If you or someone you love has a conviction in Delaware and is looking for a pardon or other clemency relief, this guide is written for you. Delaware's system has two stages: a public hearing before the Board of Pardons, which makes a formal recommendation, followed by the Governor's independent decision. One thing that makes Delaware worth understanding carefully is that a pardon alone does not erase your criminal record, but it opens the door to a separate expungement process that can. Knowing the difference between what a pardon does and what expungement does is essential before you file. I have been through the system myself, and most of the fear comes from not knowing how the process works. So let me walk you through it in plain language. None of this is legal advice, and every case is different, so treat this as a map and lean on a lawyer for the turns.
What Delaware offers: the forms of clemency
Delaware's constitution, Article VII, Section 1, gives the Governor the power to grant reprieves, commutations of sentence, and pardons, except in cases of impeachment. The Governor may also remit fines and forfeitures. However, no pardon or reprieve lasting more than six months may be granted, and no sentence may be commuted, without a written recommendation from a majority of the Board of Pardons following a full hearing. A pardon is the form of relief most commonly sought by people who have completed their sentences. A commutation reduces an active sentence for someone currently incarcerated. A reprieve is a temporary delay in punishment.
Who decides: the Board of Pardons and the Governor
Delaware's Board of Pardons is composed entirely of constitutional officers of the state: the Chancellor, the Lieutenant Governor, the Secretary of State, the State Treasurer, and the Auditor of Accounts. These are not appointees; they hold their Board membership by virtue of holding their state offices. A majority of the Board must vote to recommend a pardon before the Governor can act.
The Board's role is to hold public hearings, deliberate on each petition, and either deny the application or recommend it to the Governor for further consideration. Hearings are public meetings, meaning that members of the public, the prosecuting attorney, and victims may attend and be heard. The Governor cannot grant a pardon or commutation without a Board recommendation, but the Governor is not bound to follow a favorable recommendation and exercises independent judgment in every case. This two-gate structure is worth understanding: clearing the Board does not guarantee the Governor will act, and failing at the Board level means the Governor cannot act at all. Presenting the strongest possible case to the Board is the priority.
When the Board recommends a pardon, the recommendation, with the full written reasons for it, is filed and recorded in the Office of the Secretary of State, who notifies the Governor. The Governor must then record all reprieves, pardons, and remissions in a register of official acts and lay that register before the General Assembly at its next session. Delaware's pardon process has transparency built in at multiple levels.
Who is eligible for a pardon in Delaware
Delaware's waiting periods before you can apply are set by the Board's informal rules rather than by statute, but they are treated as firm requirements in practice. For misdemeanor convictions, the minimum waiting period is three years after completing your sentence, including any probation or parole. For most other offenses, the waiting period is five years after sentence completion.
The waiting period can be waived in cases of legitimate hardship. Examples of hardship that may justify a waiver include a pending deportation proceeding where a pardon could help resolve the immigration consequence, or a specific job offer that requires the conviction to be addressed. Waiver requests are not automatically granted; the applicant needs to clearly explain the specific hardship in the application and provide documentation where possible. A general claim of hardship is less persuasive than a specific, documented one such as a formal deportation notice or a written job offer that expressly conditions employment on resolution of the conviction.
Only Delaware state convictions can be pardoned through this process. Federal convictions and out-of-state convictions are not within the Board's or the Governor's jurisdiction. If your conviction is federal, your path is through the United States Department of Justice Office of the Pardon Attorney, not the Delaware Board.
The application process step by step
Step one: prepare your criminal history documents. Before you can complete the application, you must obtain a certified copy of your criminal history from the State Bureau of Identification and certified court dockets and sentencing orders for all adult dispositions listed as guilty, unknown, unobtainable, or transferred on your criminal history record. This process takes several weeks and must be completed before you can fill out the application accurately. Do not skip this step; missing or inaccurate conviction information will result in your application being returned.
Step two: complete and submit the application. Download the pardon application from the Board of Pardons website at pardons.delaware.gov. The application must be filled out online (not handwritten) and then printed for submission by mail. Handwritten applications will not be accepted and will significantly delay processing. The application asks for your personal information, your complete conviction history, the details of your sentences and their completion, the reasons you are seeking a pardon, and evidence of your rehabilitation.
Step three: wait for scheduling. Applications are processed and hearings scheduled on a first-come, first-served basis. Requesting a specific hearing date does not guarantee that date; space is limited. You will be notified by mail at the beginning of the month in which you are scheduled for a hearing. Plan for a wait of several months between submission and your hearing.
