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New Jersey Appellate Division Holds that “Crime Spree” Conviction Is Ineligible for Expungement

In order to expungement a felony conviction in New Jersey, an individual must not have been convicted of any “prior or subsequent crimes.” What this means, in effect, is that a person cannot expunge a felony conviction if they have more than one felony conviction on their record. While it is clear that individuals who have been convicted and/or sentenced for multiple felonies on multiple dates are not eligible for an expungement, questions remain. For example, what about individuals who have multiple felony convictions, but were sentenced on the same date? Similarly, what about individuals who have been convicted for felonies that occurred within a relatively close of time to each other (often referred to as a “crime spree”).

On June 9, 2014, the New Jersey Appellate Division issued an opinion that addressed these questions. In the Matter of the Expungement of the Criminal Records of G.P.B., the petitioner pleaded guilty to one count of third-degree conspiracy, in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:5-2, and three counts of third-degree making gifts to public servants, in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:27-6(b). While entering his plea, the petitioner admitted that he agreed to contribute money to a municipal official’s campaign on April 19, 1999, and to the campaigns of two other municipal officials on April 20, 1999. The petitioner further admitted that he entered into these illicit agreements in order to secure the officials’s opposition to a municipal resolution. At sentencing, the court merged the conspiracy conviction with the convictions on the bribery-related crimes. The court then sentenced the petitioner to concurrent three-year probationary terms with the condition of a 30 day jail term as well as other fines and penalties.

Based off of this information, the Appellate Division, in holding that the petitioner was ineligible for expungement concluded that in entering his guilty plea the petitioner admitted to the commission of separate crimes on April 19 and April 20, 1999. The court concluded that as the crimes were committed on separate occasions, they were precluded from expungement, regardless of whether or not the crimes carried a single sentencing date and therefore a single date of conviction.

In April of 2014, the New Jersey Supreme Court granted certification to a case on similar grounds, In re Expungement Petition of J.S., ___ N.J. ___ (April 11, 2014). There the New Jersey Supreme Court may either endorse or reject the Appellate Division’s interpretation regarding the crime-spree exception to expungements. Until instructed otherwise, however, it appears as though the Appellate Division will continue to adhere to its interpretation.

Randolph H. Wolf has been successfully representing clients in obtaining expungements for over 30 years. If you are interested in obtaining an expungement of your criminal record or have eligibility questions, contact us today for a free consultation.