William E. Cassara, PC, just obtained expungement from national databases of a military law enforcement (MLE) record that unjustly implied a U.S. Navy sailor had committed a sexual offense aboard ship in 2021

William E. Cassara, PC, just obtained expungement from national databases of a military law enforcement (MLE) record that unjustly implied a U.S. Navy sailor had committed a sexual offense aboard ship in 2021.  The expungement of this harmful and misleading record was achieved by showing the facts of the case and by invoking a recent change in the law. 

For many years, servicemembers who had a brush with law enforcement faced lifetime stigma if the MLE agency “titled” them as someone who might have committed a crime.  MLE records show up on national databases, such as the National Crime Information Center (NCIC), and affect the servicemember’s reputation and employment opportunities.  And in the past, the MLE agencies would only expunge a record if the servicemember could prove the agency had made a mistake at the time of the “titling” decision.   

In 2021, Congress passed, with bipartisan support, a new rule that the MLE agencies must objectively consider all current relevant information, and must expunge the record if there is not probable cause to believe the servicemember committed the offense.  Under the new standard, a well presented argument about the facts has a fair chance of achieving a just outcome, as in this case.