Step four: the Board hearing. Hearings before the Board of Pardons are public meetings. At the hearing, you present your case directly to the five Board members, all of whom are senior constitutional officers of the state. This is your primary opportunity to speak to your rehabilitation, your life since the conviction, and the specific reasons a pardon matters now. Victims and other interested parties may also participate and be heard. Come prepared: bring documentation of stable employment, housing, and community involvement; letters of support from employers, community leaders, or others who can speak to your character; and a clear, direct statement of why the pardon matters in practical terms. The Board deliberates and votes to either deny the petition or recommend it to the Governor. If the Board denies your petition, you will generally need to wait before reapplying; consult the Board's rules on reapplication timing.
Step five: the Governor's decision. If the Board recommends a pardon, the written recommendation and its reasons are filed with the Secretary of State, who notifies the Governor. The Governor then makes an independent decision. The Governor is not obligated to follow the Board's recommendation and may decline to grant a pardon even with a favorable recommendation. The Governor also has authority to place lawful conditions on a pardon when one is granted.
What a pardon does in Delaware
Delaware's own description of a pardon is worth reading carefully. An unconditional pardon fully restores all civil rights to the person pardoned, including the right to vote, the right to serve on a jury, the right to purchase or possess deadly weapons, and the right to seek and hold public office. This restoration of all civil rights, including firearms rights, is automatic and comprehensive upon an unconditional pardon, without needing to ask for specific rights separately the way some other states require.
A pardon does not remove the historical fact of the conviction from the state's official arrest and conviction records. It adds to the record that a pardon has been granted, but the underlying conviction remains visible. This is an important distinction that affects employment and housing background checks.
Expungement after a pardon: the second step
Because a pardon does not erase the record, Delaware has a separate expungement process that can. Once a pardon has been granted for a conviction, you may be eligible to apply for expungement of that conviction under 11 Del. Code Sections 4371 through 4375. The expungement process is administered through the State Bureau of Identification, not the Board of Pardons. To determine eligibility, contact the State Bureau of Identification; if you are eligible, they will provide a letter with further instructions.
Some convictions are not eligible for expungement even after a pardon. These include manslaughter, murder in the first or second degree, rape, and kidnapping. For those conviction types, a pardon restores civil rights but the record cannot be fully erased through the expungement process.
For people pursuing the most complete relief available, the full path in Delaware is: pardon first to restore civil rights, then expungement if eligible to remove the historical fact from the record. The pardon is the gateway to expungement for convictions that cannot be expunged through any other means. People sometimes ask whether they should apply for expungement first and a pardon second; in Delaware, the pardon typically comes first and unlocks the expungement for convictions where expungement is only available after a pardon. Checking your eligibility for each step before you start will save time and help you plan the sequence correctly.
Delaware's separate expungement laws
Delaware also has a mandatory expungement program for some convictions that does not require a pardon as a prerequisite. Low-level convictions, including certain drug possession offenses and some non-violent felonies, may be eligible for automatic expungement after applicable waiting periods under the state's expanding expungement laws. If your conviction falls into one of these categories, you may be able to pursue expungement directly without going through the pardon process at all. Contact the State Bureau of Identification or a Delaware post-conviction attorney to evaluate which path fits your specific situation before you invest the time in the pardon process.
A note on federal convictions
If the conviction is federal rather than a Delaware state conviction, the Delaware Board of Pardons and the Governor of Delaware cannot help you. Federal clemency is granted by the President of the United States, and applications go through the Office of the Pardon Attorney within the United States Department of Justice. The two processes are completely separate.
Where this leaves you
Delaware's pardon process has become more accessible over the past decade through a series of reforms that have shortened wait times and increased the rate of recommendations and grants. The path is clear: meet the waiting period, prepare your criminal history documents thoroughly before you touch the application, fill it out online and mail it in, wait for your hearing date, present your case to the Board, and then wait for the Governor's decision. Know going in that a pardon alone does not erase your record, and that if expungement is your ultimate goal, the pardon is the first step rather than the final one. The combination of an unconditional pardon followed by an expungement, where the conviction is eligible, provides the most complete relief available in Delaware: full restoration of civil rights plus erasure of the historical record. For many people, that combination changes what is possible in terms of employment, housing, and professional licensing in ways that the pardon alone cannot fully accomplish.