To get a felony conviction expunged in Tennessee, first determine whether the exact felony is statutorily eligible. Tennessee does not allow every felony conviction to be erased. Eligibility depends on the offense, criminal history, number of convictions, completion of the sentence, and the applicable waiting period.
Current Tennessee Code Annotated § 40-32-107 allows expungement petitions for specified eligible felony convictions. Eligible Class E felonies generally require five years after completion of the sentence; eligible Class C and D felonies generally require ten years.
Nashville Criminal Defense Lawyer & Former Prosecutor Kevin Kennedy. 615-205-7311. Call or text for a free consultation.
Step 1: Identify the Exact Conviction
Get the judgment and confirm the statute number, felony class, offense date, conviction date, and sentence. Do not rely only on a background-check description or memory of the charge.
Expungement eligibility is tied to the actual offense of conviction.
Step 2: Check Whether the Felony Is Eligible
Section 40-32-107 contains the categories and specific offenses that can qualify. Tennessee now includes designated Class C, D, and E felony convictions, but many felonies remain ineligible.
The felony class alone does not answer the question.
Step 3: Review the Entire Criminal History
Eligibility rules consider other convictions, including certain ineligible convictions and prior expungements. Current law also permits some petitioners to seek relief for up to two eligible offenses under specified conditions.
Federal and out-of-state convictions can matter to the analysis.
Step 4: Confirm the Sentence Is Complete
The petitioner must have completed imprisonment, probation, and supervised or unsupervised release and fulfilled the requirements imposed by the sentencing court.
Financial obligations such as fines, restitution, court costs, and other assessments must also be addressed as required by statute.
Step 5: Calculate the Waiting Period Correctly
For an eligible misdemeanor or Class E felony, current law generally requires five years after completion of the sentence. For an eligible Class C or D felony, the period is generally ten years.
The clock is based on sentence completion, not merely the date of arrest or conviction.
Step 6: File in the Correct Court
Section 40-32-107 directs eligible petitioners to proceed under § 40-32-108. The petition is filed through the court with jurisdiction over the conviction.
Court records should be reviewed before filing so the petition accurately identifies the judgment and basis for eligibility.
What Happens After the Petition Is Filed?
The statutory process provides for review of eligibility and the required findings. The prosecutor has a role in the process, and the court ultimately determines whether the statutory requirements are satisfied.
A petition should clearly demonstrate each eligibility requirement rather than merely asking for leniency.
Can You Expunge Two Convictions?
Current law can allow expungement of up to two eligible offenses when they are two misdemeanors or one felony and one misdemeanor and all statutory requirements are met.
Qualifying convictions arising contemporaneously at the same location from a single continuous criminal episode with a single criminal intent can also be treated as one offense for specified expungement purposes.
What If the Felony Was Dismissed Instead of Convicted?
Do not use the conviction-expungement process if the felony charge was dismissed and no conviction resulted. Tennessee has separate expungement provisions for dismissed charges, acquittals, no true bills, and other non-conviction outcomes.
Those cases can have different timing and eligibility rules.
What If You Completed Judicial Diversion?
Successful judicial diversion under § 40-35-313 can result in dismissal and discharge, after which the person may apply for expungement if the statutory requirements are satisfied.
That is different from petitioning years later to expunge an ordinary felony conviction.
Can a Pardon Create an Expungement Option?
Yes, in a limited category. Section 40-32-107 provides a route for a person convicted of a nonviolent crime who obtains the required positive Board of Parole vote and a gubernatorial pardon and satisfies the statutory process.
Pardon-based relief is separate from ordinary conviction expungement.
What Does Expungement Remove?
Tennessee expungement is aimed at removing qualifying public criminal records, but the statutory definition of public records contains exceptions, including certain arrest histories, investigative reports, appellate records, and confidential law-enforcement or prosecutor files.
An expungement should not be described as literally erasing every record that has ever existed.
Why Have a Lawyer Review Eligibility First?
Tennessee’s expungement statutes are detailed and offense-specific. Filing without checking the exact conviction, sentence-completion date, other criminal history, and statutory list can waste time or lead to an incorrect conclusion.
A focused eligibility review can determine whether ordinary expungement, diversion-based expungement, pardon relief, or no current remedy applies.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can every Tennessee felony be expunged?
No. Only felonies that fall within Tennessee’s statutory eligibility rules can be expunged.
How long do I have to wait?
Eligible Class E felonies generally require five years after sentence completion; eligible Class C and D felonies generally require ten years.
Can a Class B felony be expunged?
Class B felonies are not included in the ordinary conviction-expungement eligibility framework under § 40-32-107.
Can I expunge a felony after judicial diversion?
Successful judicial diversion has its own dismissal-and-expungement process under § 40-35-313.
Does expungement erase every government record?
No. Tennessee’s statutory definition of public records excludes certain categories from expungement.
Talk With a Nashville Criminal Defense Lawyer
The exact charge, criminal history, sentence, and record matter. Tennessee eligibility rules should be checked before relying on diversion, expungement, or any particular disposition.
Kevin Kennedy Law Firm represents people facing criminal charges in Nashville and Middle Tennessee.