In Colorado, you don’t need a pardon from the governor to have a non-violent drug-related felony removed from your record. Instead, you can petition the court to have your conviction sealed. Colorado law allows individuals to seal certain felony convictions, including non-violent drug-related offenses, once they’ve completed their sentence and met specific waiting periods. Recent changes in law, such as the “Clean Slate” provisions, have expanded eligibility for record sealing, even allowing for automatic sealing in some cases.

Sealing your record doesn’t erase the conviction, but it prevents most public background checks from showing it, giving you the ability to legally state that you don’t have a criminal record for most purposes. An experienced criminal defense attorney can help determine whether you qualify for record sealing and guide you through the process of filing a petition in court.

Steve Rodemer, Attorney at Law
Phone: (719) 635-7886
Email: info@coloradospringscriminaldefense.net
Website: https://coloradospringscriminaldefense.net/
Address: 90 S Cascade Ave #1420, Colorado Springs, CO 80903

@steven-rodemer 

If expungement usually isn’t available, and the main option is record sealing, what specific details about the conviction, like the statute, felony level, sentence completion, and restitution status, determine whether a nonviolent drug felony can be sealed, and when someone becomes eligible to file?

Thank you for this information, I really appreciate it!

@mileneh

Sealing your record may depend on multiple factors. So whether it can be sealed, and when, depends mainly on the following:

• First, you must weigh the applicable statute of conviction and the offense level. Colorado’s sealing statute establishes different waiting periods depending on whether the conviction is a Level 3 drug felony, a Level 4 drug felony, or a Class 4, 5, or 6 felony. The waiting period is tied to the offense level. Often 2 years for certain Level 4 possession convictions (C.R.S. 18-18-403.5(2.5)), and 3 years for Level 3 and most Level 4 drug felonies, and Class 4, 5, and 6 felonies. When the clock starts: The waiting period generally starts on the later of: the final disposition of the case, or your release from supervision (probation, parole, etc.)
• Whether you have stayed conviction-free since that date, for many categories, the court can only seal if your criminal history shows you have not been convicted of a criminal offense since the relevant “later of” date above. You will also not be able to seal your record if you haven’t paid all your restitution.

You can be disqualified depending on how the case was sentenced or classified. Even if it is “nonviolent” in the everyday sense, sealing can be blocked if the conviction is in an excluded category, including things like being sentenced as a crime of violence, certain domestic violence underlying factual bases, certain special offender sentencing, and convictions classified as Class 1, 2, or 3 felonies, or Level 1 drug felonies, among other exclusions.

You can also be disqualified based on the judge’s discretion. If a hearing is held, the judge must find that the privacy harm and risk of unwarranted adverse consequences outweigh the public interest in access, and must consider at least the severity of the offense, your criminal history, the number and dates of convictions you want sealed, and the government’s need to retain the records.

However, there is one exception: if the conviction is for conduct that was unlawful at the time but is no longer unlawful under Colorado law, a separate sealing process may be filed “at any time,” sealing path. For example, Colorado’s court guide flags “anytime” sealing for some psilocybin charges that are no longer unlawful.

If you have further questions regarding the sealing process, I recommend contacting a local attorney. They can help you further understand what it takes to get your record sealed.

Steve Rodemer, Attorney at Law
Phone: (719) 635-7886
Email: info@coloradospringscriminaldefense.net
Website:  https://coloradospringscriminaldefense.net/
Address: 90 S Cascade Ave #1420, Colorado Springs, CO 80903