Criminal History and Criminal Records

Glossary

ADVERSE TO THE DEFENDANT: Referring to conviction information, any disposition of charges except a decision not to prosecute, a dismissal, an acquittal except when the acquittal is due to a finding of not guilty by reason of insanity, or a dismissal due to the incompetency of the defendant. A dismissal following the successful completion of a deferred sentence is also adverse.

CHALLENGE: A claim that the records on file with a law enforcement agency do not accurately reflect the actions taken by the court. A challenge will not address whether the action taken by the court was proper or not.

CONVICTION DATA: Criminal history record information relating to an incident which has led to a conviction or other disposition adverse to the subject.

CRIMINAL HISTORY RECORD INFORMATION (CHRI): Information on individuals contained in records collected by criminal justice agencies other than courts, consisting of identifiable descriptions and notations of arrests, detentions, indictments, informations, or other formal criminal charges, and any disposition arising there from, including sentences, correctional supervision, and release.

DEFERRED SENTENCE: A sentence, the execution of which is postponed until a future time (considered as adverse to the defendant).

DEFERRED PROSECUTION: A person charged with a misdemeanor or gross misdemeanor which is the result of or caused by alcoholism, drug addiction or mental problems may petition a district or municipal court to attend a treatment program as an alternative to punishment.

DISMISSAL: A dismissal is a court order terminating the case. A dismissal may occur before a finding or plea of guilty, or after a period of probation, suspension, or deferral of sentence.

DISPOSITION: The formal conclusion of a criminal proceeding at whatever stage it occurs in the criminal justice system.

DISSEMINATION: Disclosing criminal history record information to any person or agency outside the agency possessing the information.

EXPUNGE: To physically destroy information — including criminal records in files, computers, or other depositories. A motion or order to expunge shall be treated as a motion or order to destroy.

FELONY: The offense classification designating the more severe crimes. For purposes of sentencing, classified felonies are designated as one of three classes: Class A, Class B, and Class C, with Class A felonies subject to the longest terms of confinement.

FINAL DISCHARGE: Defendant has completed the requirements of his/her sentence and has received a final discharge from confinement or supervision and may also have some civil rights restored.

JUVENILE OFFENDER: An individual who is under the age of eighteen years (and who has not been previously transferred to adult court) and has been found by the juvenile court to have committed an offense. This also includes persons eighteen years of age or older over whom jurisdiction has been extended.

MISDEMEANOR: A misdemeanor is an offense generally punishable by no more than $1000 and 90 days in jail; a gross misdemeanor is an offense punishable by no more than $5000 and 365 days in jail. Misdemeanors and gross misdemeanors may be filed in either courts of limited jurisdiction (district or municipal courts) or superior court.

MODIFY: To change or revise the existing information.

NON-CONVICTION DATA: All criminal history record information relating to an incident which has not led to the conviction or other disposition adverse to the subject, and for which proceedings are no longer actively pending more than one year since arrest, citation, charge, or service of warrant with no disposition entered.

RAPSHEET: Transcript of criminal history record information.

SEAL: To seal means to protect from examination by the public and unauthorized court personnel. An entire record may be sealed or parts of a record may be sealed. Evidence of the existence of a sealed file, unless protected by statute, is available for viewing by the public on court indices, but is limited to the case number, names of the parties, the notation "case sealed," the case type in civil cases and the cause of action or charge in criminal cases. (See, also, Vacating of Record of Conviction below.) A sealed court record may be ordered unsealed under certain circumstances.

SUSPENDED SENTENCE: Execution of the sentence has been withheld by the court based on certain terms and conditions (considered as adverse to the defendant).

VACATING OF RECORD OF CONVICTION: An offender may apply to the sentencing court to set aside a conviction. The court may clear the record of conviction and the fact that the offender has been convicted of the offense shall not be included in the offender's criminal history record. In cases where a criminal conviction has been vacated and ordered sealed, the information in the public court indices shall be limited to the case number, case type with the notation "DV" if the case involved domestic violence, the adult or juvenile's name, and the notation "vacated."