People v. David T. (In re David T.)

*869 Appellant David T. appeals from the juvenile court's denial of his motion to seal his juvenile records, brought pursuant to Welfare and Institutions Code section 781. 1 He contends that because the court granted his motion to dismiss the petition arising from a 1995 robbery adjudication, pursuant to section 782, the court erred in concluding it could not also seal his records due to a limitation found in section 781. We conclude that because the court's order setting aside the robbery finding and dismissing the petition under section 782 erased the petition as if it had never existed, the court improperly denied appellant's motion to seal his records under section 781. We will therefore reverse and remand the matter to the juvenile court with directions to grant the motion to seal appellant's juvenile records.

BACKGROUND

This case arises out of appellant's participation in the armed robbery of a pawnshop in Oakland in December 1994, when he was 17 years old. In January 1995, the juvenile court sustained a robbery allegation ( Pen. Code, § 211 ) against appellant. Appellant was committed to the California Youth Authority (now known as the Department of Corrections and…