Successful fire-camp or institutional-firehouse service can support a California conviction-dismissal petition, but it does not dismiss the conviction automatically. Penal Code § 1203.4b creates a specific path for qualifying incarcerated hand-crew and firehouse participants after release from custody. The program record, every conviction covered by the sentence and any current charge matter before counsel chooses the petition.
First verify the program and the conviction
The current statute, amended effective January 1, 2026, covers successful participation in a California Conservation Camp incarcerated individual hand crew, a county incarcerated individual hand crew, or a CDCR institutional firehouse. A person must have been released from custody. Subdivision (a)(3) defines successful participation as adequate performance without conduct warranting removal from the program. A general statement that someone worked near a fire camp is not the certification the statute calls for.
Subdivision (a)(1) automatically excludes people convicted of any listed offense: murder; kidnapping; specified rape under §§ 261 or 262; lewd acts on a child under 14 under § 288; a felony punishable by death or life imprisonment; a sex offense requiring § 290 registration; escape from a secure perimeter within the preceding ten years; or arson. This is an exact list, not a blanket exclusion for everything someone might call a serious felony. Under subdivision (b)(5), the convictions being served when the person successfully participated may be considered, subject to those exclusions. Gather the judgment and sentencing history for each count rather than assuming one certificate covers only one conviction or makes every count eligible.
Confirm certification and use the correct petition
Under § 1203.4b(b)(1)–(3), the petition goes to the court in the county where the defendant was sentenced. CDCR certifies successful state hand-crew or institutional-firehouse participation to that court and provides the person a copy on release; the appropriate county authority performs that function for a county hand crew. If your records are incomplete, ask counsel to identify the proper certifying authority and obtain the program and release documents. Do not assume a prison assignment sheet alone proves statutory success.
California Courts’ felony record guide identifies CR-430 as the petition, CR-431 for agency confirmation and CR-432 as the proposed order. Check the current forms and the sentencing court’s filing instructions. The guide describes a judicial decision in the interests of justice; the form numbers are not a promise of approval. Section 1203.4b(e) requires 15 days’ notice to the prosecutor before relief is granted, with proof of service addressing receipt.
Supervision and current cases can change the answer
Unlike some other felony-dismissal paths, § 1203.4b(b)(4) does not require completion of probation, parole or supervised release before eligibility. If the court grants relief and finds no violation of supervision terms before or while the petition was pending, it must order early termination under that provision. Filing a petition alone does not terminate supervision. Subdivision (c)(2) separately bars relief while the person is currently charged with another offense. An unpaid restitution order or restitution fine cannot by itself be used to deny the petition under subdivision (c)(4), but the financial obligation is not erased.
The court has discretion to grant relief “in the interests of justice”; a denial is without prejudice under subdivision (a)(2). Relevant records may include the sentence, release and certification papers, supervision history, present case docket and a reasoned account of why relief is requested.
Understand what the order leaves in place
A § 1203.4b dismissal is not deletion of every criminal record. Subdivision (d) preserves use of the conviction in a later prosecution, firearm restrictions, specified public-office and license disclosure duties, and unexpired criminal protective orders unless separately changed or expired. Subdivision (b)(6) also supplies a limited state/local licensing nondisclosure rule with express exceptions for teacher credentialing, peace-officer positions, public office and State Lottery contracting. Review the actual application or restriction before answering a conviction question.
A different felony sentence may call for another procedure. The firm’s post-conviction overview describes its broader practice; the petition here turns on documented fire-crew or firehouse service. To discuss the judgment, program certification and next filing step with the Law Offices of David S. Chesley, contact the firm or call (800) 755-5174.