What is the difference between Sealing and Expungement of my records?
The main difference is public accessibility. Sealing does not require certain agencies to actually “destroy” their records whereas a court order expunging records does. Once sealed, the public will not have access to the person’s criminal record (except for government officials). Both sealing and expunging a record removes the information from public records. Both require that the information be made confidential. Expungment goes one step further and physically destroys the records of arrest. Once expunged, the only way to a person from the public can access an expunged record would be through a court order.
