Well, if you haven't heard by now, Mel Gibson's DUI expungement petition was granted by the court yesterday, officially closing another chapter in celebrity DUI history. As a result of Mel Gibson's DUI expungement, Mr. "The Jews are responsible for all the wars in the world" will no longer have to disclose his DUI conviction on a job application. Yeah!
So what is a DUI expungement and how did Mel Gibson do it? It's really quite simple and something that just about anyone can petition the court to do.
First, in submitting his DUI expungement petition, Mel Gibson was asking the court to allow him to 1) withdraw his plea of guilty and 2) dismiss his DUI case.
Mel Gibson was eligible to petition the court to expunge his DUI conviction because he met two conditions.
- Mel Gibson was placed on probation as part of his sentence for his DUI conviction; and
- Mel Gibson successfully completed his probation meaning he paid all his fines, attending all court ordered DUI classes, attended all his court dates, completed any community service and didn't commit any new felony and/or misdemeanor law violations.
As such, at the end of the probationary period Mel Gibson was eligible to submit his DUI Expungement petition for consideration by the court pursuant to Penal Code Section 1203.4.
Mel Gibsons DUI Expungement functions just like any other expungement on a misdemeanor conviction. When the court granted Mel Gibson's DUI expungement, essentially what happens is as follows:
Mel Gibson's "guilty" or "no contest" plea was set aside by the court; a plea of "not guilty" was entered on his behalf and the case was dismissed.
So what are the benefits of Mel Gibson's DUI Expungement. For him, probably not much unless it somehow effects his ability to make movies and/or get insured for movies. The primary benefit of a DUI expungement or any criminal conviction expungement for that matter is with respect to employment.
Since Mel Gibson's DUI expungement was granted, he can now legally say "No" when asked if he has ever been convicted on an employment application, with exceptions as follows:
- if Mel Gibson wants to become a peace officer or run for public office;
- if Mel Gibson wants to apply for a state issued license, and
- if Mel Gibson plans on working for the California Lottery Commission.
Aside from whether there is any real benefit to him, Mel Gibson's DUI expungement is something that can only help and never hurt even if it's just to clean up his criminal record. This pretty much goes for anyone. However, for the less famous, a DUI or criminal conviction expungement is generally of more benefit.
Written by Gabriel Dorman
Los Angeles, California
gabedorman@gmail.com
www.criminaldefenseduilawyer.com/blog/
Exclusively for HULIQ.com
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