This page will guide you through the process of requesting a dismissal of your case in San Diego County.
If you were convicted of a misdemeanor or a felony, and were not sentenced to State Prison or under the authority of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, you can petition for a dismissal.
In other words, if you were given county jail time, paid a fine, placed on probation, or a combination of these, you can petition for a dismissal. For more information, see Penal Code §1203.4.
If you petition for a dismissal and it is granted, your record will be changed to show a dismissal rather than a conviction.
Convictions for certain violations are ineligible for relief. These include Vehicle Code §42002.1, and Penal Code §261.5(d), §286(c), §287(c), §288, §288.5, §289(j), §311.1, §311.2, §311.3, and §311.11.
For any offense described in Vehicle Code §12810(a)-(e), relief is discretionary with the court.
The petitioner may be required to reimburse the Court for costs incurred in processing each petition. Check with the Court for more information. You may be able to ask the court to waive costs based on an inability to pay if you submit a Financial Declaration.
The appropriate prosecuting agency must be given 15 calendar days notice of the filing of the petition in order to allow time for the filing of any objection. See Penal Code §1203.4(e).
You can obtain the San Diego Superior Court Misdemeanor Petition for Dismissal Packet here.
You can obtain the San Diego Superior Court Felony Petition for Dismissal Packet here.
The Petition for Dismissal must be completely filled out and filed in the court in which the matter was adjudicated. It is your responsibility to serve the prosecuting agency with the petitions you filed.
Prop 47 is a law that the California voters passed in November 2014. It reduces certain felonies to misdemeanors. There are a lot of conditions and circumstances that apply, and these are beyond the scope of this Guide.
For more information on Prop 47, consult the San Diego Public Defenders' website.
In September 2020, Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 2147 into law, which allows former non-violent incarcerated people who participated in one of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) conservation camp fire crews to have their records expunged to remove barriers so they can seek jobs as firefighters in the community. The new law went into effect on January 1, 2021.
For more information from the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, click here.