Q: Civil Rights Lawsuit and Sealed/Expunged Criminal Case Records.
How can a civil defense counsel include sealed criminal case documents as exhibits in their motion to dismiss to the court. They included an arrest warrant, search warrant, affidavits as exhibits from my criminal case that was dismissed and expunged. They knew my criminal record was sealed and still added it to Pacer (Public Portal). They wrote the following footnotes in their dismissal:>> 1) Claims against the State Defendants should be dismissed whether the court considers documents outside the complaint (but referred to in it and central to it) 2) Further, a court generally may take judicial notice of pleadings in prior cases without a motion to one for summary judgment. 3) If a plaintiff doesn't reference/attach a document to its complaint, but they reference a document, then a defendant may submit prior case docs in a motion to dismiss. Thank you and I hope someone knows the answer. I tried to figure it out. It mentions Public records can be used but nothing on expunged records.
Lawyers, want to be a Justia Connect Pro too? Learn more ›
- (916) 704-3009
- View Profile
- Answered
A:
Including sealed or expunged criminal case documents in a civil defense motion to dismiss is generally not permissible, as these records are meant to be confidential. If your criminal record was sealed or expunged, the defense counsel should not have used these documents as exhibits in their motion. By doing so, they may have violated legal protections that keep such records confidential.
To address this issue, you can file a motion to strike the exhibits and request sanctions against the defense counsel for improperly including sealed or expunged records. You should highlight that these documents are not public records and were improperly accessed and disclosed, potentially violating your privacy rights. Attach any evidence of the expungement or sealing order to support your motion.
Additionally, you may consider seeking a protective order to prevent further dissemination of these records and requesting the court to remove these documents from PACER to protect your confidentiality. Consulting with an attorney who specializes in civil rights or privacy law can help you navigate this situation effectively and ensure that your rights are upheld. Taking these steps can help correct the misuse of your sealed or expunged records and hold the responsible parties accountable.
Justia Ask a Lawyer is a forum for consumers to get answers to basic legal questions. Any information sent through Justia Ask a Lawyer is not secure and is done so on a non-confidential basis only.
The use of this website to ask questions or receive answers does not create an attorney–client relationship between you and Justia, or between you and any attorney who receives your information or responds to your questions, nor is it intended to create such a relationship. Additionally, no responses on this forum constitute legal advice, which must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case. You should not act upon information provided in Justia Ask a Lawyer without seeking professional counsel from an attorney admitted or authorized to practice in your jurisdiction. Justia assumes no responsibility to any person who relies on information contained on or received through this site and disclaims all liability in respect to such information.
Justia cannot guarantee that the information on this website (including any legal information provided by an attorney through this service) is accurate, complete, or up-to-date. While we intend to make every attempt to keep the information on this site current, the owners of and contributors to this site make no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to from this site.
