billdeserthills wrote:Cheapest thing you can do is to run your own background check, on yourself.
If that old charge comes up you can go to court and ask that it be expunged, as it happened while you were a minor.
Yes, do what Bill suggested.
It can vary by state but as I recall, a felony must be at least 10 years old before a judge is usually willing/able to listen to a case for expungement and you must have a spotless record during that time. From what you said, it appears you have this covered on both counts. Also, as Bill mentioned, you were a minor. If you were prosecuted as a minor and not as an adult, it should work in your favor if you want to get it expunged.
I'm not a legal expert but in Texas I believe you to go the Department of Public Safety Crime Records Service to get a background check on yourself. When you go through the state agency that handles that stuff it's cheaper than private background check services; I've seen fees ranging from $9 up to $30, whereas private services are sometimes $50 or more.
As for an attorney, one option is to look into prepaid legal services, sometimes available at a discount through Credit Unions. It's sometimes as cheap as $20/mo for that kind of thing. After you sign up you should be able to have them help you through starting the process of expungement. Those services usually limit how many hours per month come with your subscription so if it goes to a hearing before a judge, you might need to cough up a little extra dough to pay them to be there with you. And I'd recommend you DO have a lawyer anytime you're going before a judge.
Good luck, and nice job keeping your nose clean after that mistake.
