Quick Overview
- Eligibility depends on offense class, the nature of the crime, and the time elapsed since sentence completion.
- Even after a Kentucky court enters an expungement order, your record's digital footprint often remains intact across multiple platforms.
- After obtaining expungement, the following steps address the online dimension of your record.
On this page 5 sections
Kentucky's Expungement Law - What It Is and What It Isn't
Kentucky's expungement statutes - KRS 431.073 (felonies) and KRS 431.078 (misdemeanors, violations, and traffic infractions) - were significantly expanded by the General Assembly in 2019. That expansion extended expungement eligibility to many Class D felonies for the first time, giving hundreds of thousands of Kentuckians a path to clearing their records that previously did not exist.
When a Kentucky court grants expungement, the records are physically removed from the court clerk's files and from the Kentucky Court of Justice's public portal at kcoj.kycourts.net. The Kentucky State Police criminal history database and other criminal justice agency files are also notified. You may legally state that you have not been convicted of the expunged offense in most employment and licensing contexts.
What expungement does not do is automatically clear your record from the internet. Third-party databases, data broker websites, legal aggregators, and Google search results that indexed your case from the court portal or the CourtNet system before the expungement order was entered will retain that data until separately addressed.
| Relief Type | Legal Authority | Destroys Record? | Seals from Public? | Google Impact |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Expungement (misdemeanor) | KRS 431.078 | Yes | Yes | None automatically |
| Expungement (Class D felony) | KRS 431.073 | Yes | Yes | None automatically |
| Expungement (non-conviction) | KRS 431.076 | Yes - immediate | Yes | None automatically |
| Diversion / Deferred prosecution | KRS 533.250 | After completion | Conditional | None automatically |
| Third-party aggregators | Opt-out / CCPA | No legal mechanism | Case-by-case opt-out | Removable with effort |
Who Is Eligible for Expungement in Kentucky?
Eligibility depends on offense class, the nature of the crime, and the time elapsed since sentence completion. The 2019 expansion was meaningful, but significant categorical exclusions remain. For more information, visit the Kentucky Courts.
Misdemeanor Expungement - KRS 431.078
Most Class A and Class B misdemeanors and violations are eligible for expungement in Kentucky after a five-year waiting period following case completion. To qualify, you must have no subsequent convictions during the waiting period, have paid all court costs, fines, and restitution, and not have a prior expungement of the same charge within five years. Arrests that did not result in conviction are eligible for immediate expungement under KRS 431.076 once the case is dismissed or charges are not filed.
Felony Expungement - KRS 431.073
As expanded in 2019, many Class D felonies are eligible for expungement after a five-year waiting period following sentence completion, provided the offense appears on the KRS 431.073 list of eligible Class D felonies, you have no subsequent convictions in the five years following sentence completion, and all court costs, fines, and victim restitution have been paid. A petition is filed in circuit court with a $500 filing fee (waivable for indigency).
Class A, B, and C felonies are generally not eligible. Sex crimes, violent offenses, offenses involving a minor as a victim, and DUI convictions are categorically excluded regardless of class, so the route for those records runs through online removal, de-indexing and suppression. Learn more about expungement vs. record sealing on our blog.
Not every Class D felony is on the KRS 431.073 eligible list - this is a common misunderstanding. The statute enumerates specific KRS sections that qualify. If your charge is not on the list, expungement is unavailable through this statute regardless of how much time has passed. The Kentucky Court of Justice's self-help resources at kcoj.kycourts.net include eligibility checking tools, or consult a Kentucky expungement attorney to verify eligibility for your specific charge.
Why Kentucky Court Records Persist Online After Expungement
Even after a Kentucky court enters an expungement order, your record's digital footprint often remains intact across multiple platforms. Each source operates independently and is unaffected by the court order unless contacted directly. For more information, visit the Kentucky Legislature.
kcoj.kycourts.net - The Kentucky Court of Justice Portal
The Kentucky Court of Justice operates kcoj.kycourts.net, which provides public access to court dockets, case summaries, and disposition information. Upon entry of an expungement order, the court should remove the case from the public portal - but there can be processing delays of several weeks, and third-party sites that scraped the portal before the order are unaffected.
CourtNet - Internal Court Database
CourtNet is Kentucky's internal court case management system. While expungement restricts public access via the online portal, certain government agencies - including law enforcement, prosecutors, and the courts themselves - retain access to CourtNet records for specified purposes even after expungement. Expungement removes the record from public view, but it does not erase it from all government systems. Background checks run by private employers through third-party providers should not return expunged records, but checks run through government channels for licensing or certain regulated industries may still surface them. Learn more about court record removal on our blog.
