Sex Registrants No Longer Register With Certificate of Rehabilitation

Many sex crimes require lifetime registration under Penal Code Section 290. However, for some sex crime convictions like Penal Code Section 314(Indecent Exposure) a person may be relieved of the duty to register if he is granted a Certificate of Rehabilitation under Penal Code Section 4852.01. This generally requires a clean record since the conviction and continuous residence in the state of California for at least 7 years. A Certificate of Rehabilitation must be filed in the county where the Registrant lives and served on the District Attorney in that county AND on the District Attorney of the county where the conviction occurred. Courts are generally willing to grant Certificates if the Petitioner shows that he is rehabilitated by having committed no other crimes and otherwise led the life of a productive citizen. A court will decide whether to grant the Petition usually at one hearing with input from the various prosecuting agencies involved and after an examination of the Petitioner’s request. See, Penal Code Sections 290.5 and 4852.01.