Is there something legally stronger than a pardon that does not constitute an admission of guilt?
<p>According to the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pardon" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Wikipedia page on pardons</a>:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>In some jurisdictions, accepting such a pardon implicitly constitutes an admission of guilt (see <em>Burdick v. United States</em> in the United States), so in some cases the offer is refused.</p>
</blockquote>

<p>A modern example of this is the UK's January 2017 passage of the "Policing and Crime Act 2017", informally known as the "Alan Turing law", which pardoned men convicted under various laws against homosexuality. George Montague was one man convicted under these laws who <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-37711518" rel="nofollow noreferrer">said he would not accept the pardon</a>.</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>"To accept a pardon means you accept that you were guilty. I was not guilty of anything. I was only guilty of being in the wrong place at the wrong time," he told BBC Newsnight.</p>
</blockquote>

<p>Montague said that he would accept an apology (which I presume would just be a public admission of the government's regret and would not carry any legal weight), but I'm wondering if there is anything legally stronger than a pardon that would not constitute an admission of guilt?</p>

<h2>Yes</h2>

<p>In NSW Australia, the particular terms of art are:</p>

<ul>
<li><p>a quashed conviction, where the original conviction has been overturned either through appeal or for additional evidence coming to light (<a href="http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/nsw/consol_act/cra1991167/s18.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Part 4</a> of the Criminal Records Act)</p></li>
<li><p>an extinguished conviction, where changes to the law (either through legislation or changes to precedent) have retroactively meant that the act you were convicted for was never an offence. Homosexuality crimes are in fact one area of NSW law where you can apply to have a conviction extinguished (<a href="http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/nsw/consol_act/cra1991167/s19a.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Part4A</a>of the Criminal Records Act): the application is not automatic as it requires demonstrating that the other person involved consented and was not a minor.</p></li>
</ul>

<p>In both cases, in the eyes of the law no offence has ever been proved (i.e. you are innocent).</p>

united-kingdom pardon