Are there any historical records of a criminal or group of criminals getting their criminal records expunged due to heroic acts?

by hemaris_thysbe
jeffbell

There is the case of Samuel Mudd, the doctor who treated John Wilkes Booth's broken leg while he was on the run, and was convicted of conspiracy. He was later pardoned by Andrew Johnson, perhaps due to his services in a yellow fever outbreak.

But this falls short of your question. Expungement is a much more lenient than a pardon. Efforts are still underway to get his conviction reversed.

freindlyfonz

Pierre Lafitte and his brother Jean were Pirates in the Gulf of mexico, both we pardoned by Madison for defending New Orleans in 1815 against the British.

"I am the stray sheep, wishing to return to the sheepfold ... If you were thoroughly acquainted with the nature of my offenses, I should appear to you much less guilty, and still worthy to discharge the duties of a good citizen."

gingerkid1234

Sorry, we don't allow throughout history questions. These tend to produce threads which are collections of trivia, not the in-depth discussions about a particular topic we're looking for. If you have a specific question about a historical event or period or person, please feel free to re-compose your question and submit it again. Alternatively, questions of this type can be directed to more appropriate subreddits, such as /r/history or /r/askhistory.