How long you wait to clear a Rhode Island record
- Dismissed or found not guilty: sealed, not expunged. A District Court Rule 48(a) dismissal since January 1, 2023 is sealed automatically. How sealing works
- One misdemeanor, nothing else: five years from the end of your sentence. First offender expungement
- One felony, nothing else: ten years from the end of your sentence.
- Two to five misdemeanors: ten years from the end of your last sentence, with ten clean years. Multiple misdemeanors
- Two to four felonies: fifteen years, under the law that took effect in June 2026. Multiple felonies
- A deferred sentence: as soon as the deferral ends. Deferred sentences
- A crime of violence: never. The list is closed and specific. The list
DUI and domestic violence cases have their own rules: DUI and domestic violence. Every fine and fee has to be paid before any expungement is granted.
Where your Cumberland case was heard
District Court. The motion is filed in the court that handled your case. Cumberland is in the Sixth Division, which sits at the Garrahy Judicial Complex, One Dorrance Plaza, Providence.
Superior Court. A felony charged in Superior Court was in Providence County Superior Court, which sits at the Licht Judicial Complex, 250 Benefit Street, and the Garrahy Judicial Complex, 1 Dorrance Plaza, Providence. Your case summary on the Judiciary's public portal shows which.
The Cumberland court process, step by step
- Get your BCI recordFrom the Attorney General's office at 4 Howard Avenue, Cranston. It costs $5. What to bring
- File the motionIn the court that handled your case: the Sixth Division at the Garrahy Judicial Complex, or Providence County Superior Court.
- Give ten days' noticeTo the Attorney General and the police department that brought the charge, at least ten days before the hearing.
- The hearingThe judge decides, and has to find good character, rehabilitation, and that clearing the record is in the public interest.
- The order goes outA copy of the order is sent to the agencies known to hold the records.
Who gets the ten-day notice in Cumberland
The Attorney General, and the police department that originally brought the charge. For a Cumberland arrest that is usually the Cumberland Police Department, 1379 Diamond Hill Road, Cumberland, RI 02864. Not always: State Police, campus police and neighboring departments all make arrests inside Cumberland, and the notice goes to the department named on your paperwork.
Why have a lawyer file it
Expungement motions fail on late or misdirected notice, a sealing case filed as an expungement, and unpaid court costs. The firm drafts, files and argues the motion. The court charges no filing fee.
Common questions about clearing a Cumberland record
What is the difference between sealing and expungement?
Sealing is for a case that ended without a conviction or probation: a dismissal, a not-guilty verdict, no true bill, or no information. Expungement is for everything else, including a plea with probation and a deferred sentence.
Will an expunged record show up on a background check?
Once the order is entered, the offices that keep the record may not disclose it except to a short list set out in the law, which does not include an ordinary employer. You may then say you were never convicted, except on applications for law enforcement, the bar, teaching, coaching, and early childhood education.
How long does it take?
No law sets a deadline for the court. The motion gets a hearing date on the court's calendar, and the Attorney General and the police department must get notice at least ten days before it.
The law behind this page
- Cumberland is in the Sixth Division of the District Court: R.I. Gen. Laws § 8-8-2(a)(4).
- Felonies committed in Cumberland are heard in Providence County Superior Court: § 12-3-4(b)(1).
- Motion filed in the court where the case was; ten days' notice to the Attorney General and the charging department: § 12-1.3-3(a).
- Waiting periods: § 12-1.3-2(d), (e), (f), (g), (h); § 12-19-19(a).
- Sealing, and automatic sealing of District Court Rule 48(a) dismissals: § 12-1-12.1.
- Crimes of violence: § 12-1.3-1(1).
- What the judge has to find: § 12-1.3-3(b). The order goes to agencies holding the records: § 12-1.3-3(c).
- What an expungement lets you say, and the exceptions: § 12-1.3-4.
- Source: courts.ri.gov, Courthouse and Facility Locations; the Attorney General's background check page.
