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Petition to Seal Granted, Airport Courthouse, PC § 417.4.
Our client, age 55, was arrested by the Beverly Hills Police Department, on April 8, 2022, for allegedly violating Penal Code § 417.4, also known as “brandishing a replica firearm.” The arrest arose out of a dispute with his neighbor’s construction workers concerning excessive noise.
After our client was released from the Beverly Hills Police Department jail, he faced a misdemeanor case in the Airport Courthouse for violation of Penal Code § 417.4.
The client hired an attorney who was his friend, but the friend spent four court hearings trying to get the case dismissed before giving up and referring the case to Greg Hill & Associates.
In Greg’s first appearance on the case, in April of 2023, he requested judicial diversion for the client and this was granted.
The judge then placed our client on judicial diversion for one year with an obligation to: 1) perform 40 hours of community service; 2) enroll and complete a firearm safety course; 3) stay away from the two construction workers involved; and 4) obey all laws while on diversion.
Our client then performed all affirmative obligations of judicial diversion before the first progress hearing on such obligations on October 6, 2023 and the judge graciously ended judicial diversion early and dismissed the case under Penal Code § 1001.95-97.
After Greg advised the client of the case being dismissed, he told the client he was therefore qualified for relief under §§ 851.91 and 851.92 to have the record of the arrest sealed.
Greg then explained how Penal Code § 851.91(a) states, “a person who has suffered an arrest that did not result in a conviction may petition the court to have his or her arrest and related records sealed, as described in Section 851.92.” Indeed, the client suffered an arrest that did not result in a conviction when the judge dismissed the complaint against him upon his completion of judicial diversion.
Greg then explained the process of filing and serving the petition and how long it took for not only the court to have a hearing, but how long it took for the Department of Justice in Sacramento to update the client’s record after the judge signs the order to seal.
Our client then retained our office to prepare, file, serve and then appear at the hearing on a petition to seal.
The petition explained that our client, a self-employed fashion photographer who often traveled worldwide to Europe, Asia and South America, wanted to move forward with his life. However, the stigma of the record of being for violation of Penal Code § 417.4 and the related court records could bar him from traveling outside the U.S. to certain countries and for new job opportunities. He did not want this record to ruin his goals and livelihood, especially when no conviction resulted. This blemish on his record could have a devastating impact on his professional life.
The petition also addressed the exceptions to being qualified for sealing and explained that none of these exceptions applied. These included whether the incident included conduct that a charge could still be alleged and that the statute of limitations for that charge had not expired, or that the arrest was for a charge with no statute of limitations, such as murder or certain sex offenses.
Other exceptions included if the defendant intentionally evaded law enforcement efforts to prosecute the arrest by absconding from the jurisdiction in which the arrest took place; or intentionally evading law enforcement efforts to prosecute the arrest by engaging in identity fraud and being subsequently charged with a crime for the act of identity fraud.
We then filed the petition to seal at the Airport Courthouse and served the Beverly Hills Police Department and the Airport Courthouse Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office there.
After our client was released from the Beverly Hills Police Department jail, he faced a misdemeanor case in the Airport Courthouse for violation of Penal Code § 417.4.
The client hired an attorney who was his friend, but the friend spent four court hearings trying to get the case dismissed before giving up and referring the case to Greg Hill & Associates.
In Greg’s first appearance on the case, in April of 2023, he requested judicial diversion for the client and this was granted.
The judge then placed our client on judicial diversion for one year with an obligation to: 1) perform 40 hours of community service; 2) enroll and complete a firearm safety course; 3) stay away from the two construction workers involved; and 4) obey all laws while on diversion.
Our client then performed all affirmative obligations of judicial diversion before the first progress hearing on such obligations on October 6, 2023 and the judge graciously ended judicial diversion early and dismissed the case under Penal Code § 1001.95-97.
After Greg advised the client of the case being dismissed, he told the client he was therefore qualified for relief under §§ 851.91 and 851.92 to have the record of the arrest sealed.
Greg then explained how Penal Code § 851.91(a) states, “a person who has suffered an arrest that did not result in a conviction may petition the court to have his or her arrest and related records sealed, as described in Section 851.92.” Indeed, the client suffered an arrest that did not result in a conviction when the judge dismissed the complaint against him upon his completion of judicial diversion.
Greg then explained the process of filing and serving the petition and how long it took for not only the court to have a hearing, but how long it took for the Department of Justice in Sacramento to update the client’s record after the judge signs the order to seal.
Our client then retained our office to prepare, file, serve and then appear at the hearing on a petition to seal.
The petition explained that our client, a self-employed fashion photographer who often traveled worldwide to Europe, Asia and South America, wanted to move forward with his life. However, the stigma of the record of being for violation of Penal Code § 417.4 and the related court records could bar him from traveling outside the U.S. to certain countries and for new job opportunities. He did not want this record to ruin his goals and livelihood, especially when no conviction resulted. This blemish on his record could have a devastating impact on his professional life.
The petition also addressed the exceptions to being qualified for sealing and explained that none of these exceptions applied. These included whether the incident included conduct that a charge could still be alleged and that the statute of limitations for that charge had not expired, or that the arrest was for a charge with no statute of limitations, such as murder or certain sex offenses.
Other exceptions included if the defendant intentionally evaded law enforcement efforts to prosecute the arrest by absconding from the jurisdiction in which the arrest took place; or intentionally evading law enforcement efforts to prosecute the arrest by engaging in identity fraud and being subsequently charged with a crime for the act of identity fraud.
We then filed the petition to seal at the Airport Courthouse and served the Beverly Hills Police Department and the Airport Courthouse Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office there.
The judge assigned to the matter took the matter under submission and ruled on the petition in chambers, granting it without a hearing. Our office was then mailed a copy of the signed order to seal, which we forwarded by email to our happy client.
