Juvenile Delinquency Adjudications (Convictions). Utah juvenile courts call criminal “convictions” delinquency “adjudications.” Juvenile delinquency adjudications can be expunged from the public view. Juvenile Adjudications have dispositions (called sentences in adult court). Juvenile adjudications means generally you went to court and saw a juvenile judge, not just a juvenile court probation officer.
This article deals with expungements of juvenile adjudications in Utah.
Juvenile Non-Judicial Adjustment. Minor offenses are handled directly by a juvenile court probation officer. You never see the judge unless you turn down the offer of non-judicial adjustment. There generally are not attorneys involved in non-judicial adjustments. Like juvenile adjudications, these can also be expunged under Utah law.
All Agency Records. Many Utah governmental agencies may have records of your children’s juvenile records. Common agencies include the local arresting police agency, the juvenile prosecuting attorney, the juvenile detention center and other responding law enforcement agencies. DCFS commonly will have arrest records pertinent to your juvenile adjudication.
All Agencies that get notice of the judicial order to expunge. All governmental agencies that get the signed judicial order of expungement will expunge your matter. If the agencies doesn’t receive the signed order of expungement thy do nothing.
Best Practices. It is best practice to serve all government agencies who even may have touched your case with a certified copy of the expungement order. Common juvenile government agencies are: (1). The juvenile court. (2). County sheriff. (3). Local police department who arrested or interacted with you. (4). County jail, or juvenile detention center who held you initially or as part of your sentence. (5). County attorney, juvenile prosecutor’s department. (6). Any public government treatment facility, whether in-patient or out-patient. (7). When in doubt—send the entity the expungement order.
The adult expungement act allows individuals to verify that an agency has actually expunged their records. See Utah Code 77-40a-404(1). The juvenile equivalent is found at Utah Code 80-6-1006(4).
The Utah Bureau of Criminal Identification keeps an index of all expunged records—both arrest and convictions. The BCI is a division of the Utah Department of Public Safety. The following organizations may receive information contained in expunged records:
(1). The Utah Board of Pardons and Parole. This is Utah’s agency that determines when you get out of prison, after the judge decides if you go to prison. https://bop.utah.gov/
(2). Peace Officer Standards and Training. “POST” is Utah’s law enforcement training academy and disciplinary body for all certified Utah law enforcement personnel. https://post.utah.gov/
(3). Federal Agencies. It is not uncommon at all for federal security clearance adjudicators to review and obtain expunged records.
(4). DOPL. The Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing. DOPL licenses some 60 plus professions in Utah and is the disciplinary body. Dopl.utah.gov. See here for a DOPL limted expungement.
(5). Board of Education. This is Utah licensing body for teachers. https://schools.utah.gov/
(6). Concealed Carry. If you are applying for a concealed carry permit, your expunged records may be reviewed.
Paper clippings, social media, radio and private party records. Private organizations do not have to comply with the order of juvenile expungement. Newspapers, private blogs or websites are a few that don’t have to remove any conviction material. You can’t erase the past with an expungement, but you can seal from the public eye going forward all governmental documents.
The following circumstances completely BAR any juvenile expungement.
The court cannot expunge the petitioner’s juvenile record if: 
(1). No Go Charges. The record contains an adjudication for murder or aggravated murder; or in the five years preceding the day on which the petition is filed you have been convicted of a violent felony as defined in Utah Code 76-3-203.5, or
(2). Pending Charges or Adult Proceedings. There are delinquency or criminal proceedings pending against you. Meaning that you have picked up more charges, or on probation. Or,
(3). Failure to Pay Restitution. If criminal restitution has not been paid, you can never get an expungement—period.
The Utah Juvenile Judge must find the following to expunge your Utah juvenile adjudication records (some can be waived or shorted by the juvenile judge):
(1). Over 18 Years Old. You must be 18 years old or older to petition the juvenile court to expunge your records. This requirement can be waived. See Utah Code 80-6-1004.1(6).
(2). Not for Murder. Murder or aggravated murder is never expungeable as a juvenile, nor as an adult.
(3). One Year Waiting Period. At least one since your juvenile case closed successfully. Or one year since your release from State’s custody. State’s custody can mean juvenile detention or secured placement. This requirement can be waived. See Utah Code 80-6-1004.1(6).
