2006 Alabama Code - Section 12-15-103 — Proceedings for sealing and destruction of legal and social files and records of courts, probation services, etc., pertaining to certain persons and effect thereof.

(a) On motion of the part of a person who has been the subject of a delinquency petition or on the court's own motion, the court shall vacate its order and findings and order the sealing of the legal and social files and records of the court, probation services and of any other agency in the case if it finds that:

(1) Two years have elapsed since the final discharge of the person from legal custody or supervision or two years after the entry of any other court order not involving custody or supervision; and

(2) He has not been convicted of a felony or misdemeanor involving moral turpitude or adjudicated delinquent prior to the filing of the motion and no proceeding is pending seeking such conviction or adjudication.

(b) The motion and the order may include the files and records specified in Section 12-15-100.

(c) Reasonable notice of the motion shall be given to:

(1) The prosecutor;

(2) The authority granting the discharge if the final discharge was from an institution, parole or probation; and

(3) The law enforcement officers, department and central depository having custody of the files and records specified in Section 12-15-100 and included in the motion.

(d) Upon the entry of the order, the proceedings in the case shall be treated as if they never occurred and all index references shall be deleted and the court and law enforcement officers and departments shall reply and the person may reply to any inquiry that no record exists with respect to such person. Inspection of the files and records included in the order may thereafter be permitted by the court only upon motion by the person who is the subject of such records and only to those persons named in the motion; provided, however, that the court in its discretion may by special order in an individual case permit inspection by or release of information in the records to any clinic, hospital or agency which has the person under care.

(e) Any adjudication of delinquency or conviction of a felony or a crime involving moral turpitude subsequent to sealing shall have the effect of nullifying the sealing order.

(f) A person who has been the subject of a delinquency petition and has met the conditions stipulated in subdivision (2) of subsection (a) of this section may, five years after reaching the age of majority, file a motion requesting the destruction of all records pertaining to his case. If the court grants the motion, copies of the order shall be sent to all offices or agencies that are repositories of such records and all such offices and agencies shall comply with the order.

(g) Upon the entry of a sealing order or a destruction order, all references including arrest, complaint, referrals, petitions, reports and orders shall be removed from all agency, official and institutional files and sealed or destroyed as aforesaid and a finding of delinquency shall be deemed never to have occurred. No child who has been the subject of such a sealing or destruction order shall be deemed to have been arrested ab initio within the meaning of the general statutes with respect to proceedings so sealed or destroyed and, in response to any inquiry or on any application or in any proceeding, the person may state that he has never been arrested, taken into custody, committed or adjudicated a delinquent with regard to the proceedings so sealed or destroyed.

(h) A person who has been the subject of a delinquency petition shall be notified of his rights under subsections (a) and (f) of this section at the time of his final discharge.

(Acts 1975, No. 1205, p. 2384, §5-145.)