How an Expungement Helps You Give Back to Your Community
A criminal record can be costly — financially and emotionally. Even if you don’t serve jail time, probation can be hard. You have to jump through hoops to complete it but, unfortunately, the consequences don’t always end when your probation term does.
Many people with criminal records face challenges for years or decades afterward. They may not be able to run for public office, provide foster care for children in need, or even volunteer in their community. It’s not fair that you have to keep paying for your mistakes after your court-ordered sentence is complete, especially when it means you can’t use your time to make your community a better place.
Many of our clients have transformed themselves and their lives in the years after their conviction. They’re no longer the same person they were, and yet, they face barriers for things as simple as volunteering at organizations in need. In this article, we’re going to talk about how an expungement can help you give back to your community.
Volunteering Opportunities
Some of our past clients have been surprised to learn that they were not able to volunteer at some organizations because of their records. For example, one of our past clients was volunteering his time to take care of a church lawn, but was no longer allowed to do so once they found out about his past.
Some schools have restrictions that don’t allow people with criminal convictions to volunteer, which is understandable. However, after you’ve changed your life and are no longer the person you were at the time of the incident, it can be embarrassing and damaging to be told that you can’t volunteer in your child or grandchild’s classroom.
Public Office
In Oklahoma, being convicted of embezzlement makes you ineligible to run for public office for 15 years after completing your sentence. Even if you haven’t been convicted of embezzlement, having arrests, charges and/or convictions come to light could make it harder to win an election. In a process that involves a lot of mudslinging, having anything in your past that makes voters question your character now can cost you the election.
Expungements erase the public record of your crime so you can legally deny that the incident ever happened.
Foster Care & Adoption
Under normal circumstances, the Department of Human Services will run a background check on anyone who wants to adopt or be a foster parent. Having a record can make it harder, if not impossible, to get approved.
If you’d like to be able to help children in your community who need a loving, safe home, then an expungement might be the right path for you.
Free Yourself with an Expungement
A full expungement is a legal process that erases the public record of a crime. With an expungement, you can be free of your mistakes and bring your past in line with who you are now. It will make it possible for you to volunteer in your community, hold public office, care for children in need, plus many other benefits.
If you’re ready to rewrite your story, one where you’re no longer a felon or someone with a criminal record, then let’s get started on your expungement today. The first step is to take our free Expungement Eligibility Quiz to see if you’re eligible for an expungement in Oklahoma.