(4). Five Year Waiting Period Violent Felony. You can’t have a violent felony conviction or adjudication in the last 5 years prior to filing the petition to expunge your juvenile records. You can have a violent misdemehttps://provocriminaldefense.com/2020/10/14/forcible-sexual-abuse/anor and still get that expunged. One trick is to run a 402 sentence reduction motion reducing the felony 3 to a misdemeanor A, therefore qualifying you faster for the juvenile expungement.
“Violent Felony” is defined in Section 76-3-203.5 to mean:
(A) Aggravated arson, arson, knowingly causing a catastrophe, and criminal mischief, Chapter 6, Part 1, Property Destruction; (B) Assault by prisoner, Section 76-5-102.5; (C) Disarming a police officer, Section 76-5-102.8; (D) Aggravated assault, Section 76-5-103; (E) Aggravated assault by prisoner, Section 76-5-103.5; (F) Mayhem, Section 76-5-105; (G) Stalking, Subsection 76-5-106.5(2); (H) Threat of terrorism, Section 76-5-107.3; (I) Aggravated child abuse, Subsection 76-5-109.2(3)(a) or (b); (J) Commission of domestic violence in the presence of a child, Section 76-5-114; (K) Abuse or neglect of a child with a disability, Section 76-5-110; (L) Abuse or exploitation of a vulnerable adult, Section 76-5-111, 76-5-111.2, 76-5-111.3, or 76-5-111.4; (M) Endangerment of a child or vulnerable adult, Section 76-5-112.5; (N) Criminal homicide offenses under Chapter 5, Part 2, Criminal Homicide; (O) Kidnapping, child kidnapping, and aggravated kidnapping under Chapter 5, Part 3, Kidnapping, Trafficking, and Smuggling; (P) Rape, Section 76-5-402; (Q) Rape of a child, Section 76-5-402.1; (R) Object rape, Section 76-5-402.2; (S) Object rape of a child, Section 76-5-402.3; (T) Forcible sodomy, Section 76-5-403; (U) Sodomy on a child, Section 76-5-403.1; (V) Forcible sexual abuse, Section 76-5-404; (W) Sexual abuse of a child, Section 76-5-404.1, or aggravated sexual abuse of a child, Section 76-5-404.3; (X) Aggravated sexual assault, Section 76-5-405; (Y) Sexual exploitation of a minor, Section 76-5b-201; (Z) Aggravated sexual exploitation of a minor, Section 76-5b-201.1; (AA) Sexual exploitation of a vulnerable adult, Section 76-5b-202; (BB) Aggravated burglary and burglary of a dwelling under Chapter 6, Part 2, Burglary and Criminal Trespass; (CC) Aggravated robbery and robbery under Chapter 6, Part 3, Robbery; (DD) Theft by extortion under Section 76-6-406 under the circumstances described in Subsection 76-6-406(1)(a)(i) or (ii); (EE) Tampering with a witness under Subsection 76-8-508(1); (FF) Retaliation against a witness, victim, or informant under Section 76-8-508.3; (GG) Tampering with a juror under Subsection 76-8-508.5(2)(c); (HH) Extortion to dismiss a criminal proceeding under Section 76-8-509 if by any threat or by use of force theft by extortion has been committed under Section 76-6-406 under the circumstances described in Subsection 76-6-406(1)(a)(i), (ii), or (ix); (II) Possession, use, or removal of explosive, chemical, or incendiary devices under Subsections 76-10-306(3) through (6); (JJ) Unlawful delivery of explosive, chemical, or incendiary devices under Section 76-10-307; (KK) Purchase or possession of a dangerous weapon or handgun by a restricted person under Section 76-10-503; (LL)Unlawful discharge of a firearm under Section 76-10-508; (MM) Aggravated exploitation of prostitution under Subsection 76-10-1306(1)(a); (NN) Bus hijacking under Section 76-10-1504; and (OO) Discharging firearms and hurling missiles under Section 76-10-1505; or (ii) Any felony violation of a criminal statute of any other state, the United States, or any district, possession, or territory of the United States which would constitute a violent felony as defined in this Subsection (1) if committed in this state. Or any attempt, solicitation or conspiracy to commit any of these crimes. (THAT WAS LOT OF CRIMES)
(5). No Pending Charges. There can’t be any pending criminal charges, adult or juvenile or be on probation or parole when you apply for an expungement.
