Years after a case ends, the conviction is usually the part still causing problems. It surfaces in rental applications, background checks, and licensing decisions long after the fines are paid and probation is closed. Washington does not use the word expungement for adult convictions. What it offers instead is vacation, a court order under RCW 9.96.060 for misdemeanors and RCW 9.94A.640 for felonies that sets the conviction aside. The Rossback Firm handles criminal defense in Grays Harbor County, and this is the question people bring back years later.
What does vacating a conviction actually do?
It releases you from the penalties and disabilities that came with the offense and allows you to legally say you were never convicted of that crime. That includes answering questions on employment and housing applications.
A vacated conviction also drops out of your criminal history for sentencing purposes if you are ever convicted of something else. The court withdraws the guilty plea or sets aside the verdict and dismisses the charge.
The order does not stay inside the courthouse. The clerk transmits it to the Washington State Patrol identification section and local law enforcement, those agencies update their records, and the State Patrol forwards the order to the FBI. The State Patrol may not then disseminate the vacated conviction in a background check.
When can a misdemeanor be vacated?
The general rule under RCW 9.96.060 is three years after completion of the sentence, with no new convictions during that period and no criminal charges pending anywhere when the motion is filed.
Offenses carrying a domestic violence designation run on a longer clock, five years, and come with additional conditions, including restrictions tied to protection orders and no-contact orders entered against the applicant. Those cases require a closer look at the record than a straightforward theft or trespass case does.
Completion of the sentence means probation is finished and the terms are satisfied. The Legislature has amended how unpaid legal financial obligations affect eligibility more than once in recent years, which is a good reason to confirm the current requirement against the statute rather than a form last updated some years ago. Where court debt is the obstacle, a motion for remission based on manifest hardship or a request to waive restitution interest sometimes clears the path before a vacation motion is filed.
Can a DUI be vacated?
Sometimes, and this surprises people who were told years ago that a DUI stays forever. Washington now allows vacation of a DUI or physical control conviction in limited circumstances, and the practical requirement is that at least ten years have passed since the arrest without a subsequent alcohol or drug violation, along with the other conditions that apply to any misdemeanor.
The exclusion is written into RCW 9.96.060 by reference to what counts as a prior offense under RCW 46.61.5055. A later alcohol or drug offense inside that ten year window closes the door.
Felony DUI and felony physical control convictions are a different matter. Those cannot be vacated at all.
What about felony convictions?
Class B and class C felonies can be vacated under RCW 9.94A.640. Class A felonies cannot.
A class C felony requires five years, and a class B felony requires ten, measured from the later of release from confinement or entry of the judgment, with no new conviction anywhere during that same period before the application. A certificate of discharge under RCW 9.94A.637 is the usual prerequisite, since the discharge is what establishes the sentence is complete.
Violent offenses as defined in RCW 9.94A.030 and crimes against persons under RCW 43.43.830 are excluded, with three carve-outs added by the New Hope Act. Assault in the second degree, assault in the third degree when not committed against a law enforcement or peace officer, and robbery in the second degree may be vacated, but only where the conviction carried no firearm enhancement, deadly weapon enhancement, or sexual motivation finding.
A theft or drug felony from a decade ago is frequently eligible. An assault case depends heavily on the degree charged and what enhancements, if any, attached at sentencing.
Which convictions can never be cleared?
Sex offenses and offenses requiring registration are off the table, as are class A felonies and violent offenses generally. Felony DUI and physical control convictions are excluded by statute.
The list is more nuanced than most summaries suggest, which is why the analysis starts with the judgment and sentence rather than with what the offense is commonly called. Two people who both describe their case as an assault can have completely different eligibility depending on the degree, the enhancement, and who the alleged victim was.
What vacating does not do
It does not destroy or seal the court file. The case remains in the court’s records showing the conviction was vacated, and anyone searching the court index can still find the docket. Washington’s process is not the same as sealing.
It does not restore firearm rights. That is a separate proceeding with its own requirements, and a vacated domestic violence conviction carries specific treatment under both state law and federal firearms rules that needs to be addressed directly rather than assumed.
It does not resolve immigration consequences. A conviction vacated for rehabilitative reasons generally still counts under federal immigration law, and anyone who is not a United States citizen should get advice on that point before relying on a vacation order.
It also does not reach commercial background check databases. Those companies bought or scrapped the record years ago, and correcting their files is a separate process from what the court and the State Patrol do.
For people whose real obstacle is a professional license or a job requiring certification, a Certificate of Restoration of Opportunity under RCW 9.97.020 is worth considering alongside vacation, since it addresses licensing and employment barriers directly.
How does the process work here?
The motion is filed in the same court that entered the conviction. For misdemeanors out of Grays Harbor County that usually means the district court in Montesano or a municipal court in Aberdeen or Hoquiam. Felonies go back to superior court.
Washington has pattern forms for both, and the courts expect them: the motion and declaration for an order vacating a misdemeanor conviction, and the corresponding felony version. A current criminal history record from the Washington State Patrol is essentially required, since eligibility turns on what convictions exist statewide and when they happened.
The prosecuting attorney receives notice and can object, and the court sets a hearing. Granting the motion is discretionary in many cases even where the statutory conditions are met, which means what you put in front of the judge about the years since the conviction matters.
What The Rossback Firm reviews before filing
The first documents are the judgment and sentence, proof that the sentence was completed, and a full criminal history report. Those three establish the offense classification, the date the waiting period began, and whether any later conviction restarted the clock.
The order of operations sometimes matters too. Someone with two eligible convictions on different dates may need them addressed in a particular sequence, and someone carrying unpaid court debt may need that resolved first. A motion filed a few months early gets denied, and refiling means starting over.
A conviction in Washington is not necessarily permanent. Most misdemeanors become eligible three years after the sentence is complete, class C felonies at five years, class B felonies at ten, and even a DUI can qualify once a decade has passed without another alcohol or drug offense. What it takes is confirming eligibility against the current statute and putting a complete motion in front of the right court. The Rossback Firm reviews criminal histories and sentencing records for people across Grays Harbor County and the surrounding counties to determine what can be cleared and when. If an old case is still costing you opportunities, finding out whether it is eligible costs nothing but a conversation.