§ 16–804. Motion to seal.

(a) A motion to seal filed with the Court pursuant to this chapter shall state grounds upon which eligibility for sealing is based and facts in support of the person’s claim. It shall be accompanied by a statement of points and authorities in support of the motion, and any appropriate exhibits, affidavits, and supporting documents.

(b)(1) A motion pursuant to § 16-803(a), (b), or (c) shall state all of the movant’s arrests and convictions and shall:

(A) Seek relief with respect to all the arrests and any conviction eligible for relief; and

(B) For any arrest or conviction as to which the waiting period in § 16-803(a), (b), or (c) has not elapsed, waive in writing the right to seek sealing of the records pertaining to that arrest or conviction.

(2) If the Court determines that the motion does not comply with the requirements of paragraph (1) of this subsection, then the movant shall have 30 days after being notified by the Court of the noncompliance to amend his or her original motion to include all of the movant’s District of Columbia Code and Municipal Regulation arrests and convictions and either seek relief with respect to all the eligible arrests and convictions or waive in writing the right to seek sealing of the records pertaining to any arrests or convictions for which relief is not sought. If the movant fails to amend his original motion within 30 days, then the motion shall be dismissed without prejudice.

(d) The prosecutor shall not be required to respond to the motion unless ordered to do so by the Court pursuant to § 16-805(b).

(e) If the movant files a motion to seal an arrest that is not in the Court database or an arrest and related court proceedings that are not in a publicly available database, the motion to seal and responsive pleadings shall not be available publicly. If the Court grants such a motion, it shall order that the motion and responsive pleadings be sealed to the same extent and in the same manner as the records pertaining to the arrest and related court proceedings. If the Court denies such a motion, the Court, the United States Attorney’s Office, the Office of the Attorney General for the District of Columbia, and the law enforcement agency that arrested the movant shall be entitled to retain any and all records relating to the motion in a non-public file.

(May 5, 2007, D.C. Law 16-307, § 2(b), 54 DCR 868; June 15, 2013, D.C. Law 19-319, § 4(d), 60 DCR 2333; Mar. 10, 2023, D.C. Law 24-284, § 101(b), 70 DCR 913.)

Effect of Amendments

The 2013 amendment by D.C. Law 19-319 rewrote (b) and (c); and added (e).

Applicability

Section 7088 of D.C. Law 25-50 amended section 301 of D.C. Law 24-284 changing the applicability provision impacting this section to January 1, 2026. Therefore the amendment of this section by section 101(b) of Law 24-284 will be implemented on January 1, 2026.

Applicability of D.C. Law 24-284: § 301 of D.C. Law 24-284 provided that the change made to this section by § 101(b) of D.C. Law 24-284 is subject to the inclusion of the law’s fiscal effect in an approved budget and financial plan. Therefore that amendment has not been implemented.