A Charleston County expungement clears a qualifying arrest or conviction from your public criminal record, and where you file depends on how the case ended. Summary court handles most non-conviction cases at no cost. Everything else goes through the Ninth Circuit Solicitor’s Office, which covers Charleston and Berkeley Counties, with fees totaling roughly $335 and a wait of several months once you meet the eligibility window for your charge.1Ninth Circuit Solicitor’s Office. Expungement Information
Who Qualifies
South Carolina sorts eligibility by how your case resolved and what the charge was. Find your situation below before spending anything on an application.
Cases That Ended Without a Conviction
If your case was dismissed, you were found not guilty, or the solicitor entered a nolle prosequi, you can clear the record.
For charges brought in magistrate or municipal court, the summary court handles the expungement itself at no cost. If you were fingerprinted at arrest, the court is required to issue the order automatically. If you were not fingerprinted, you apply to the summary court directly, still free.2South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code 17-22-950 – Summary Court Expungement Two exceptions apply: dismissals at a preliminary hearing, and situations where you have related charges pending in both summary court and general sessions from the same events.
Non-conviction charges from general sessions court go through the Ninth Circuit Solicitor’s Office instead.3South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code 17-22-910 – Applications for Expungement Administration
Minor Convictions (Section 22-5-910)
If you were convicted of an offense carrying a maximum penalty of 30 days in jail or a $1,000 fine (or both), you can apply three years after the conviction date. The same statute covers a first-offense conviction for unlawful possession of a firearm or weapon where the maximum penalty is up to one year in jail or a $1,000 fine.4South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code 22-5-910 – Expungement of Criminal Records You must have no other convictions, including out-of-state, during the three-year wait. Motor vehicle offenses do not qualify. This provision is one-time-only, and SLED keeps a nonpublic record to enforce that limit.
First-Offense Drug Possession
A first conviction for simple possession of a controlled substance or unlawful possession of a prescription drug can be expunged three years after you finish your sentence, probation and parole included. The clock runs from the sentence completion date, not the conviction date.5South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code 22-5-930 – Expungement First Offense Drug Convictions
Conditional Discharge for Drug Offenses
South Carolina allows first-time drug possession charges to be handled through conditional discharge. A judge defers entering a guilty verdict, places you on probation with conditions that often include treatment, and dismisses the charge on completion. Because no conviction is ever entered, this is technically a dismissal rather than a conviction expungement, and you can apply to have the arrest and proceedings erased afterward.6South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code 44-53-450 – Conditional Discharge Eligibility for Expungement Conditional discharge is a one-time opportunity.
Domestic Violence in the Third Degree
A first-offense third-degree domestic violence conviction qualifies five years after the conviction date, provided you stay conviction-free during that window, including out-of-state.4South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code 22-5-910 – Expungement of Criminal Records
Youthful Offender Convictions
If you were sentenced under the Youthful Offender Act, you can apply five years after completing your entire sentence, including probation and parole. Being age-eligible is not enough; you must have actually been sentenced under the Act.7South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code 22-5-920 – Conviction as a Youthful Offender South Carolina defines a youthful offender as someone age 17 but under 25 at conviction for qualifying non-violent offenses.8South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code 24-19 – Judge William R Byars Youthful Offender Act You must remain conviction-free during both the sentence and the waiting period.
What It Costs
Summary court non-conviction expungements are free. For applications filed through the solicitor’s office, plan for three separate payments plus a background check:
- Solicitor’s administrative fee: $250, non-refundable, payable to the solicitor
- SLED verification fee: $25, non-refundable, payable to SLED
- Clerk of court filing fee: $35, payable to the county clerk of court
Each fee requires a separate certified check or money order. The solicitor’s office does not accept personal checks or cash.9South Carolina Judicial Branch. Expungement Application Process You also pay $25 upfront for your SLED criminal history report before starting the paperwork, bringing the realistic total to about $335.
How To File Through the Ninth Circuit Solicitor
Get Your SLED CATCH Report First
Request a certified criminal history from SLED through the CATCH system (Criminal Apprehension Through Continuous Hits). Online orders at catch.sled.sc.gov cost $26 including a $1 convenience fee; mail orders cost $25.10South Carolina Law Enforcement Division. SLED CATCH Treat this report as your master reference. Every detail on your application, including arrest dates, charge descriptions, arresting agency, and case numbers, must match it exactly.
Complete the Application and Draft Order
The Ninth Circuit Solicitor’s Office handles applications for charges within its jurisdiction, which covers Charleston and Berkeley Counties.1Ninth Circuit Solicitor’s Office. Expungement Information Complete the solicitor’s application form and prepare an Order for Expungement, the document a judge will ultimately sign. List each charge separately with its exact disposition (dismissed, not guilty, guilty, nolle prosequi). Include the arresting agency, the court that handled the case, and all warrant or case numbers. Mismatches with the CATCH report are the leading reason applications come back.
Submit the Packet
Deliver or mail your application, the draft order, a copy of your CATCH report, and the three payment instruments (as separate certified checks or money orders) to the Ninth Circuit Solicitor’s Office in downtown Charleston.9South Carolina Judicial Branch. Expungement Application Process
Timeline After You File
General sessions applications move through several agencies. The solicitor sends your file to SLED, which verifies your full history and checks for disqualifying convictions, pending charges, and prior use of any one-time provision. If it clears, the paperwork goes back to the solicitor, then to a circuit court judge for signature, and finally to the Clerk of Court for processing and distribution to record-holding agencies. The full cycle typically runs four to six months.
Summary court non-conviction cases move much faster. The trial judge can sign the order as soon as 31 days after disposition and no later than 40 days after, and the court forwards certified copies to SLED and other agencies directly.11South Carolina Judicial Branch. For Magistrate and Municipal Courts
What Expungement Does Not Do
The order removes your record from public view. It does not erase every trace, and a few limits matter.
SLED keeps a nonpublic record of expunged convictions to enforce the one-time-only provisions. This record is not available through Freedom of Information requests or standard background checks, but authorized law enforcement and court officials can see it.4South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code 22-5-910 – Expungement of Criminal Records For non-conviction records, law enforcement retains sealed copies of arrest records, mug shots, and fingerprints for at least three years and 120 days, and can hold them indefinitely for investigation or litigation.12South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code 17-1-40 – Expungement of Criminal Records
A state expungement does not remove a conviction for federal immigration purposes. USCIS treats a conviction as existing whenever a judge or jury found guilt (or you pleaded guilty or no contest) and any punishment was imposed, regardless of a later state expungement. Vacatur to avoid immigration consequences or because you completed a rehabilitation program still counts as a conviction for USCIS; only vacatur based on a constitutional or procedural defect in the original proceedings eliminates it for immigration purposes.13U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Adjudicative Factors If you are not a U.S. citizen, talk to an immigration attorney before assuming an expungement solves the problem.
Once your record is expunged, consumer reporting agencies should not include it on background checks, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued 2024 guidance to that effect. Third-party databases sometimes retain older data, though. If an expunged charge appears on a report, provide a copy of the expungement order to the reporting agency or the employer. South Carolina has no statewide “ban the box” law restricting private employers from asking about criminal history. Some professional licensing applications, particularly in engineering, healthcare, and law enforcement, may still require disclosure of a conviction even after expungement. Read the specific language on any licensing form carefully, because the consequences of a wrong answer run both ways.