criminal conviction
Court declares guilt
A criminal conviction is a formal judgment by a court that a person is guilty of a crime.
It follows either a guilty plea or a verdict after trial.
Convictions carry legal consequences—fines, probation, imprisonment—and create a permanent record that affects employment, housing, and civil rights: His criminal conviction made it hard to find work.
- felony chargeAccusation of serious crime
- murderDeliberate unlawful killing
- second chanceRenewed opportunity after failure
- imprisonmentLegal detention in jail
- time servedPeriod already imprisoned
trial · court date · restorative justice · probation · disenfranchisement · fines · sentencing · three strikes · prison sentence · theft · rap sheet · parole hearing · restitution · fraud · parole · stigma · appeal · arson
- divorce groundsadultery, cruelty, desertion, abandonment, infidelity
- marriage barriersbigamy, prior marriage, lack of consent, duress, underage
criminal convictionacquittal
Formal clearing of charges
not guilty verdict · exoneration · dismissal · vindication · case dismissed
criminal convictionclean record
Absence of prior offenses
expungement · pardon · innocence · clemency · rehabilitation
criminal convictioncharges dropped
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