An expungement is a court action that deletes police and court records relating to a criminal case when any of the following has occurred: acquittal, nolle prosequi, dismissal, absolute pardon, or when an individual’s name was used in error. When a record is expunged, the record is not immediately destroyed but is removed from public access and sealed. Three (3) years after the date the expungement order is entered, the records are destroyed.

The filing fee is $86. If your expungement petition is granted by the court, you will receive a refund of $86.

No forms are available from the Clerk's office, however the Alexandria Circuit Court Expungement Packet contains sample forms and is available from the Alexandria Law Library here: Expungement Packet or by calling (703) 746-4077.

1. Person seeking expungement (“petitioner”) obtains four (4) copies of the arrest warrants or charges to be expunged.

2. Petitioner completes a Petition for Expungement and a draft Order of Expungement (see Packet linked above for examples) and creates three copies of each.

Petitioner files the original Petition for Expungement, the original draft Order of Expungement, and one copy of the Arrest Warrant(s)/Charging Document(s) with the Clerk of Circuit Court.

The petitioner provides one copy of each document to the Commonwealth’s Attorney.

The petitioner provides a request for fingerprints and one copy of each document to a law enforcement agency.

The last set of copies is for the petitioner’s records.

3. Petitioner obtains one complete set of fingerprints from a law enforcement agency.

4. The law enforcement agency which took the fingerprints will send them, along with a copy of the Petition for Expungement, to the Central Criminal Records Exchange (CCRE).

5. CCRE will conduct a search of the records of the Petitioner’s criminal history and return the results to the Clerk of Circuit Court along with the fingerprint card.

6. IF necessary, hearings on expungements are scheduled on civil motions day, the 2nd and 4th Wednesdays of each month.

The Alexandria Sheriff’s Office processes fingerprint requests for expungement petitioners on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., at the courthouse. There is no fee for this service. For information on fingerprinting only, call (703) 746-4120 or visit their expungement page https://www.alexandriava.gov/sheriff/sheriffs-office-offering-free-fingerprinting-for-local-expungement.

Disclaimer: The information provided is for procedural purposes only. It is not intended as legal advice and should not be used as such. The Clerk's Office cannot advise you or determine which charges are eligible for expungement. We recommend you seek the advice of an attorney. Proceeding 'Pro Se' means that you are acting as your own attorney and that you are responsible for filing the appropriate forms and documents and that you are responsible for their content.