Court Permitted to Order the Sealing of Criminal Records
Nevada Revised Statutes permits courts to order the sealing of criminal records if certain conditions are met and the court is satisfied that the subject has been rehabilitated. The word “sealing” is used to describe a procedure whereby a record is physically removed from a record system and its dissemination is substantially or altogether restricted. Sealing of records prohibits access to criminal record information except to employees of the Repository for record management purposes, a party or agency for an authorized search as provided for in Nevada Revised Statutes or a party authorized pursuant to a court order.
Waiting Period
The waiting period for sealing criminal records varies. Some arrests, such as sexual offenses can not be sealed. For specific information, please review the following statutes.
Statute and statute description table
Statute
|
Statute Description
|
179.245
|
Sealing records after conviction
|
179.255
|
Sealing records after dismissal or acquittal
|
179.275
|
Orders for sealing records - distribution, compliance
|
179.285
|
Order sealing records - Restoration of Civil Rights
|
179.295
|
Reopening sealed records
|
179.301
|
Inspection of sealed records by certain agencies
|
179A.160
|
Removal of records where case disposition is favorable to
accused
|
193.130
|
Punishment of felonies
|
193.140
|
Punishment of gross misdemeanors
|
193.150
|
Punishment of misdemeanors
|
453.3365
|
Sealing of records of persons convicted of possession of
controlled substance not for the purpose of sale
|
484.379
|
Sealing of non-felony DUI arrests in conjunction with NRS
179.245
|
| 202.360 |
Ownership or possession of firearm by certain persons prohibited; penalties. |
Procedures for Sealing Nevada Criminal History Records
The procedures for sealing Nevada criminal history records vary from county to county. To petition a court to seal your criminal history record, contact the court in the jurisdiction where the arrest occurred. To facilitate completing the court forms, obtain a copy of your Nevada criminal history record.
Individual Requests to Seal Records
By statute, an individual may request that a court seal records of arrest, criminal conviction, acquittal, or dismissal. The purpose of this information, which includes sample forms, is to identify the law and the prosecutors' procedures for utilizing the stipulation process when petitioning a court to seal records of arrest, conviction, acquittal, or dismissal.
For clarification purposes, an order sealing records is not an expungement of records, which allows for the destruction of the records. Rather, an order sealing records removes the records from general information sources but does not authorize their destruction. In fact, a record sealed pursuant to statute may later be used in certain circumstances. (See NRS 179.295 and 179.301).
Additionally, although the entry of an order by a court requires that certain criminal justice agencies located outside the State of Nevada are to comply with its direction, these agencies are not bound to follow this order. Therefore, it is possible that these records will not be removed from their record entry systems.
How long does it take to seal criminal records?
The process can take any where from 2 to 4 months to complete and depends on accuracy of all the information on the Court Order.