You deserve a fresh start and it's the perfect time to give it to yourself…
In Ventura County, there are literally hundreds of misdemeanor and felony convictions every day. Most people, just happy to have closed the criminal matter which has hung over their heads for months, leave the court hoping never to return. They allow themselves to be subjected to the scrutiny of probation far longer than needed, which often times results in additional penalties that could have been avoided very easily.
The other day I sat across from a young woman who had come into my office for assistance. As we talked, I learned that this woman lived a relatively normal life until around eighteen, when she was arrested for a DUI after driving home from a friend's house after drinking a single beer. Upon relaying this story, she explained that she had felt like her life was forever altered by this conviction. She stopped caring about the things that mattered and made worse decisions over the next few years. This eventually resulted in an extremely diminished concept of self-worth and a belief that there was no light at the end of the tunnel and no sense in continuing forward to get there. She had been unable to gain employment and altered her life plans for the worse.
This young woman had no idea how easy and relatively quickly she could have terminated her probation early and expunged that prior conviction, closing off that portion of her life. Instead, she let it drag her down and impact her decisions going forward.
The courts have long recognized that we, as human beings, make mistakes. For the vast majority of criminal offenses, there exists a process for terminating probation early and/ or expunging a conviction or series of convictions from our records. In many cases, this is a fast and easy process.
If you have been convicted of a misdemeanor offense in Ventura County, you will often have a three year term of probation. If you can complete your obligations to the court (jail time, fines and fees, counseling, etc) within the first 18 months, there is often no reason for the court to continue your probation and if requested, the court will terminate your probation early and successfully! At the law offices of Jarrod M. Wilfert, we can routinely meet clients and within just a few days have the court terminate them from probation successfully! In many cases, this means terminating probation in half the time!
This process is similar for felonies however the court will first reduce the offense to a misdemeanor at the time the request is made for the early termination of probation. This may take extra appearances but can be accomplished.
If you are already off probation or have had it successfully completed early, you may petition the court to remove your conviction via expungement. An expungement, if granted, allows an individual to unwind the clock and take back those mistakes. Once a matter is expunged, you may truthfully say that you were not convicted of a crime in most situations including in those such as employment interviews for private companies.
In Ventura County, the court understands that mistakes are made and that the law exists to help move people past theses mistakes. With the Ventura County Probation Department completely overwhelmed, supervising tens of thousands of individuals who are not at risk of reoffending. Now is the time, more than ever, to take advantage of the current laws and probation backlog.
Call us today and let us help you move forward in life and put things behind you. With one simple meeting, we can immediately help you move to terminate your probation and expunge your record. We all make mistakes, it is time to fix them. At Wilfert Law P.C., we are determined to make sure you get that fresh start at life. Call us today at 805-324-6777 and let us help you move forward in life!