Probation Department Policy/Procedure Manual

2.10 Coastal Valley Academy Sealing Of Records

Location CVA Programmatic
Section N/A
Subject 2.7 Coastal Valley Academy (CVA) Sealing Of Records
Purpose Establish a procedure for the sealing of juvenile case file records
Effective Date 1/1/2020
Previous Effective Date

 

BACKGROUND:

From 2014 through 2017, numerous law changes were made related to the sealing of juvenile delinquency records for youth referred to the Probation Department or Juvenile Delinquency Court.  This procedure is intended to provide guidance for all types of juvenile delinquency sealing processes.

OVERVIEW:

Processes for sealing of juvenile delinquency records are divided into four (4) different categories depending on the applicable WIC section.  WIC 781 addresses the sealing of cases that existed prior to the referenced law changes as well as those cases that were not sealed or not sealed in their entirety pursuant to one of the other WIC sections.  WIC 786 addresses cases where charges are dismissed or found untrue in court as well as cases where youth satisfactorily complete a period of court ordered supervision.  WIC 786.5 addresses cases where a youth satisfactorily completes a period of informal diversion pursuant to WIC 654.  WIC 793(c) addresses cases where a youth satisfactorily completes a period of WIC 790 deferred entry of judgment.  

PROCEDURE

  1. WIC 781 Sealing Information
    1. A person (or the county probation officer) may petition the court to seal his or her records under any of the following circumstances:
      1. If a petition was filed, 5 years or more after the jurisdiction of the juvenile court has terminated as to the person.
      2. If a petition was not filed, 5 years or more after the person was cited to appear before a probation officer or was taken before a probation officer or any officer of a law enforcement agency.
      3. At any time after a person has reached 18 years of age.
    2. The record shall be sealed if the court finds that the person has not been convicted of a felony or a misdemeanor involving moral turpitude since the termination or jurisdiction/last action and that rehabilitation has been attained to the satisfaction of the court.
    3. If the court orders sealing of the records of a ward of the court required to register pursuant to PC 290 for a non 707(b) offense, the court shall relieve the registration requirement in the sealing orders and order destruction of all registration information.
    4. A person who was a ward of the court for a WIC 707(b) offense committed after the age of 14 may only petition the court for sealing under the following circumstances:
      1. If the person was committed to the Division of Juvenile Facilities (DJF), he/she has to have attained 21 years of age and completed his/her period of post release supervision.
      2. If the person was not committed to the DJF, he/she has to have attained 18 years of age and completed any period of supervision related to the offense imposed by the court.
      3. A record sealed pursuant to these circumstances may be accessed, inspected and utilized in a subsequent proceeding as outlined in WIC 781(D)(ii) and (iii).
      4. If the 707(b) offense was dismissed or reduced to a misdemeanor, the case can be sealed in normal fashion without the restrictions listed above.
      5. The requirements above do not apply, and the record cannot be sealed if the 707(b) offense resulted in a registration requirement pursuant to PC290.008.  This record SHALL NOT be sealed.
    5. An unfulfilled order of restitution that has been converted to a civil judgment pursuant to Section 730.6 shall not be a bar to sealing a record nor can outstanding restitution fines or court ordered fees be considered when assessing whether a petitioner’s rehabilitation has been attained to the satisfaction of the court.
    6. The court may access a file that has been sealed for the limited purpose of verifying the prior jurisdictional status of a ward who is petitioning the court to resume its jurisdiction pursuant to subdivision (e) of Section 388 (Extended Foster Care).
  2. WIC 781 Sealing Process
    1. Applicant will complete Application for Juvenile Court Petition To Seal Records.  Application can be obtained from juvenile probation website or juvenile probation front desk.
    2. The Legal Clerk (LC) opens an investigation event for sealing in Monitor and starts the tracking list for WIC 781 sealing of records and attaches to file. 
    3. Court Unit Deputy Probation Officer III (Court DPO III) or Court Unit Supervising Deputy Probation Officer (SDPO) completes investigation of applicant eligibility including the following: 
      1. Review of the application to compare the police reports that are being requested to be sealed. 
      2. Check of CLETS, Monitor and CJIS to confirm police report numbers. 
    4. Court DPO III fills out sealing request overview. (Note: WIC 256 matters are only added if applicant included them on the request to be sealed.)
    5. File is then forwarded to the District Attorney (DA) with sealing request overview on top of file.  DA notes any objections and returns to Court DPO III. 
