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In September 2021, Colorado record sealing laws changed in a few important ways. In general, the same types of charges are still ineligible to seal and the same timelines exist for determining how long a petitioner must wait before applying to seal a conviction record. Visit my blog post on eligibility for more information.
Sealing of Multiple Conviction records - C.R.S. §24-72-709
Prior to September 2021, in order for a petitioner to seal a conviction, they must not have been convicted of any new crimes since the final date of supervision for the case they are seeking to seal. However, after September 2021, the Colorado law changed to allow a defendant to file a petition to seal, even if they have been convicted subsequently.
For example, John Smith is convicted of misdemeanor theft in May 2008. He was sentenced to one year of probation, with the completion date of May 2009. He was convicted of misdemeanor criminal trespassing in September 2012. Prior to this law change, John would not be able to seal his theft conviction, because he has a new conviction after the final date of his release from supervision. However, with the change in the law, John is now eligible to seal the theft case (as well as the 2012 case).
There are waiting periods and a cap on the number of convictions a petitioner can have though.
If a person is convicted of another offense during the waiting period, but the person has been crime-free for a minimum number of years, they can petition to seal multiple convictions. If the highest level conviction was a:
Petty offense or drug petty offense(with no more than 5 convictions in separate criminal cases), the petition can be filed 2 years after final disposition.
Misdemeanors, drug misdemeanors or DF4s (with not more than 4 convictions in separate criminal cases), the petition can be filed five years after final disposition
Felonies or drug felonies (with no more than 3 convictions in separate criminal cases), the petition can be filed ten years after final disposition.
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