At Katherine O’Brien Law, we’ve advocated for our clients’ rights to a clean slate through expungement in New Jersey. However, recent challenges have emerged, particularly concerning the frustrating delays in processing expungement orders by the New Jersey State Police (NJSP). These delays have left many individuals in limbo, unable to move forward with their lives due to lingering criminal records. The Current Situation Despite the clear legal process outlined for expungements in New Jersey, the State Police’s handling of expungement petitions has resulted in significant delays. What should b ..read more

If you participated in an adult film or modeling in the past, you may not have thought it would be immortalized forever on the internet. Even if the film or photo was published under a pseudonym, it’s still possible that people will connect you to the images. Regardless of whether you only participated in one photo shoot or if you had a previous career producing adult content, you can seek to have the images removed. At Katherine O’Brien Law, our attorneys have represented many individuals who want to seek to have those images removed from the internet and reclaim control over their content. I ..read more

The recent widespread dissemination of deepfake pornographic pictures featuring Taylor Swift on the internet is yet another vivid and alarming example of the legislative change that needs to be made when it comes to protecting victims of deepfake pornography. Pornographic images of Swift, generated by artificial intelligence (AI), went viral on X (formerly Twitter). One particular post gained over 45 million views.  Outraged fans swiftly took action, flooding the platform with positive content and images of the singer, using search terms like “Taylor Swift AI” and “Taylor Swift deepfake ..read more

One unfortunate byproduct of newspapers going digital is that online arrest records are now published on the internet. Moreover, what is published online usually stays online forever – for all to easily see. Sometimes these articles can appear years after the charges are filed, due to the news archive recently being digitized. What’s worse, some of these articles are misleading or even inaccurate. While newspapers can report the details of arrests, they are under no legal obligation to update or remove these stories, even after the criminal charges have been dismissed and/or expunged. Obviousl ..read more

The primary record sealing law in New York is contained in N.Y. Crim. Proc. Law § 160.59. It addresses the sealing of adult conviction records in New York. The law went into effect on  October 7, 2017, and is the broadest sealing bill ever passed in New York State.  The law allows individuals with up to two convictions, only one of which may be a felony, to seal the conviction records for all crimes other than sex offenses, class A felonies, and violent felonies after a 10-year waiting period.  Below is a  complete guide to sealing criminal records in New York under N.Y. Cr ..read more

If you were arrested and charged with an offense and your name has appeared in a Patch.com police blotter or other news stories, you may be wondering whether you can get your name removed from Patch.com.  What is Patch.com? Patch.com is a local news and information platform consisting of thousands of hyperlocal websites covering community news in towns throughout the United States. According to its website, Patch.com is “everything local.” Patch has more than a hundred journalists and operates more than a thousand hyperlocal news websites across all 50 states.  Patch.com is a local n ..read more

Court Rules that Clean Slate Expungement Statute Allows Expungement of Local Ordinance Violations that Were Originally Charged as Criminal Offenses  On November 19, 2021, the Superior Court of New Jersey handed down a new legal decision representing a big win for people with criminal records. The decision, State v. R.O.-S., was published on December 12, 2022, and allows individuals applying for expungement under the Clean Slate expungement law to expunge records of criminal charges that were downgraded to local ordinance violations. Until this point, the law was unclear as to whether ..read more

Katherine O’Brien Selected for 2022 Nationally Ranked Top 10 Under 40 Attorney Award by the National Academy of Criminal Defense Attorneys Attorney Katherine O’Brien was recently selected for the National Academy of Criminal Defense Attorneys’ prestigious Top 10 Under 40 award. The National Academy of Criminal Defense Attorneys issues this award to recognize the top criminal defense attorneys in each state. It’s based on in-depth, rigorous criteria that select only the best. Winning requires abundant knowledge, expertise in the field, positive case outcomes, and much more.  A mere 1% of a ..read more

New Jersey Expungement Lawyer Katherine O’Brien Selected for 2023 Rising Star Lawyer by Super Lawyers Magazine Katherine O’Brien recently received the esteemed Rising Star Lawyer award granted by Super Lawyers Magazine. Super Lawyers Magazine bestows this award on top-performing attorneys in their state. All Rising Stars are below age 40 or have been practicing for less than 10 years. It’s an incredibly selective process, with only 2.5% of attorneys receiving the Rising Star Award.  O’Brien is familiar with this accomplishment. She received the same award from 2020-2022 and added 2023 to ..read more

Federal Marijuana Pardons – What This Means in the Context of Federal Expungement Law If you or someone you know has been convicted of a federal marijuana-related offense, you may be eligible for a pardon. On October 6, 2022, President Biden announced a clemency initiative aimed at providing relief to those incarcerated under federal marijuana laws. The initiative will provide an opportunity for certain nonviolent offenders to have their records expunged and receive a presidential pardon. This article will go into detail about what the pardon means and what you need to know about this process ..read more