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All over the world, and right here in Canada, whether it’s Calgary, Alberta, or Halifax, Nova Scotia, people make mistakes that they later regret. But there’s a “sliding scale” to the severity of those mistakes. Putting down the wrong answer on an exam is on one end. Doing something that requires the intervention of the police is another which can have serious implications.
When people make the kind of mistake that requires legal action, and even results in an arrest, and criminal charges, there isn’t necessarily one fixed conclusion. While a criminal conviction can arise from an arrest, it doesn’t always. And even if you don’t have a criminal conviction, you may have lingering details of that experience that only a file destruction can clean up.
For anyone that has lived a quiet, law-abiding life, the idea of some “permanent record” may only seem like a warning issued by teachers to get unruly students to behave. In fact, a permanent record does exist. Not only does it exist, it is also accessible by both law enforcement groups, as well as the general public, should they have a name to put in a search, and a willingness to pay a criminal background check fee.
This permanent record, however, doesn’t show much. It only preserves criminal convictions, not any other private details of a person’s life. So for many people, unsurprisingly, a background check will be “clean,” with nothing to see. For others, however, it’s important to note that if you are arrested and charged with a criminal offence, it doesn’t matter whether you were found guilty or not. These type of charges include, withdrawn, stayed, dismissed, peace bond, diversion, absolute discharge and conditional discharge. A background check reveals not just the presence of a criminal conviction, but the arrest, charges, fingerprinting, and other details. These will all be preserved, for public scrutiny, which can still make an impression on anyone that decides to run a background check on you.
As unfortunate as it may be that arrest details and other facets of your experience are preserved in your permanent record, it doesn’t have to remain this way. You have options to eliminate this, so that should someone decide to run a background check, it will be as clean as before you were ever arrested, charged, and fingerprinted. This is what the file destruction process can do for you.
A file destruction is similar to the record suspension process for convicted criminals that have paid their debt to society. However, because in this case, no actual conviction was reached, it’s a different, comparatively easier process to execute, because “cleaning up” arrest details is not as involved as a full-blown conviction.
Because there’s no conviction and no criminal record, no paid fines, or jail sentences and official entries in the CPIC database to clear out, a file destruction is a comparatively fast process. It will still require some collaboration between both the RCMP as well as the police department in Halifax that handled your case. This will require certain legal documents be produced, as well as a minimal waiting period after your case has been settled.
But once you’re ready to go, Pardons Canada can help. We’re a non-profit organization that is focused on ensuring that every Canadian has the best possible chance at a clean background if they’ve earned it. If you still have any details of your arrest on your record, we know the exact process required to clean this up and can walk you through it step-by-step. Contact us for more information and help.
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