Juvenile Justice Records: Sealing and Restricted Access

Anyone who was taken into custody or referred to court for delinquent conduct may have a juvenile record.

Such conduct may include:

• class A or B misdemeanors,
• felony offenses, or
• conduct indicating a need for supervision (CINS),
  • including class C misdemeanors and conduct that would not be against the law if committed by an adult (like drinking or running away), or
  • certain specific offenses such as prostitution and “sexting.”

While juvenile records are generally confidential, there are certain exceptions that allow police, prosecutors, probation officers, health and human services agencies, education entities, and other criminal and juvenile justice officials in Texas and elsewhere to have access.

Sealing and restricted access are important ways available by law to protect your records and limit who can access them.

For a more in-depth explanation, see A Juvenile’s Guide to Understanding Sealing and Restricted Access, a Texas Juvenile Justice System publication.

Juvenile records in Texas can be automatically sealed if:

• a person was referred to juvenile court for conduct indicating a need for supervision (CINS) and never referred for delinquent conduct, or
• if they were referred for delinquent conduct but never adjudicated or were adjudicated for a misdemeanor but not a felony.

If a person was adjudicated for a felony or does not meet the above criteria, they may file an application to seal their records if they meet certain requirements and have not been convicted of certain crimes. The court may order the records sealed without a hearing or hold a hearing to decide whether or not to seal them.

You cannot get your records sealed if you were ever certified by the juvenile court to stand trial as an adult or were ever given a determinate sentence (probation or commitment). If you are required to register as a sex offender, you cannot get your records sealed until your obligation to register has expired. If you were committed to TJJD, you are not eligible for sealing until you have been discharged.

Sealing does not apply to records in a justice or municipal court related to a Class C misdemeanor. Those records may be eligible for expunction, though. Sealing also does not apply to records in the gang database; however, these records may only be shared with criminal justice agencies for criminal justice purposes and may be removed in certain circumstances.

When records are sealed, all adjudications are vacated, and it is as though the referral to juvenile court never happened. You are not required to state in any proceeding or in any application for employment, licensing, admission, housing, or another public or private benefit that the records ever existed or that you were ever arrested, prosecuted, or adjudicated.

Additionally, the law states that once records are sealed, the information in the records, the fact that they once existed, or your denial of the existence of the records may not be used against you in any manner, including in an perjury prosecution or other criminal proceeding, a civil proceeding, including an administrative proceeding involving a governmental entity, an application process for licensing or certification, or an admission, employment, or housing decision.

A court can open sealed records if you ask them to. The court can also reopen the records if a prosecutor asks them to for limited purposes, including a future prosecution for a capital offense or a future prosecution for an offense for which punishment can be enhanced based on your juvenile record. Reopening a sealed record does not mean that the record is “unsealed.” The protections that come with sealing a record remain in place.

For those of juvenile age, class C misdemeanors in justice or municipal court are confidential and may not be disclosed to the public. If you have only one conviction prior to your 17th birthday, you may be able to have certain offenses “expunged” or removed from your record.