There are a number of good reasons that you want to try to remove a criminal conviction from your record—you may be denied access to credit or to educational opportunities. You may be denied the right to live in certain types of housing. Most importantly, though, you may face extreme difficulties finding gainful employment.
Not all employers run a criminal background check, but most private employers have the option to do so. There are specific occupations where a criminal background check is generally mandatory, including:
- Lottery or casino jobs or occupations at off-track betting facilities
- Child care or day care workers
- Most public school jobs
- Nurses and nurses aids
- Most professions, including the practice of law, medicine, dentistry, ministry and accounting
When conducting a criminal background check, your employer will have access to any arrests for the last seven years and any convictions, regardless of when they happened. You can, however, prevent a prospective employer from seeing anything related to a prior conviction if you successfully expunge a conviction from your record.
In California, to be eligible for expunction of a misdemeanor or felony, you must successfully complete any ordered probation, and you must not be charged with any subsequent offense. There are also certain crimes in California for which expunction is not available, including most sex crimes.