The client was arrested for DUI, but the State never filed charges. The arrest still showed up on background checks. Future First won a Maricopa Sealing Records DUI order under ARS § 13-911 and cleared the record.
At a glance
| Original conviction | None. DUI arrest only (ARS § 28-1381), Class 1 Misdemeanor, no charges filed |
| Application filed | Petition to Seal Criminal Case Records (ARS § 13-911), 2026 |
| Court | Maricopa County Superior Court |
| Result | Sealing granted, arrest record sealed |
| Rights restored | Not applicable, no conviction and no charges |
| Time from application to grant | 77 days from application filing to granted |
The challenge
The client was arrested for a DUI. The police sent the case to the prosecutor, but the prosecutor never filed charges. More than a year passed, and the statute of limitations ran out. There was no conviction and no court case. There was no trial and no plea.
None of that erased the arrest. An arrest record stays in the system and shows up on background checks run by employers, landlords, and licensing boards. The client kept facing a record for a case that never became a charge, and kept having to explain a DUI arrest that the State chose not to pursue. An arrest with no charges still reads as a red flag to anyone running a background check.
What we did
Future First filed a Petition to Seal Criminal Case Records under ARS § 13-911 in Maricopa County Superior Court. Arizona’s sealing law now reaches arrests where no charges were ever filed, and this case fit the statute squarely.
The firm documented the arrest, confirmed that the prosecutor declined to file and that the statute of limitations had expired, and showed the client had no other convictions and no pending charges. The firm provided the petition and supporting record to the prosecuting agency as the law requires and built the eligibility argument from the statute.
The court found the arrest eligible to be sealed and found that sealing served both the client and the public. The court granted the petition 77 days after filing and ordered the arrest record sealed and transmitted to the Department of Public Safety and the prosecutor. The DUI arrest no longer surfaces on a standard background check.
What our clients say
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If you have an old arrest in Arizona
Many people assume that an arrest with no charges leaves nothing behind. It does. The arrest record stays searchable until a court orders it sealed. Arizona’s sealing statute, ARS § 13-911, now covers arrests that never led to charges, cases that were dismissed, and many convictions once the waiting period passes.
A DUI arrest with no charges is one of the cleaner sealing cases, because there is no conviction and no sentence to complete. The work is in proving eligibility and putting the petition in front of the court the right way.
If you were arrested and never charged, you do not have to carry that arrest on your record. The law gives you a way to seal it.
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Call us
Want to clear your record in Arizona? Call Future First Criminal Law at 602-900-7625 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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