S-1659.1  _______________________________________________

 

                         SENATE BILL 5860

          _______________________________________________

 

State of Washington      55th Legislature     1997 Regular Session

 

By Senators Roach and Johnson

 

Read first time 02/17/97.  Referred to Committee on Law & Justice.

Permitting misdemeanor criminal history records to be vacated.


    AN ACT Relating to vacation of misdemeanor criminal history records; and adding a new section to chapter 10.01 RCW.

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

 

    NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1.  A new section is added to chapter 10.01 RCW to read as follows:

    (1) A person convicted of a misdemeanor or gross misdemeanor may apply to the sentencing court for a vacation of the person's record of conviction.  If the court finds that the person meets the tests prescribed in subsection (2) of this section, the court shall order that the record be vacated.  Except in cases in which a plea has already been withdrawn and charges dismissed, the court may:  (a) Permit the defendant to withdraw the defendant's plea of guilty and to enter a plea of not guilty; or (b) if the defendant has been convicted after a plea of not guilty, set aside the verdict of guilty; and (c) dismiss the charges.  An order to vacate the record is not effective until the court transmits a copy of such order to both the agency initiating the criminal history and to the Washington state patrol.

    (2) A person may not have his or her record of conviction cleared if:

    (a) The imposition of sentence was deferred, or its execution was suspended, and the court subsequently imposed the sentence or ordered execution of the sentence, unless more than five years have elapsed since the completion of the sentence;

    (b) There are criminal charges against the person pending in a court of this state, another state, or in a federal court;

    (c) The person has been convicted of a new crime in this state, another state, or a federal court since the date of the conviction at issue; or

    (d) Less than five years have passed since the date the person was convicted.

    (3) If a record of conviction is vacated pursuant to this section, the effect of such vacation is the same as provided in RCW 9.94A.230 for convictions vacated pursuant to that section.  Nothing in this section affects or prevents the use of a person's prior conviction in a later criminal prosecution.

 


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