    6. Court DPO III returns file to LC to complete petition and sealing order. LC forwards original sealing application, petition and sealing order to the court clerk (note: LC uses either Sealing Petition 781 Wardship or Sealing Petition 781 Referral from Monitor and separate sealing orders are required for each).
    7. Court clerk schedules court hearing and sends notice to all parties.
    8. Court DPO III completes and submits report to Court with recommendation regarding sealing.  At the court hearing, judge makes determination to grant or deny the petition.
    9. If sealing petition is granted, the court clerk provides probation with an order for sealing.  LC seals applicable case records, including by identifying the sealed supervision event client state as 781Sealed-M or 781Sealed-F. 
    10. Court Unit DPO III or SDPO signs the sealing compliance order and LC returns it to the court.
  3. WIC 786 Sealing Information.
    1. Satisfactory completion of WIC 654.2 diversion or WIC 725 probation
      1. Satisfactory completion of an informal program of supervision or another term of probation shall be deemed to have occurred if the person has no new findings of wardship or conviction for a felony offense or a misdemeanor involving moral turpitude during the period of supervision or probation (NOTE: this is referring to any ADULT convictions during the juvenile probation supervision event being assessed) and if he or she has not failed to substantially comply with the reasonable orders of supervision or probation that are within his or her capacity to perform.  The period of supervision or probation shall not be extended solely for the purpose of deferring or delaying eligibility for dismissal of the petition and sealing of the records under this section.
      2. An unfulfilled order or condition of restitution, including a restitution fine that can be converted to a civil judgment under section 730.6 or an unpaid restitution fee shall not be deemed to constitute unsatisfactory completion of supervision or probation.
      3. A court shall not seal a record or dismiss a petition if the petition was sustained based on the commission of an offense listed in subdivision (b) of section 707 that was committed when the individual was 14 years of age or older unless the finding on that offense was dismissed or was reduced to a misdemeanor or to a lesser offense that is not listed in subdivision (b) of Section 707.
    2. If a person who has been alleged to be a ward of the juvenile court has his or her petition dismissed by the court, whether on the motion of the prosecution or on the court’s own motion, or if the petition is not sustained by the court after an adjudication hearing, the court shall order sealed all records pertaining to the dismissed petition, in the custody of the juvenile court, law enforcement agencies, probation department, or the Department of Justice. The court will complete the sealing order. (This section applies to youth who are not under court ordered supervision.)
    3. Under the following circumstances a Deputy Probation Officer may access, inspect or utilize a sealed juvenile file: (Review of a sealed record shall not be deemed and unsealing of the record and shall not require notice to any other agency.)
      1. To determine eligibility or suitability for 790 or a program of supervision under 654.3.
      2. For a ward petitioning the court to resume jurisdiction under WIC 388(e). (Extended Foster Care)
      3. Filing of a new felony petition has occurred to identify previous programs or     placements and determine eligibility or suitability for programs and services.
      4. In accordance with WIC 707 to determine if the case should be transferred to a court of criminal jurisdiction.
      5. To meet Federal Title IV-B and IV-E compliance.
  4. WIC 786 Sealing Process
    1. DPO determines if “satisfactory completion of probation supervision has been attained” based on requirements identified in section 3(a) above. Determination to include verification of PC 296 registration and “substantial compliance” with other orders.
    2. DPO to schedule hearing or complete ex parte order JV-794.
    3. DPO gives file to Legal Clerk (LC) ten (10) court days prior to court hearing.
    4. LC completes WIC 786 Sealing Order (form JV 596) and a Misc JV Sealing Order for all police reports not filed with DA.
    5. DPO to confirm restitution has been paid or determines a CR110 needs to be completed.
    6. DPO gives file to Collections for review.
    7. DPO completes report/memo in compliance with department policy and mandated timelines. The DPO will include the following language in the recommendation of the report: It is recommended the court find the youth has satisfactorily completed probation supervision and order that the youth’s case is closed with all petitions dismissed and all records sealed pursuant to Section 786 WIC.  Recommended findings and orders on sealing are attached in form JV-596 for the court’s consideration. 
    8. DPO to attach recommended sealing orders/JV-596 to all copies of report.
