The client carried 2023 Class 1 Misdemeanor charges with a domestic violence designation out of Scottsdale City Court. Future First filed the sealing application under ARS § 13-911 and the court granted the application in 78 days, closing all records on the file.
At a glance
| Original conviction | Misconduct – Domestic Violence (ARS § 13-2904(A)(1)), Class 1 Misdemeanor; Damage – Domestic Violence (ARS § 13-1602(A)(1)), Class 1 Misdemeanor |
| Application filed | Application to Seal Criminal Case Records, ARS § 13-911, 2024 |
| Court | Scottsdale City Court |
| Result | Sealing Record Granted. All records relating to arrest, conviction, and sentence sealed. |
| Rights restored | N (DV designation on misdemeanor; firearm rights restoration handled separately where applicable). |
| Time from filing to grant | 78 days from application filing to granted |
The challenge
Class 1 Misdemeanor convictions in Arizona with a domestic violence designation carry a firearm consequence under federal law independent of any felony tier. The conviction shows on every background search and stays on the record until the court orders it sealed. Without sealing, the case kept surfacing on the Arizona Public Access database every time a third party ran a background check.
Sealing under ARS § 13-911 closes public access to the arrest, prosecution, conviction, and sentencing records once the wait runs and the court grants the application. With the sentence complete and the statutory wait satisfied, the path to sealing was open.
What we did
Future First filed the Application to Seal Criminal Case Records under ARS § 13-911 in Scottsdale City Court. The brief established that the Class 1 Misdemeanor offenses are eligible for sealing under § 13-911, the applicant completed every sentencing term and paid every monetary obligation, and sealing serves the applicant and the public’s safety.
For a Class 1 Misdemeanor, the sealing wait runs two years from judge-ordered non-financial completion. We documented the completion date, ran the math, and showed the wait had run. We attached the case docket, the sentence-completion documentation, and the Arizona Department of Public Safety report.
The prosecutor did not respond within the statutory window. The court reviewed the package, entered findings that the offenses were eligible, the timeframes had passed, the application was filed in the correct court, and the defendant had not been subsequently convicted of a felony or non-traffic misdemeanor. The judge granted the application 78 days after filing. The Clerk sealed all records relating to the arrest, conviction, and sentence.
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If you have a DV-designated misdemeanor on your record
A Class 1 Misdemeanor with a domestic violence designation is eligible for sealing under ARS § 13-911 two years after completion of judge-ordered non-financial sentencing conditions. Sealing closes the case to public-facing background searches.
The DV designation on a misdemeanor triggers the federal firearm prohibition under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(9). Sealing the case under § 13-911 closes the record but does not by itself remove the federal firearm consequence. For full firearm rights restoration on a DV misdemeanor, a separate analysis under state and federal law is required.
The application must show that the applicant has not been subsequently convicted of a felony or non-traffic misdemeanor since the original case. The prosecutor receives notice and time to object. Most DV misdemeanor sealing applications move through the court on the merits without a hearing.
Related resources
Call us
Want to clear your record in Arizona? Call Future First Criminal Law at 602-900-6240 or request a free consultation. We have handled hundreds of Arizona record removal applications across every statute path. The cleanup is permanent and the process moves faster when handled by a firm that knows the local court.
Anonymized in line with firm policy. Client name not used. Specific dates approximated to year only. Outcome described reflects this client’s actual results. Past outcomes do not guarantee future results. For more detailed information on Arizona record removal law, visit the Arizona State Legislature website.
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