Polk v. Mississippi
Annotate this CaseZachary Polk was indicted on three counts for the sale of methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), hydrocodone, and alprazolam. Polk entered a plea of guilty as to Count I for the sale of MDMA, and he was sentenced to serve ten years in the Mississippi Department of Corrections and ordered to pay a $5,000 fine. The district attorney “retired to files” Count II and Count III, based upon Polk entering a plea of guilty as to Count I. In 2012, Polk received a “full, complete, and unconditional pardon” from Governor Haley Barbour. Thereafter, Polk filed a petition for expungement seeking to have all records expunged relating to his earlier arrest and indictment. The trial court determined that it was without statutory or constitutional authority to expunge Polk’s record. There being no statutory basis for expungement of the record of the criminal conviction for which Polk was pardoned, the Supreme Court concluded the trial court correctly denied Polk’s petition to expunge the record(s) pertaining to his criminal conviction. As to Polk’s criminal records pertaining to Counts II and III, the Court found that those records were eligible for expungement pursuant to Mississippi Code Section 99-15-26(5).
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