Runnels County Offense Guide
Expunging Public Intoxication in Runnels County
How a public intoxication charge gets erased through the Ballinger courts — eligibility, local filing practice, and why it's worth doing.
Statute
Tex. Penal Code § 49.02
Offense level
Class C misdemeanor (fine only)
About the charge
Public intoxication is charged when someone in a public place is intoxicated to the degree they may endanger themselves or others. It's a Class C, fine-only misdemeanor — often issued outside bars, at festivals, or during traffic stops involving passengers.
PI is a subjective, officer-discretion charge with no breathalyzer requirement, which is why so many of these cases are dismissed or deferred when actually contested.
Where your case gets cleared in Runnels County
An expunction of a Runnels County arrest is a civil case filed in the district court serving the county, heard at the courthouse in Ballinger. The petition has to name each agency holding a piece of the record, from the arresting department to the clerks and the state.
Records of a Runnels County arrest live in several places at once — the Sheriff's Office, any city police department involved, the clerks' offices in Ballinger, and DPS's statewide database — and the petition must list them all so the order clears each one. Like many Texas counties, the district court here shares its judge with neighboring counties on a multi-county judicial district, so settings follow the court's rotation through the district.
Local practice notes
Runnels County's docket is light compared to the metros, and eligible expunctions here generally move faster than they would in a big city — the work is in drafting the petition precisely and serving every agency. This is oil and gas country: Permian Basin operators and oilfield service companies screen every hire and every badge, so a cleared record has direct paycheck value in the region's best-paying work.
Can a public intoxication charge be expunged?
Like nearly every Texas offense, eligibility turns on how the case ended. An arrest for this charge is generally expungable under Chapter 55A of the Code of Criminal Procedure if:
- The charge was dismissed and the applicable waiting or limitations period has passed
- You were acquitted at trial
- A grand jury declined to indict (felony no-bill)
- You were arrested but never charged, once the waiting period runs
- You completed a Class C deferred disposition and the charge was dismissed
As a Class C offense, public intoxication has a fast track to expunction: if the charge was dismissed, if you completed deferred disposition, or if you were acquitted, the record is expungable — and the waiting period for a never-charged or dismissed PI arrest is only 180 days. Like all Class C charges, the mistake is paying the fine, which converts a clearable arrest into a conviction.
If expunction isn't available: sealing
A PI conviction from paying the fine may still qualify for a fine-only misdemeanor order of nondisclosure, hiding it from employers even though it can't be destroyed. Learn how orders of nondisclosure work →
Why clearing this record matters
An alcohol-related offense on a background check invites questions in any hiring process and matters disproportionately for jobs involving driving, security clearances, healthcare, and work with minors. For students and young professionals, a PI from one bad night is a permanent public record that takes one short legal proceeding to erase — few records offer this much cleanup for this little effort.
Common questions
Is public intoxication a criminal record in Texas?
Yes. Even though it's a fine-only Class C misdemeanor, the arrest or citation creates a criminal record visible on background checks until it is expunged or sealed.
I was a minor when I got a PI. Are the rules different?
Alcohol offenses committed as a minor have additional relief options, including expunction under the Alcoholic Beverage Code once you turn 21. These are often the cheapest, simplest expunctions available.
How fast can a dismissed PI be expunged?
For a Class C charge that was dismissed or never filed, the statutory waiting period is 180 days from the arrest — one of the shortest in Texas expunction law.
My Runnels County arrest was years ago. Is it too late to expunge it?
No — eligibility doesn't expire. Older arrests are often the simplest expunctions because every waiting period has long since run.
How long does an expunction take in Runnels County?
Typically a few months from filing to signed order, subject to the court's schedule — and smaller-county dockets like this one often move faster than the metros.
Statewide guide
Public Intoxication expunction in Texas →
County guide
All Runnels County expunctions →
Disclaimer: This page is general legal information about Texas law, not legal advice about your case, and reading it does not create an attorney‑client relationship. Eligibility depends on the complete details of your criminal history — get a free case review for a definitive answer.
Clear a public intoxication charge in Runnels County
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