Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 276 § 100E
As used in sections 100E through 100U, the following words shall, unless the context clearly requires otherwise, have the following meanings:-
"Attorney general", the attorney general of the commonwealth.
"Commissioner", the commissioner of probation.
"Consumer reporting agency", any person or organization which, for monetary fees, dues, or on a cooperative, not-for-profit basis, regularly engages in whole, or in part, in the practice of assembling or evaluating criminal history, credit or other information on consumers for the purpose of furnishing consumer reports to third parties, and which uses any means or facility of interstate commerce for the purpose of preparing or furnishing consumer reports.
"County agency", any department or office of county government and any division, board, bureau, commission, institution, tribunal or other instrumentality thereof or thereunder.
"Court", the trial court of the commonwealth established pursuant to section 1 of chapter 211B and any departments or offices established within the trial court.
"Criminal court appearance", an arraignment on, all pre-trial and other post arraignment judicial proceedings related to and the disposition of, a criminal offense.
"Criminal justice agencies", those agencies at all levels of government, which perform as their principal function, activities relating to:
"Department", the department of criminal justice information services established pursuant to section 167A of chapter 6.
"Disabled person", a person with an intellectual disability, as defined by section 1 of chapter 123B, or who is otherwise mentally or physically disabled and, as a result of such mental or physical disability, is wholly or partially dependent on others to meet daily living needs.
"Disposition", the final conclusion of a charge during or after the initial criminal court appearance or juvenile court appearance.
"District attorney", the district attorney in the jurisdiction where the matter resulting in a record that is the subject of a petition originated.
"Elderly person", a person who is 60 years of age or older.
"Expunge", "expunged", or "expungement", the permanent erasure or destruction of a record so that the record is no longer accessible to, or maintained by, the court, any criminal justice agencies or any other state agency, municipal agency or county agency. If the record contains information on a person other than the petitioner, it may be maintained with all identifying information of the petitioner permanently obliterated or erased.
"Judicial proceedings", any proceedings before the court resulting in a record.
"Juvenile court appearance", an arraignment on, all pre-trial and other post arraignment judicial proceedings related to and the disposition of, an offense in the juvenile court.
"Municipal agency", any department or office of a city or town government and any council, division, board, bureau, commission, institution, tribunal or other instrumentality thereof or thereunder.
"Offense", a violation of a criminal law for which a person has been charged and has made a criminal court appearance or a juvenile court appearance for which there is a disposition and a record.
"Office", the office of the commissioner of probation.
"Order", an order of expungement.
"Person", a natural person, corporation, association, partnership, or other legal entity.
"Petition", a petition to expunge a criminal record.
"Petitioner", a natural person with a criminal record who has filed a petition.
"Public records", shall have the same meaning as the definition of public records in clause twenty-sixth of section 7 of chapter 4.
"Record", public records and court records including, without limitation, paper or electronic records or data in any communicable form compiled by, on file with or in the care custody or control of, without limitation, the court, the office, the department or criminal justice agencies, which concern a person and relate to the nature or disposition of an offense, including, without limitation, an arrest, a criminal court appearance, a juvenile court appearance, a pre-trial proceeding, other judicial proceedings, disposition, sentencing, incarceration, rehabilitation or release; provided, however, that the term record shall not include information contained in the domestic violence record keeping system, evaluative information, intelligence information or statistical and analytical reports and files in which persons are not directly or indirectly identifiable.
"State agency", any department of state government including the executive, legislative or judicial, and all councils thereof and thereunder, and any division, board, bureau, commission, institution, tribunal or other instrumentality within such department, and any independent state authority, district, commission, instrumentality or agency, but not an agency of a county, city or town.
Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 276, § 100E