Katherine Robertson v. State of Mississippi, 158 So. 3d 280

Katherine Robertson pleaded guilty to aggravated assault (2006) and was sentenced to 20 years with 5 years suspended after shooting and injuring a man.
Governor Haley Barbour granted Robertson a "full, complete, and unconditional pardon" in January 2012.
Robertson filed a petition in Madison County Circuit Court seeking expungement of her criminal record based on the pardon; the trial court denied the motion.
Robertson argued Mississippi Code § 99-19-71(4) required expungement when a pardon effectively eliminates the conviction, leaving "no disposition."
The State (and trial court) maintained there is no statutory authority permitting expungement of a conviction after a pardon; expungement is available only where the Legislature has authorized it.
The Mississippi Supreme Court affirmed, relying on prior Mississippi decisions holding pardons remove punishment but do not erase the historical conviction.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether a gubernatorial pardon requires expungement of a criminal conviction	Robertson: A full unconditional pardon makes the conviction "as if it never was," triggering § 99-19-71(4) expungement	State: No statute authorizes expungement of a conviction after a pardon; § 99-19-71(4) does not apply because there was a disposition	Court: Denied — pardon removes punishment but does not expunge conviction; no statutory authority permits expungement after pardon

Finn v. State, 978 So. 2d 1270 (Miss. 2008) (standard of review for statutory interpretation is de novo)
Caldwell v. State, 564 So. 2d 1371 (Miss. 1990) (courts lack inherent expungement power; expungement only when statutorily authorized)
Polk v. State, 150 So. 3d 967 (Miss. 2014) (a pardon removes punishment but does not provide statutory basis to expunge a criminal conviction)