(6). All Restitution Paid. You must have paid all restitution or you can never receive a juvenile expungement (or an adult expungement).
(7). Treatment Response. The juvenile judge can take into consideration rehabilitation successes and responses to treatment and the nature and seriousness of the conduct.
Difference 1. Juveniles have small waiting periods. Juveniles waiting periods for most adjudications is 1 year. For violent felonies it is 5 years. Adult convictions have mandatory 3 (Infraction/Class C), 4 (Class B), 5 (Class A) and 7 (Felony) year waiting periods to expunge. DUIs have a 10 year waiting period.
Difference 2. Juveniles can expunge some “Violent Felonies.” Adults cannot expunge violent felonies—period. Juveniles can expunge violent felonies, but have a five year waiting period. Both juveniles and adult expungement can expunge violent misdemeanors.
Difference 3. Different Standards. The standard for expunging adult records is difference juvenile records. The standard that the juvenile judge must follow is at Utah Code 80-6-1004.1(5) and is a broad, totality of the circumstances analysis. The adult standard for expungement is found at Utah Code 77-40a-306(1)(a)through(f). Adult expungements must be proved by clear and convincing evidence that the “public would not be harmed by the expungement.”
Difference 4. Sex crimes. Adults who are currently registering as a Utah sex offender can never receive an expungement. Juveniles sex offenses can be expunged.
Difference 6. The Big Myth of Auto Juvenile Expungement. Utah juvenile records may be non-public and more private than adult records by their nature, but they surely are NOT automatically expunged by mere passage of time. The new “Clean Slate Act” in Utah does allow for some minor regularly and drug offenses to be automatically expunged after the passage of time.
The Utah juvenile expungement code is found at Utah Code 80-6-10. The Utah case law also holds valuable information on how Utah courts have interpreted Utah’s juvenile expungement laws. The adult expungement act is called the Utah Expungement Act, 77-40a-101.
Use in Future Court Hearings? Only in criminal cases and where the witness is not the juvenile can you use an prior adjudication to impeach. You can’t use expunged juvenile adjudications to impeach a witness.
Impeachment. Utah Rule of Evidence 609 governs use of prior juvenile adjudications in court hearings. Use of juvenile adjudications in any court hearing is vastly limited compared to the already limited use of adult convictions. Evidence of a juvenile adjudication is admissible under this rule only if: (1) It is offered in a criminal case (can’t use in civil cases); (2) The adjudication was of a witness other than the defendant (can’t use against a criminal defendant); (3) The juvenile conviction must match the adult’s test for admissibility. Meaning if the criminal code provision couldn’t be used as an adult, it can’t be used as a juvenile conviction; and (4) Admitting the evidence is necessary to fairly determine guilt or innocence (Not in the adult test for using 609 convictions).
Criminal Sentencings. In adult court the State may request to use expunged criminal records at a future criminal sentencing.
Use by Government Agencies Upon Inquiry. Government agencies that have expunged your records have not destroyed them, but merely sealed them from the public. All government agencies will respond as though they didn’t exist upon any inquiry. Government law enforcement can always see expunged records if they want.
You must obtain your official Utah criminal history before applying for a juvenile expungement. This is done by getting your fingerprints and requesting your eligibility through the Utah Bureau of Criminal Identification—A department of Utah Public Safety. See https://bci.utah.gov.
This is a difficult area. Utah law at 80-6-1006 states you can “reply to an inquiry on the matter as though there never was an adjudication or nonjudicial adjustment.” Yet when applying to federal, state or governmental background of security clearances they always ask about any expunged or deferred adjudication criminal charges. And certainly the government can find and use expunged records.
Adjudication: A finding by the court, incorporated in a decree, that the facts alleged in the petition are true and correct. Juvenile proceedings are inherently civil in nature and not criminal. The adult equivalent is called a criminal conviction. Adult criminal justice matter are criminal law.
AWOL: A term used when a youth has left home or their court ordered placement for over 24 hours without permission of a parent, probation, or their JJS case worker. AWOL is a classic military ACRONYM that means “absent without leave.” AWOL is not used in adult court, instead bench warrants for their arrest are used.
