Michigan DUI Expungement

If you or someone you love has been convicted of drunk driving in Michigan, there are now options available to have the conviction removed from your record.  Prior to the law changing, someone convicted of drunk driving had to live the rest of their life with a criminal record.  Under current Michigan law, we can now expunge a first offense drunk driving.  

If someone has more than one drunk driving, there are other methods to be considered, and I would encourage you to reach out to discuss, but for now, we are going to focus on first offense DUI's for expungement consideration.  

Here is how the process works: 

When someone files an expungement in Michigan, there are a lot of different agencies involved, and everyone needs to agree to expunge the DUI conviction.

1. Michigan State Police - they are the custodian of the Michigan DUI conviction and must verify your record.

2. Michigan Attorney General is asked to submit a response to the expungement request, and they can fight and advocate for your DUI not to be expunged.

3. The original prosecutor on the case.  Either the county, city, township, or village; whoever was the original prosecutor on your Michigan DUI will have an opportunity to object to your request and will appear in court to share their response with the judge.

4. The original judge makes the ultimate decision based upon the input of the other people involved in your case.  

We will submit a comprehensive expungement application and supporting documents; above and beyond a few sheets of paper, which will likely be rejected by prosecutor and judge.  This is a big request; removing a DUI from a criminal record has NEVER been done in Michigan under the expungement process.  We need to take our very best shot.  You've lived all these years with a drunk driving on your record, let's do this right! 

When the new law was passed, the Prosecuting Attorneys Association of Michigan, the Michigan Sheriffs' Association and the Michigan Association of Chiefs of Police opposed the bill.  Here is what they said when the new law was passed

“Prosecutors are concerned about the underlying dynamics of drunk driving and therefore couldn’t philosophically support the policy," Matt Wiese, president of the prosecutors association, said in a statement.

I anticipate that it will be an uphill battle to have DUI's expunged in Michigan, which is why I have created a dynamic approach to helping my clients give themselves the very best chance to erase the DUI from their record.  Like my clients who come to me for new DUI's, my expungement DUI clients will be very proactive, organized and comprehensive in their approach.  

​The new bill appears to create a higher barrier than your typical non- DUI expungement.  

Here is what the law says: 

In making a determination whether to grant the petition to set aside a first violation operating while intoxicated offense conviction the reviewing court may consider whether or not the petitioner has benefited from rehabilitative or educational programs, if any were ordered by the sentencing court, or whether such steps were taken by the petitioner before sentencing for the first violation operating while intoxicated offense conviction he or she is seeking to set aside.

​The reviewing court is not constrained by the record made at sentencing. The reviewing court may deny the petition if it is not convinced that the petitioner has either availed himself or herself of rehabilitative or educational programming or benefited from rehabilitative or educational programming he or she has completed

I look forward to discussing your DUI expungement with you.  When you reach out, please have the following information available.  Do not worry about formal records, we can help you track those down, but do your best to know the following:

1. The original court and judge
2. The year (exact date best) of when you were sentenced and were off probation.  Again, I can help you with exact dates, but any information there will be helpful

I will likely have you walk me through what you've been doing since discharged from probation, such as career, education, family and community.  We will help you get organized and put your best foot forward but be prepared to be an active participate in the process. 

You can either call me at 248-924-9458, email me at jonathan@michiganlawgrad.com or fill out the information form on this page, and I will get back to you in a timely manner. ​​