What happens when I complete PTI? Can I Early Terminate? Can I Seal / Expunge? ~ Chosen as “Best Answer” by Asker on AVVO ~ Call Michael A. Haber, Esq. @ 1-888-SHARK-8-1

A: I cannot speak to Pinellas Park but in Miami you will never receive case dismissal paperwork. You will be noticed of a hearing for successful completion which, if you attend, will result in the court announcing a dismissal. But you would not be able to get your paperwork until it is entered into the Clerk’s system and that could take a few hours. You would have to wait around or go back at a later date. Again, I don;t know about PP but in the 305 you will receive a million dollar tax refund before you get a dispo in the mail.

Q: Can I Early Term If I Pay My Balance?

A: Diversion is not probation. Again, I cannot speak specifically to PP but in general there is no “early term” of PTI. You are on supervision (informal usually) until the end date.

Q: How Do I Find Out What I Owe?

A: Call your PTI supervisor / counselor and ask.

Q: And How Much Is The Sealing Process Of My Charge?

A: On the issue of legal fees, every lawyer charges according to their own business plan. As every case and every client is /are unique, personally I do NOT quote legal fees based simply upon the charges . Rather, fees are quoted only after having reviewed all readily accessible law enforcement reports, meeting and interviewing the client, getting as realistic as possible feel for the facts, circumstances, likely admissible evidence and reasonable probabilities of the case, identifying and agreeing upon a litigation objective and then determining how much time and effort will have to be expended in attempting to reach the client’s goal. In this way I can be as fair to both the client and myself as is possible.

As for sealing: If you look at the following website you will learn everything you ever wanted to know about the sealing / expunction process: http://www.fdle.state.fl.us/content/getdoc/c83dd888-ef7a-448e-9a96-ba69fc4181f7/Seal-and-Expunge-Home.aspx 

Michael A. Haber, Esq.’s AVVO Legal Guide on Sealing and Expunging Records in FL: http://www.avvo.com/legal-guides/ugc/sealing-and-expunging-records-in-fl-a-legal-guide-by-michael-a-haber-esq-miami-criminal-lawyer?published=true

The procedure is both quite detailed and somewhat painstaking but is also far from being rocket science. You can attempt to navigate it yourself (FDLE has tried to simplify it – again I refer you to the website above) but, assuming your eligibility, any criminal defense lawyer (anywhere in Florida – this can be done remotely and does not necessarily require a local attorney, although a local attorney may or may not be less expensive) will be able to accomplish the task with greater ease and likely in a shorter time period.

That said I suspect that it doesn’t much matter where you were arrested, what you were arrested for, what the final disposition was or whether or not you sealed / expunged the record. This is 2015 and we are forehead deep into the internet age, where nothing is private, sacred or truly hidden from public scrutiny.

I hope that I have been helpful in answering all of your questions.