What is the Oakland County Clean Slate Program?

Life is difficult if you have a criminal record. Landlords, banks, schools and employers can perform a criminal background check or search public records only to find you were once convicted of a crime.

You can be denied housing, a job and other life opportunities simply because you committed a crime in the past. This is not fair.

However, expungement programs exist that can help those with criminal records overcome their past convictions. One of these is the Oakland County Clean Slate Program.

What is the Oakland County Clean Slate Program?

The Oakland County Clean Slate Program expunges certain criminal convictions of those who live in Oakland County. Expungement wipes a conviction from your criminal record, meaning members of the public can no longer see it on a criminal background check or in a public records search.

The Oakland County Clean Slate Program began in 2021. Under the program, you can have a maximum of three felony convictions expunged after seven years have passed.

The program allows for the expungement of any amount of misdemeanor convictions after three years have passed unless you want to expunge serious misdemeanors or a single felony. In that case, five years must pass.

Can any conviction be expunged?

Not all convictions can be expunged through the Oakland County Clean Slate Program. Convictions that cannot be expunged include:

• Traffic offenses for those with two or more operating while impaired, or OWI, convictions
• Traffic offenses that resulted in injury or death
• Felony offenses eligible for a life sentence
• Attempted felony offenses eligible for a life sentence
• Felony domestic violence and child abuse offenses
• The majority of sexual conduct offenses

The Oakland County Clean Slate Program provides those with a criminal record with a second chance. The chance to start their life with a clean record after they have served their sentence. This can be the key they need to move forward and have a productive life. And living in freedom after serving your sentence is a right that deserves protection.