Opinion
C.A. No. 05X-07-011.
Submitted: August 1, 2005.
August 2, 2005.
Dear Mr. Brown:
Pending before the Court are a petition seeking the expungement of a charge of theft of a senior and a motion to proceed in forma pauperis. This is my decision on the pending matters.
The affidavit which Morris Brown, Jr. ("petitioner") submitted in support of his motion to proceed in forma pauperis is not notarized. Accordingly, I deny the motion. There is no point in providing petitioner with the opportunity to have the affidavit notarized because a review of the petition for expungement shows it would not be granted.
In 2001, petitioner went to trial on three charges: theft of a senior, forgery in the second degree, and theft by false pretenses. State v. Brown, Def. ID# 9904021239. The jury found him guilty of the latter two charges and not guilty of the theft of a senior charge. Petitioner was sentenced on the two convictions, and these convictions became final.
Petitioner seeks an expungement of the theft of a senior charge. However, petitioner's convictions on the other two charges constitute prima facie evidence that manifest injustice would not result from retention of records of the non-conviction arrest; petitioner is not an innocent person entitled to the protections of the expungement statute. 11 Del. C. §§ 437, 4373; Mahon v. State, Del. Super., C.A. No. 83M-AP-3, Balick, J. (Aug. 19, 1983).
In his petition, petitioner fails to list all of the charges on which he was arrested on or about July 16, 2000. He only lists the theft of a senior charge while he omits the charges on which he was convicted.
In light of the foregoing, I deny petitioner's petition seeking expungement.
IT IS SO ORDERED.