A criminal record follows you in ways that a sentence alone does not. Background checks for jobs, housing applications, professional licenses, and even loan approvals can surface an arrest or conviction from years ago. For many people in Louisiana, expungement offers a genuine path forward. At Colonna Law Firm, we work with clients who did not know expungement was available to them until they asked. Understanding what qualifies, what the process looks like, and what a clean record actually means is worth knowing whether your conviction is recent or decades old.
What Expungement Does and Does Not Do
Expungement in Louisiana does not erase a record in the way movies sometimes suggest. What it does is remove the conviction or arrest from the databases that most employers, landlords, and licensing boards can access through a standard background check. Law enforcement agencies retain the record, and it can still be used in future criminal proceedings if you are charged again. Courts can also see it in certain situations.
That distinction matters practically. An expunged record will not show up when a prospective employer runs a routine check through a consumer reporting agency. It will not appear on most housing applications. For many people, that is exactly the barrier they need removed to move their lives forward.
Who Qualifies for Expungement in Louisiana
Louisiana’s expungement laws were significantly expanded in 2015 and have been updated since. The eligibility rules are specific, and the details of your case determine whether you qualify.
For arrests that did not result in a conviction, meaning charges were dropped, dismissed, or you were acquitted, expungement is generally available without a waiting period. These are among the cleaner cases to handle because no conviction occurred.
For misdemeanor convictions, expungement is available after a five-year waiting period from the completion of your sentence, including any probation or parole. You cannot have any other felony or misdemeanor convictions during that period.
For felony convictions, the waiting period is ten years from completion of sentence. Certain felonies are excluded entirely from eligibility, including crimes of violence, sex offenses that require registration, and drug trafficking convictions. The list of ineligible offenses under Louisiana Revised Statute 44:9 is specific, and whether your offense qualifies requires a careful review of exactly what you were convicted of, not just the general category.
First-time nonviolent drug offenders who completed a diversion program or had charges dismissed may be eligible sooner, sometimes immediately upon dismissal. Louisiana has made deliberate policy choices to allow expungement for people who completed treatment-based programs, recognizing that those cases are meaningfully different from repeat or violent offenses.
The Expungement Process in Louisiana
Filing for expungement in Louisiana involves submitting a motion to the court where the conviction or arrest occurred. The motion goes to the district attorney’s office and, in some cases, the arresting agency, which then has an opportunity to object. If no objection is filed within the response window, the court typically grants the expungement. If an objection is filed, a hearing is scheduled.
The paperwork requires your full criminal history from the Louisiana State Police, which means obtaining a certified copy of your record before you file. Fees apply at multiple stages, including a processing fee to the Louisiana Bureau of Criminal Identification and Information. Some low-income petitioners may qualify for fee waivers, though the process for obtaining one adds steps.
Once the court grants the expungement, the order is sent to every agency that holds the record. The timeline for those agencies to update their systems varies, which means the practical effect of the expungement may not be immediate across every database.
Arrests Without Conviction Are a Separate Category
One point that often surprises people is that an arrest alone, even one that never led to charges or that resulted in a dismissal, still appears on background checks in Louisiana until it is expunged. Many people assume that if they were never convicted, there is nothing to worry about. That is not how the system works. An arrest record is a public record, and it shows up the same way a conviction does on most standard checks. If you were arrested and the case was resolved in your favor, expungement is available and worth pursuing.
Colonna Law Firm Can Help You Evaluate Your Options
Eligibility is not always obvious from the outside. The offense category matters, the sentence completion date matters, and what happened between then and now matters. A case that looks straightforward can have complications, and one that seems disqualifying sometimes has a path forward that is not immediately apparent.
Colonna Law Firm helps clients in Lake Charles and across southwest Louisiana determine whether expungement is available to them, prepare the necessary filings, and navigate any objections that arise. If a criminal record is limiting your opportunities, the right starting point is finding out exactly what your options are.
