Pleas in Abeyances are used 99.9 percent more often than Diversion agreements. Diversion agreements are not favored by prosecutors, but they are occasionally used.
The main difference between a diversion agreement and a plea in abeyance is that diversion agreement don’t require an “adjudication of guilt.”
Simple Marijuana Possession Example. You are charged with simple marijuana possession in the Orem Justice Court.
With a plea in abeyance, the case is filed and a guilty or no-contest plea is entered. You actually plead guilty in open court and that is the “adjudication of guilt.” Although your guilty plea is held in abeyance, you still pled guilty and there was a weighing of the facts by a judicial tribunal. That is what is sometimes bad for immigration, civil or other collateral purposes.
With a diversion agreement, the case is filed but you do not admit any guilt. There is no open court admission of guilt where you admit to the criminal facts.
Most everything else in a diversion agreement and plea in abeyance are the same, or can be the same.
Effects on Your Criminal Record Plea in Abeyance v. Diversion Agreemen.
Waiting Periods. Both diversion agreements and pleas in abeyances are fairly easy to expunge under Utah’s Expungement Act. See 77-41a-101.
The waiting period to start an expungement for a plea in abeyance is 30 days after the cases closes successfully.
The waiting period to start an expungement for a diversion agreement is once the diversion agreement is done.
What Needs Expunged?
The public and private records that get expunged in a diversion or plea in abeyances are very similarly and entirely depends on what agencies touched your criminal case.
Example. Simple Paraphernalia Possession. You are arrested in the Provo City Justice Court for a simple marijuana pipe. The Provo Police Department handled the arrest. You eventually booked at the Utah County Jail, but no DNA was taken. The Provo City Attorney’s Office prosecuted the case.
Agencies that need the signed expungement order:
Provo City Justice Court. Provo City Police Department. Provo City Attorney’s Office. The Utah County Jail.
Example Aggravated Assault. Although you would never get a diversion agreement on an aggravated assault, you technically could (can’t be a domestic violence crime). You were booked overnight at the Utah County Jail. Orem City Police Department made the arrest. The Highway Patrol assisted in the arrest. The Orem City Attorney’s Office prosecuted they matter.
Agencies that need an expungement order:
The Utah County Jail. The Utah Highway Patrol. The Orem City Justice Court. The Orem City Attorney’s Office.
UTAH CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY JAKE GUNTER. CALL/TXT (801) 373-6345. HE CAN NORMALLY TELL YOU IN 5 MINUTES IF YOU HAVE A CASE
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