Expunction granted for former Johnston Co. principal accused of sexual assault
The former principal of a Johnston County elementary school accused of sexual assault has had the charge expunged, or legally removed from his record, two years after the alleged incident, court records show.
Daniel Cole Yarborough, now 35, was arrested in May 2021 by the Johnston County Sheriff’s Office for allegedly assaulting a 31-year-old man. He was jailed on $250,000 bail and charged with second-degree forcible sex offense, which carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison if a person is convicted.
Yarborough, who was principal of Glendale-Kenly Elementary School, resigned from his position after the arrest.
In April 2022, the case against Yarborough was dismissed, and a month later, his lawyer, J. Hart Miles of Cheshire Parker Schneider, PLLC in Raleigh, petitioned the state for an expunction. The petition was granted in December 2022.
The charge was dismissed due to a plea agreement with the state to a lesser misdemeanor charge, according to the law firm.
The process legally removes a criminal conviction or charge from a person’s record and seals or destroys the state’s records of any arrest, conviction or charge.
According to the state, once granted an expunction, people cannot be found guilty of perjury if they deny that an arrest, charge, or conviction ever happened.
Yarborough was granted an expunction in May.
Expunction in NC
There are several cases where an expunction can be granted in the state. Some statutes allow expunctions only for specific offenses like drug possession, gang offenses, misdemeanors, non-violent felonies, prostitution offenses, identity theft, or if a person was a juvenile at the time of the offense.
Other cases for eligibility depend on how a charge ended, including if a case was dismissed or if a person is found not guilty.
More information about the expunction process and eligibility can be found at nccourts.gov.
This story was originally published May 26, 2021 at 6:00 PM.