It is not uncommon for the police to file multiple charges against someone. The strategy of some officers seems to be to file as many different charges as they can come up. That can create problems where some of them are dismissed - which they usually are - when it comes to filing a motion for non-disclosure.

A recent case ouf the El Paso Court of Appeals illustrates the problem - although in a slightly different context. The cases i In the Matter of AG, No. 08-12-0174-CV (Tex. App. - El Paso, 10/16/13)The defendant was arrested and charged with driving while intoxicated. Apparently he reached a plea agreement with the State because they filed a motion with the Court to add a second count for reckless driving. He then entered a plea to the reckless driving count, and the state dismissed the DWI count.

After the DWI charge was dismissed the defendant filed a petition for expungement, claiming he was never convicted of the driving while intoxicated charge. While technically that is correct, expunction is not available if there was a final conviction for either the offense you arrested for, or any lesser offense. Since he had been convicted of a "lesser charge", he was not entilted to an expunction.

This is not an uncommon situation, and one we frequently get questions on. Unfortunately, the law is pretty clear. The only way you can get an expunction is to either have all the charges dismissed, or get found not guilty.

If you would like more information on expunction and non-disclosure cases please check out the list of recent case decisions in our documents library. If you have a question about your situation, please contact us.

Walter Reaves
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Criminal Defense Attorney Walter Reaves has been practicing law for over 35 years.
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