Kentucky State Police Criminal History
The Kentucky State Police (KSP) maintains the state's criminal history repository. When expungement is granted, the court notifies KSP, and KSP is required to update its records. This process is not instantaneous - background checks run during the processing window may still return the expunged record. Follow up directly with KSP to confirm the record has been removed after your order is entered. Learn more about background check reports on our blog.
CourtListener, Justia, and Legal Aggregators
CourtListener and similar platforms index Kentucky appellate opinions from the Kentucky Court of Appeals and Kentucky Supreme Court. If your case resulted in an appellate decision, that opinion - including the underlying facts of your charge - may be indexed independently of the trial court record. Appellate opinions are not automatically removed by trial court expungement orders and must be addressed separately.
Data Broker Sites
Spokeo, BeenVerified, TruthFinder, Intelius, and dozens of other aggregators compile criminal history data from public court portals. Once they have indexed your record, they retain it until individually contacted with an opt-out request. Expungement does not trigger automatic removal from these platforms - each must be addressed separately with documentation.
Kentucky residents who successfully obtained expungement under the 2019 expansion often contact us 6 to 12 months later, frustrated that their record is still surfacing in Google searches and on background check sites. The legal expungement and the online removal are entirely separate processes. Completing the court proceeding does not advance the online removal without direct action targeting each source.
How to Remove Kentucky Court Records from Google and Data Broker Sites
After obtaining expungement, the following steps address the online dimension of your record. The process requires systematic effort across each source - there is no single submission that removes a record from all platforms simultaneously.
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1
Obtain certified copies of your expungement order
Request multiple certified copies of the expungement order from the circuit court clerk. You will need these for submitting to the Kentucky State Police, background check companies, and data broker opt-out processes. Keep originals safely stored and use certified copies for submissions. -
2
Confirm kcoj.kycourts.net has removed the case
Search the public portal directly for your name and case number. If the case still appears 30 days after your expungement order was signed, contact the Kentucky Court of Justice. They can confirm when the record will be removed and flag any processing issues preventing the update. -
3
Follow up with Kentucky State Police
Contact KSP's Criminal Records Section to confirm the expunged record has been removed from the criminal history repository. This is important for employment background checks that run through KSP's systems. KSP should have received notice from the court, but proactively confirming ensures no processing gap remains. -
4
Audit every URL showing your record in Google
Search Google for your full name in combination with the county, charge type, and year. Document every URL that appears. This list includes kcoj.kycourts.net cached pages, data broker profiles, legal aggregators, and any news coverage. Each URL must be addressed individually. -
5
Submit opt-out requests to data brokers
Submit opt-out requests to Spokeo, BeenVerified, Intelius, TruthFinder, PeopleFinder, Whitepages, and all other aggregators showing your record. Include your expungement order where required. Processing times vary from days to several weeks. Re-check all sites at 90-day intervals as profiles can be repopulated. See our detailed walkthrough on removing court records from Spokeo and similar platforms. -
6
Use Google's Personal Information Removal Tool
Once source pages have been removed or restricted, submit removal requests through Google's Personal Information Removal Tool for any URLs that reference the expunged record. For pages still cached that are no longer accessible at the source URL, use Google's outdated content removal tool at removals.google.com to de-cache them.
Attorney vs. Reputation Management: Which Do You Need in Kentucky?
The expungement petition and the online removal are separate problems requiring different expertise. Understanding the distinction helps you allocate effort and resources efficiently.
When a Kentucky Expungement Attorney Is Essential
See our complete guide on how to get a record expunged for a step-by-step overview of the petition process.
- You need to file a petition under KRS 431.073 or KRS 431.078 - only an attorney or the court's self-help center can guide you through the filing process
- You are uncertain whether your specific charge appears on the KRS 431.073 eligible felony list
- The Commonwealth's Attorney has objected to your expungement petition
- You have multiple convictions and need to understand which are eligible and in what sequence to pursue expungement
When Reputation Management Is the Right Tool
- Your expungement order is in hand, but the record still appears on Google, background check sites, or news archives
- Your offense falls outside expungement, and you want to address what employers and the public can find online
- A third-party aggregator or news site is surfacing your record and not responding to individual removal requests
- You need a monitoring strategy to catch new appearances of your record and respond proactively
CourtRecordRemoval works on the online removal side - not the legal filing side. We help Kentucky residents understand which route fits each source, submit opt-out requests to data brokers, work with Google's tools to de-index URLs referencing expunged records, and develop suppression strategies for records that stay live at the source. You only pay when we get results.
Even after successful removal, new sources can pick up your record and re-publish it. Our monitoring service tracks your name across 200+ platforms and alerts you the moment a new result appears - so you can address it before it gains search visibility.
Learn about record monitoring →"Transparent, specific, and honest from day one. They told me which records were removable and which weren't before I paid anything."
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