    9. Upon receipt of sealing order, LC closes out the supervision and applicable investigation events.
    10. LC Sends file to Collections for final review.
    11. File is returned to DPO for case closure sheet.
    12. Court Unit DPO III or SDPO signs the sealing compliance order and LC returns it to the court.
    13. LC physically seals youth’s record, including by identifying the sealed supervision event client state as 786Sealed-M or 786Sealed-F, and deletes all applicable cases in compliance with the minute order.
  5. WIC 786.5 Sealing Information
    1. Upon satisfactory completion of a program of diversion or supervision pursuant to WIC 654, the probation department shall seal the arrest and other records in its custody in relation to the juvenile’s arrest and referral and participation in the diversion or supervision program.
    2. The probation department shall notify the person in writing that his or her record has been sealed based on his or her satisfactory completion of the program.  If the record is not sealed, the probation department shall notify the participant in writing of the reason for not sealing the record.
    3. Satisfactory completion of diversion shall be defined as substantial compliance.  A determination of satisfactory or unsatisfactory completion shall be made by the probation department within 60 days of completion of the program.
    4. A person who receives notice from the probation department that he or she has not satisfactorily completed the diversion program and that the record has not been sealed may petition the court that he or she has satisfactorily completed the requirements and is eligible for sealing.  A JV 598 form should be completed by the person that received notice of the unsuccessful closure.
    5. The probation department of a county responsible for the supervision of a person may access a record sealed by a probation department for the sole purpose of complying with WIC 654.3.  The information in the sealed record and accessed by the probation department shall remain confidential and shall not be disseminated to any other person or agency.
  6. WIC 786.5 Sealing Process
    1. DPO determines if “substantial compliance” has been attained at the time of closure of a WIC 654 diversion case.
    2. DPO fills out 654 case closure sheet and prepares satisfactory or unsatisfactory letter and gives to Supervisor. If unsatisfactory, DPO completes JV 597.
    3. SDPO signs off on closure sheet if in agreement with DPO’s assessment of “substantial compliance”.  If not in agreement SDPO, will discuss with DPO and modify as needed.
    4. SDPO gives file to LC.
    5. If case is closed satisfactorily, LC sends the following documents to the youth/family:
      1. Closure letter
      2. Application for Juvenile Court Petition to Seal Records
    6. If case is closed unsatisfactorily, the records ARE NOT sealed at the time of closure and the LC sends the following documents to the youth/family:
      1. Closure letter
      2. JV 597
      3. JV 598
      4. Application for Juvenile Court Petition to Seal Records
    7. If case is closed satisfactorily, the records ARE sealed at the time of closure and the LC deletes all applicable cases and physically seals youth’s record, including by identifying the sealed supervision event client state as 654-Sealed.
  7. Sealing Process for WIC 654 Cases Initially Closed Unsatisfactorily
    1. The applicant will complete a JV 598 petition and submit it to San Luis Obispo Superior Court, room 220, San Luis Obispo, CA 93408.
    2. The court will schedule a hearing and notice the applicant and Probation.
    3. The LC’s shall open an investigation in Monitor and assign the case to a Diversion Officer.  The LC shall also send an email to the Diversion Officer and Court DPO III.
    4. The Diversion Officer shall complete a memo for the hearing.  The memo is to include the date the diversion contract was signed, orders they agreed to complete, the orders that were not completed and the overall compliance of the applicant.
  8. WIC 793 Sealing
    1. If the minor has performed satisfactorily while on deferred entry of judgment, the charge or charges on the wardship petition shall be dismissed and the arrest upon which the judgment was deferred shall be deemed never to have occurred and any records shall be sealed, except that the probation department shall have access to these records for the limited purpose of determining whether a minor is eligible for deferred entry of judgment pursuant to Section 790.
    2. Following a court hearing where a youth’s records were ordered sealed pursuant to WIC 793, the following shall occur:
      1. LC closes out the supervision and applicable investigation events following court hearing
      2. LC Sends file to Collections for review
      3. File is returned to DPO for case closure sheet
      4. Court Unit DPO III or SDPO signs the sealing compliance order and LC returns it to the court.
      5. LC physically seals youth’s record, including by identifying the sealed supervision event client state as “DEJ Sealed”, and deletes all applicable cases in compliance with the minute order.