

shall apply only to offenses against the Commonwealth of Kentucky.

(11) As used in this section, "violation" has the same meaning as in KRS 500.080.

(12) Any person denied an expungement prior to June 25, 2013, due to the presence of a

traffic infraction on his or her record may file a new petition for expungement of the

previously petitioned offenses, which the court shall hear and decide under the

terms of this section. No court costs or other fees, from the court or any other

agency, shall be required of a person filing a new petition under this subsection.