You may file a petition to seal all case records related to an eligible criminal offense if you have not had a petition to seal the records under ARS § 13-911 denied in the past three years and you were:

1. Convicted of a criminal offense, the timeframes in ARS § 13-911(E), (F), and (G) have passed, and you have completed all the terms and conditions of the sentence that were imposed by the court, including the payment of all monetary obligations and restitution to all victims. This includes monetary obligations and victim restitution that were converted to a civil obligation through the issuance of a Criminal Restitution Order (ARS § 13-805).


2. Charged with a criminal offense and the charge was subsequently dismissed or resulted in a not guilty verdict at trial.


3. Arrested for a criminal offense and no charges were filed.

 
EXCEPTION

You cannot petition to have criminal case records sealed if you have been:

1. sentenced as a dangerous offender pursuant to ARS § 13-704
2. convicted of a dangerous crime against children as defined in ARS § 13-705
3. convicted of a serious offense or violent or aggravated felony as defined in ARS § 13-706
4. convicted of any offense has the discharge, use or threatening exhibition of a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument as an element of the offense
5. convicted of any offense that had the knowing infliction of serious physical injury on another person as an element of the offense
6. convicted of sex trafficking pursuant to ARS § 13-1307
7. convicted of a class 2, 3, 4, or 5 felony offense in Title 13, Chapter 14 (Sexual Offenses) or 35.1 (Sexual Exploitation of Children).

If you file a petition to seal your criminal case records, you should provide as much information as possible regarding (1) your arrest, (2) any charges (including those not filed) and (3) case information (including dates, arresting agency, location of booking, copy of citation or citation number, department report number, and incident number) that will help the court locate your records and process your petition.

You may contact the arresting agency or search public record archives to gather pertinent information.

Department of Public Safety: https://www.azdps.gov/services/public/records/criminal

Arizona Judicial Branch’s Public Access to Court Case Information: https://apps.supremecourt.az.gov/publicaccess/caselookup.aspx

The court will not have information about the requested records if no charges were filed with the court.

You must provide adequate information for the court to determine if records exist and if they are eligible for sealing.

You may petition the court to seal your records of arrest, conviction and sentence after you complete all the terms and conditions of your sentence (including paying all fines, fees and restitution that are ordered by the court)

AND

You have not been convicted of any other offenses, except a misdemeanor traffic violation (Title 28), excluding a conviction for driving under the influence (ARS §§ 28-1381 through 28-1383.)

AND

The following period of time has passed since you completed the conditions of probation or sentence and were discharged by the court:

• 10 years for a class 2 or 3 felony
• 5 years for a class 4, 5 or 6 felony
• 3 years for a class 1 misdemeanor
• 2 years for a class 2 or 3 misdemeanor

NOTE: You have not completed your sentence if financial obligations exist under a Criminal Restitution Order for the applicable offenses. If you have completed all other terms of sentencing, the date of completion of the Criminal Restitution Order is the date of completion of the sentence. Additionally, if you have a prior historical felony conviction, you must wait an additional five years.

You must file your petition to seal criminal case records in the correct court; otherwise, your petition may be dismissed and returned with no ruling.

• You must file in the court where you were convicted of an offense.


• If the charges were dismissed, or you were found not guilty, or your conviction was vacated, you must file in the court where the indictment, information, criminal citation or complaint was filed against you. (Exception: if the complaint was filed in a justice court and the case was transferred to the superior court, the petition must be filed in the superior court)

• If charges were not filed, you must file in the court where you had your initial appearance.


• If you did not have an initial appearance and no charges were filed, you must file the petition in the superior court in the county where you were arrested.