Governor's Pardon Lawyer · Carbon County, PA
Governor's Pardon Lawyer in Carbon County.
For an old Carbon County conviction that expungement and Clean Slate sealing cannot reach, a governor's pardon is the remaining option. The application itself is filed with the Board of Pardons in Harrisburg — not the courthouse in Jim Thorpe — and since June 11, 2024 the expungement that follows a granted pardon is automatic.
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Who applies from Carbon County
Why Carbon County residents seek a pardon.
Jim Thorpe, Lehighton, and Palmerton applicants are often Lehigh Valley warehouse commuters, tourism-corridor workers, and healthcare employees needing state clearances.
Old theft and drug convictions from the coal boroughs, 1990s assault records, and pre-ARD DUI convictions from the Pocono routes.
Nothing about the legal process changes because your case was in Jim Thorpe. Every Pennsylvania pardon application — from Philadelphia and from Potter County alike — is filed with the Board of Pardons in Harrisburg, screened there, and heard there. Your county matters at exactly one point: the Carbon County Court of Common Pleas is the court that entered the conviction, so it is the court that enters the automatic expungement after a pardon is granted.
Where the pardon is decided
Board of Pardons, Harrisburg — the Lieutenant Governor, the Attorney General, and three constitutionally appointed members. There is no Carbon County filing step for the pardon itself, and no local judge decides it.
After a pardon is granted, the Carbon County court in Jim Thorpe enters the expungement automatically under 18 Pa.C.S. § 9122(a.1) once the case reaches it on the AOPC's quarterly cycle.
Working with us from Carbon County
Carbon County clients work with us remotely, and the Jim Thorpe courthouse only handles the automatic expungement at the end.
3425 Simpson Ferry Rd, Suite 100, Camp Hill, PA 17011
The pardon process, start to cleared record.
Step 1
Application to the Board of Pardons
Filed centrally in Harrisburg under Pa. Const. art. IV, § 9 — not with your county court.
Step 2
Merit review screening
Board staff decide whether the application advances to a public hearing.
Step 3
Public hearing
Held in Harrisburg; the applicant testifies, and victims or objectors may be heard.
Step 4
Board vote
A majority recommendation is constitutionally required before the Governor can consider the application at all.
Step 5
Governor's decision
Discretionary even after a favorable recommendation.
Step 6
Automatic expungement
Under 18 Pa.C.S. § 9122(a.1) (Act 36 of 2023, effective June 11, 2024) the Board transmits pardoned cases to the AOPC quarterly and the county court expunges the record with no petition from you.
Plan in years rather than months. If any part of your Carbon County record is eligible for expungement or Clean Slate sealing, pursue that first — it is far faster. The pardon vs. expungement comparison explains which relief reaches which records.
Related reading for Carbon County
Pardon & record-clearing guides.
PA governor's pardon process
Board of Pardons application, merit review, hearing, and the Governor's decision.
Automatic expungement after a pardon
What Act 36 of 2023 changed on June 11, 2024 — and whether it reaches older pardons.
Pardon vs. expungement
Which mechanism actually reaches your record.
Expungement & pardon hub
Every record-clearing route in Pennsylvania in one place.
Left PA but still have the record
Applying for a Pennsylvania pardon when you live in another state.
Carbon County expungement
Faster relief for eligible Carbon County records.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions.
Common questions about the Pennsylvania governor's pardon process for Carbon County, PA convictions — where it is filed, how long it takes, and what happens to the record afterward.
No. Every Pennsylvania pardon application is filed with the Board of Pardons in Harrisburg under Pa. Const. art. IV, § 9, regardless of which county entered the conviction. The county only matters at the end: once a pardon is granted, the court that recorded the original conviction is the court that expunges it.
Not since June 11, 2024. Act 36 of 2023 added 18 Pa.C.S. § 9122(a.1), which makes expungement of a pardoned conviction automatic — the Board of Pardons transmits pardoned cases to the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts quarterly, the AOPC forwards them to the county court, and that court orders the expungement without any petition from you. Because it moves on a quarterly cycle, expect a real lag between the pardon and the record actually clearing.
Plan in years, not months. Application preparation, merit-review screening, the wait for a public hearing date, the Board's vote, and the Governor's discretionary decision each add time, and the automatic expungement that follows arrives on the AOPC's quarterly cycle after that. Certain non-violent small-amount marijuana convictions qualify for the Board's expedited screening track.
Not automatically. A pardon clears the conviction and, since June 2024, triggers automatic expungement of it, but firearm eligibility under 18 Pa.C.S. § 6105 and federal law is a separate analysis that depends on the specific offense and the terms of the pardon. Ask about this specifically before you rely on it.
Applications that clear merit review are scheduled for a public hearing in Harrisburg, and the applicant's own testimony is usually the most persuasive part of the record. Victims and objectors may also be heard. We prepare you for the questions the Board actually asks rather than sending you in cold.
Yes, but generally each conviction needs its own application, and each granted pardon then triggers its own automatic expungement under § 9122(a.1). If you have several old cases — sometimes across different counties — we sequence them rather than filing everything blindly at once.
No. Expungement under 18 Pa.C.S. § 9122 destroys eligible non-convictions, ARD dispositions, and old summary offenses; Clean Slate limits public access to certain misdemeanor convictions. A pardon is the only route for a conviction that neither of those reaches — most felonies and many repeat-offense records.
Pardons for convictions in other PA counties
Other Pennsylvania counties we prepare pardon applications for.
The Board of Pardons process is statewide, so we take pardon applications for convictions entered anywhere in Pennsylvania — including clients with cases in more than one county alongside Carbon.
Governor's Pardon Lawyer — Lehigh County, PA
Applications from Lehigh County convictions run through the same Board of Pardons in Harrisburg.
Governor's Pardon Lawyer — Luzerne County, PA
Applications from Luzerne County convictions run through the same Board of Pardons in Harrisburg.
Governor's Pardon Lawyer — Schuylkill County, PA
Applications from Schuylkill County convictions run through the same Board of Pardons in Harrisburg.
Governor's Pardon Lawyer — Monroe County, PA
Applications from Monroe County convictions run through the same Board of Pardons in Harrisburg.
Governor's Pardon Lawyer — Northampton County, PA
Applications from Northampton County convictions run through the same Board of Pardons in Harrisburg.
Expungement Lawyer — Carbon County, PA
If part of your Carbon County record is expungeable or Clean Slate-sealable, that relief is much faster than a pardon.
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