In certain circumstances, a person convicted of a crime in Tennessee may request that his or her criminal record be expunged. The possibility was recently granted to a former school teacher when the judge who had presided at her criminal trial reconvened to announce he wanted to modify her sentence. A prosecuting attorney later stated that he personally objected to the judge's decision to modify.
The situation involved a 46-year-old former first grade school teacher. She was convicted of having sexual relations with a minor student from a high school in the same area where she was employed at the time. However, the student said he met the teacher outside the scope of her work in the school district.
Other students are said to have reported the affair to school administrators after the 17-year-old boy told them about it. School officials called police, and criminal charges were filed against the woman. The judge stated that he was having trouble finding peace in his initial decision, mainly because the student was just a few months away from turning 18 when the incidents occurred. He said if the affair had taken place a little more than three months later, it would not have been a crime at all.
The judge has modified the woman's sentence, making her eligible to submit an expungement request if she adheres to all stipulations of her probation over the next two years. If her record is expunged, her name will be removed from the Tennessee registry of sex offenders. Any person with questions regarding the process of having a record expunged after a criminal trial may seek answers by contacting an experienced criminal defense attorney for clarification.
Source: timesnews.net, "Judge says teacher who had sex with 17-year-old can expunge her record in two years", Jeff Bobo, Aug. 31, 2016
