Sealing of a record if you were under 16 as a Youthfull Offender happens. You can have your records expunged in Florida where some states do not allow it no matter what the case, such as New York. You will need to hire a lawyer to start the process to have your records expunged. You will also motion to have your original fingerprints returned from the F.B.I.

You need to specify what state you are inquiring about when asking questions about state law. Most states have their own procedure and eligibility requirements for expungement of convictions or cases where there was deferred adjudication. In Texas, you can get an order of non-disclosure for cases where you successfully completed deferred adjudication. There is a 5 year waiting period from the time you complete the sentence for felonies. Many other states have similar rules and requirements. If your conviction was in federal court, you cannot have your conviction expunged or concealed. Most counties have a public defender's or legal aid office that will file a petition for record clearance (expungement, vacating, setting-aside, sealing, or whatever it is called in your state) for free-- though most public defenders have a low-income requirement. They may also have packets on how to do it yourself. If you have financial means, I would highly recommend having an attorney handle it for you. There are law firms that specialize in record clearing; this one handles multiple states: http://www.recordgone.com./texas.htm However, there are many others. If you are paying someone, just make sure they are licensed attorneys who have experience clearing records. Their are some slick scam sites who offer this service. Many attorneys will give a money back guarantee. Also, if you have convictions in multiple states, make sure your attorney understands the record clearing laws in both states because proceeding in the wrong order could cost you your eligibility in one of the states.

You should hire an attorney to help you out with this. Trust me, the results will be well worth the money you pay him/her. I've had a good experience with http://www.recordgone.com and their attorneys. They serve a bunch of states and have useful articles and laws related to expungement on their website.