Sealing a Virginia DUI Charge That Ended Without Conviction

Attorney Answer

Yes — a Virginia DUI charge that ended without a conviction can be sealed, and you do not have to prove your innocence to get it. But which route you take depends on the exact words in your final order, and people get this wrong constantly.

The main provision is Va. Code sec. 19.2-392.8, "Automatic sealing of offenses resulting in acquittal or dismissal." Under subsection A, where a person is acquitted of a misdemeanor other than a traffic infraction under Title 46.2, or where the misdemeanor charge is dismissed with prejudice, the court orders the record sealed unless the defendant objects. DUI under Va. Code sec. 18.2-266 is a Title 18.2 Class 1 misdemeanor, not a Title 46.2 traffic infraction, so a DUI charge ending in acquittal or dismissal with prejudice falls squarely inside subsection A. Felony charges are handled under subsection B, on the defendant's request with the prosecutor's concurrence.

Now the distinction that decides your case. Subsection A requires dismissal with prejudice. If your charge was nolle prossed, or dismissed without prejudice, subsection A is not your route — and being told otherwise would send you to the wrong place with the wrong expectation. Those dispositions run through a separate State Police annual review under Va. Code sec. 19.2-392.11 — and that route is narrower than its name suggests. It reaches misdemeanor dispositions with an offense date on or after 1 January 1986; it excludes any charge deferred and dismissed after a finding of facts sufficient to justify a finding of guilt; and it reaches you only if your criminal history record carries no convictions for an offense reportable to the Central Criminal Records Exchange, and no arrests or charges for one in the past three years, traffic infractions aside. One qualifying conviction takes you out of the automatic track altogether, and what remains is a petition under Va. Code sec. 19.2-392.12:1. Va. Code sec. 19.2-392.10 is the notification process that carries subsection A sealing orders to the State Police, not the nolle prosequi route. Virginia's automatic sealing framework carried a delayed effective date of July 1, 2026, so what is available now is not what would have been available when older cases were disposed of.

So the entire answer turns on four words that may appear in your file: acquitted, dismissed with prejudice, dismissed without prejudice, or nolle prosequi. Do not rely on what anyone told you in the hallway that day.

What you can do

1. Go to the clerk of the court where the charge was heard — general district court for most misdemeanors — and get a certified copy of the final order. 2. Read the disposition line exactly. Acquittal or dismissal with prejudice puts you under Va. Code sec. 19.2-392.8(A); nolle prosequi or dismissal without prejudice points to the State Police annual review under Va. Code sec. 19.2-392.11 — but only if your record carries no convictions reportable to the Central Criminal Records Exchange and no arrests or charges for one in the past three years. If it does, the automatic track is closed to you and the route is a petition under Va. Code sec. 19.2-392.12:1. 3. If you are in the subsection A category, ask the clerk whether a sealing order was entered. Under that subsection the court orders sealing unless the defendant objects, so it may already have happened without your involvement. 4. If nothing has been entered, have a Virginia lawyer take it to the court rather than waiting indefinitely for a system to catch up to your case. 5. Pull your Virginia State Police criminal history record so you can see what actually appears, and check it again after sealing to confirm the entry changed. 6. Ask DMV separately about your driving record. Sealing a criminal court record is not the same thing as your DMV transcript, and an administrative suspension entry is a different record.