Behavioral Analysis Worksheet (BAW): A structured guide that helps a youth collect and connect their antisocial actions with their feelings and thoughts. As the analysis is repeated for other behaviors, a pattern of thinking may emerge. In adult criminal sentencing many different types of social-sexual risk assessments can be used along with psychological evaluations to give the adult court judge more information at sentencing.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT/CBT Program): A treatment modality or program that focuses on the realignment of cognitive thought processes as well skill practice to assure the youth has the ability to apply what they’ve learned in treatment to real-life situations.
Community Service Hours (CSHs): A sanction given to youth where they are to work a specific number of hours without pay an is intended to give back to the community that has been harmed. Community service is used a lot in adult criminal court, especially for misdemeanors and lower level felony offenses.
Correctional Program Checklist (CPC): A tool developed to assess correctional intervention programs, and is used to ascertain how closely correctional programs meet known principles of effective intervention. See https://www.uc.edu/content/dam/uc/gencounsel/docs/CPC%20Training%20MOU%2011.12.14.pdf.
Court and Agencies’ Record Exchange (CARE): The Utah Juvenile Justice case management system. CARE is a system designed to be used by a wide variety of users and its purpose is to manage data throughout the entire process ofinvolvement with the Juvenile Court. See eFiling in Juvenile Court, available at https://www.utcourts.gov/efiling/juvenile/. Adult courts use third party vendors for online filing systems.
Court probation/probation officer: An individual, employed by the court, who creates dispositional reports in accordance with the law and guidelines and supervises youth placed on probation at disposition. In adult court there can be private probation providers, court probation or Adult Probation and Parole (“AP&P”). Unique to the juvenile system is that probation officers are employed by the juvenile court itself, whereas AP&P is division of the Utah Department of Corrections. Juvenile courts have “Intake Probation” and “Supervised of Formal Probation.” Intake probation is for low level offenders with limited risk.
Criminogenic Need: Areas that have shown to either lead to further delinquency if there are deficits or prevent further delinquency if there are strengths. Adult criminal court has a Presentence Investigation report prepared by AP&P. “PSIs” cover criminogenic need and social-economic factors.
Criminogenic Risk: A level of risk (low, moderate, high), based on a validated assessment, that a youth is likely to engage in criminogenic behaviors in the future.
Detention Hearing: A review by the juvenile court, after a youth has been admitted in detention, to determine whether a youth can be returned home (with or without conditions) or if a youth needs to be continued to be held in detention. In adult criminal court they also call these detention hearings or bail hearings. Utah’s adult bail statute is found at Utah Code 77-20-1. A max of 30 days detention per adjudication can be order, including pre-adjudication detention.
Detention (DT): Home detention or secure detention for the temporary care of a youth. This is called the county jail in adult criminal court. Adults criminal courts have the county jail and the Utah State Prison.
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition (DSM-5): A manual used by clinicians and researchers to diagnose and classify mental disorders. This is the premier diagnostic manual for mental health professionals and is commonly cited in court by psychologist and psychiatrists.
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT): A type of evidence-based type of cognitive behavioral therapy which tries to identify and change negative thinking patterns and pushes for positive behavioral changes.
Disposition: The consequences and services ordered for a youth after adjudication. Criminal sentencing occurs in adult court. Dispositions occur in juvenile delinquency matters. Both sentencing and disposition hearing generate judicial orders that must be complied with or you will face sanctions.
Dispositional Report: A written report by the probation officer relating to a youth’s mental, physical, and social history as well as assessment results and contains recommendations from the assigned probation officer based on their findings and in accordance with the Juvenile Disposition Guidelines to assist the juvenile judge in making an appropriate disposition. Presentence Investigations are used in the District Court, but not the justice courts.
Division of Child and Family Services (DCFS): The State agency responsible for youth after a finding of neglect, abuse or dependency. These child protection workers are actively interviewing children and investigating child abuse allegations across Utah. Often DCFS child abuse investigations are concurrent with law enforcement investigations.
Secure Care: The youth poses a risk of harm to others; and the youth is adjudicated at the time of the order for: A felony offense; or A misdemeanor and the minor has five prior misdemeanor or felony adjudications arising from separate criminal episodes; or A misdemeanor involving the use of a dangerous weapon as defined in Utah Code § 76-1-601.
