I have represented many high profile clients such as physicians, lawyers, corporate executives of Fortune 500 companies, and athletes such as a NFL Football player. Many of these and other clients have privacy and publicity concerns regarding their DUI arrests. In this post I will briefly explain what information is public in Massachusetts DUI cases.
First, G.L. c. 41 § 98F, the law which governs daily logs maintained by Massachusetts police departments requires the police to publish, in the police log, the names, addresses of persons arrested and the charges against such persons arrested. The law further provides that “[a]ll entries in said daily logs shall, unless otherwise provided in law, be public records available without charge to the public during regular business hours and at all other reasonable times.”
Massachusetts police departments routinely release information from the daily log to the news media. Often times, this information is posted on police department websites. This is the first source of DUI arrest information which is easily obtainable by the public.
It is also possible for reporters and members of the public to obtain copies of DUI police reports and relegated documentation from the clerk’s office of the district court. These documents contain substantially more information than appears in the daily police log.
Upon arraignment, the Massachusetts Board of Probation will collect biographical data and information regarding the DUI charges and, eventually, the results thereof. This information is always available to the police, the Registry of Motor Vehicles, and other law enforcement, judicial, correctional, and other criminal justice agencies. There is generally no way to “expunge” this information and it will be maintained as a permanent record.
Prospective and current employers, as well as landlords, and other non-criminal justice requestors of criminal records will likely not have access to DUI arrest data appearing on a criminal record unless it results in a conviction. Therefore, in DUI first offense cases which are resolved by an admission to sufficient facts, continuance without a finding, and eventually a dismissal will not generally be discoverable by non-criminal justice agencies who conduct a criminal records check. DUI conviction data will be discoverable.
Even a DUI which was continued without a finding and dismissed will appear on your Massachusetts driving record. Anyone who obtains this record, employers included, will see the DUI charges and outcome thereof, no matter what the disposition is. There is no way to seal, expunge, or erase this information. Even if probation records are sealed under the Massachusetts sealing laws, G.L. c. 276 § 100A and § 100B, the Registry record will remain unsealed and accessible.
When completing job applications and the like, DUI First Offenders, or others who have their DUI charge resolved by an admission to sufficient facts and ultimately a dismissal, who have otherwise clean records, can legally answer “no” when asked if they have ever been convicted of a crime. An admission to sufficient facts which is followed by a dismissal is not a conviction.
If you have specific questions regarding how a DUI arrest and/or conviction might be publicized or otherwise disclosed, please contact a Massachusetts DUI Lawyer.
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