You were arrested, and now your mug shot, arrest records, charges, and court hearing dockets are available online for everyone to see. Your family, friends and work colleagues can access your newly posted legal troubles online. We know this can be very stressful and even embarrassing for you. It’s incredibly traumatic to be charged with the crime or crimes you’ve been accused of committing.
Thankfully, you can remove your arrest and criminal records so no one can see them.
Removing Online Arrest Records in Florida
If you are arrested in West Palm Beach, FL, the Palm Beach Sheriff’s Office will post your mug shot, personal information and the charges on the official PBSO website’s booking blotter. The same applies to other police departments around the State of Florida. Almost every law enforcement agency has a website where anyone with internet access can search arrest records by date and name. Local arrest records usually remain on these websites for about a year; however, they can live online forever at websites like ArrestRecords.com and FloridaStateMugShots.org if you do not take the proper legal steps to remove them.
Record Sealing and Expungement Options
There are instances where a person is arrested in Florida, and their arrest records do not appear online. An excellent example of an arrest that wouldn’t show in online records would be related to missing a court hearing for not paying a fine. As long as the person pays the amount owed immediately, they are released from custody, and their mugshot and record of the arrest never make it online. The same applies to traffic violation arrests if you resolve your outstanding warrant and unpaid citations.
Sealing or Expunging a Criminal History
For those who did commit the crimes they were charged with, you still have the option to have your arrest and criminal records sealed or expunged. The first thing you need to do is find out if the crimes you were charged with and were found guilty of committing. You can do so by reading our blog post, “What Crimes Can Be Expunged From My Record in Florida?“.
To learn more, check out another informative and helpful article with tips on “How To Expunge Records In Florida.” You can also take a look at the FDLE’s Seal and Expunge Process FAQ.