Re: Felonys, Misdemeanors, and Background checks....

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Dear Fustrated,

Some States law(s) allow(s) defendant(s) to ask the Ct. to seal
their arrest records, and any court file created from that arrest,
if the charges are dismissed, the person is found not guilty by a
jury or the case involved a deferred sentence or the case was
dropped due to lack of evidences etc. However, I believe a person
(s) or individual(s) can file a civil petition to seal the
records.
Furthermore, the State or district attorney’s office have a right
to evaluated petition whether it’s in the interest of justice to
have the case sealed or not sealed.

Thanks

On 1/13/07, fustrated wrote:
> I am dealing with a situation similar to all Liz. However it is
> for my son. He never convicted anytype of crime or got in any
> trouble while in growing up. unfortunately like Liz while in FL
> for college he had a dispute with a girlfriend. Which resulted
> in him tearing up some of her property, etc... to make a long.
> A week later her family reported it to the police. When the
> police dressed in street clothes came met him in the hall of the
> college campus he was taken in for questioning. because he had
> never been in trouble with the law he told everthing without
> having an attorney present because he thought that he would be
> allowed to go home. he was arrested and charged with several
> felonies etc.. I hired and attorney whom later got the charges
> reduced to misdemeanors. He did not serve any time and so he
> spent the next couple of years completing college. After
> college, he was made a job offer and then they did a background
> check. the information on the background check was incorrect
> (still showed the charges as felonies) so he was able dispute
> them and to keep the job. Then he started looking for housing
> he got an apartment and on the day before he was leaving to go
> to the new state he was denied the appartment because of the
> background check. We are still trying to work through the
> details of housing. I think the laws or lack there of can only
> add to homelessness and crime. If a person is not able to be
> forgiven of a crime regardless of the final outcome (convicted
> or not) then how can they ever go on with there life. If you
> back a person in a corner then eventually they could have no
> other choice than to return to crime or become a criminal if
> thats what it takes to survive. I think there are some
> situations where there should be limits (child molestation) but
> other cases it seems that the society needs to be more
> forgiving.
> On 12/09/06, PATRICK H SKALANDIS wrote:
>> On 7/13/06, DALE LEE SHATTO JR wrote:
>>> On 7/04/06, John wrote:
>>>> Here is my opinion about criminal background checks. If a
>>>> person has made a criminal mistake in their past and paid
>>>> their debt to society, they need to be set FREE (Truly
>>>> FREE) and not oppressed by society for the rest of their
>>>> lives and continually held accountable for past mistakes.
>>>> I AGREE.
>>>> A criminal background check (employment, housing, etc...)
>>>> on an ex-offender only serves to oppress and discriminate
>>>> against these people based on their past mistakes. If
>>>> they have paid their debt to society, then LET them go
>>>> FREE! Truly FREE!
>>>> I AGREE
>>>> Everytime an ex-offender cannot find work, housing, or
>>>> licensing for a profession and better way of life...he or
>>>> she is placed in a desperate life situation. Depression
>>>> and Anger fills them. If this person finds him/herself
>>>> without hope of a better future or any future for that
>>>> matter, then you can most assuredly expect the CREATION of
>>>> More criminal activity, more hatred towards an unforgiving
>>>> society, and a SKYROCKETING repeat offender RECIDIVISM
>>>> rate in our national prison systems.
>>>>
>>>> If ex-offenders cannot find decent work, housing, or a
>>>> better life after their release...what GOOD is their
>>>> FREEDOM..???? What good is their life! SET THEM FREE!
>>>>
>>>> GIVE Ex-offenders BACK their rights to live! Stop holding
>>>> these people accountable for the rest of their lives for
>>>> past mistakes (not a damn one of us is perfect or has
>>>> never sinned), and give them the TRUE FREEDOM to better
>>>> their lives without fear of the oppression and
>>>> discrimination that comes from looking into their
>>>> backgrounds and holding this against them for the rest of
>>>> their lives. How UTTERLY RIDICULOUS and WHAT A TRAVESTY!
>>>> That is NOT JUSTICE, that is OPPRESSION! And when hope is
>>>> finally lost in the souls of these ex-offenders, you are
>>>> CREATING Criminals, NOT rehabilitating them!
>>>>
>>>> You think about that!
>>>>
>>>> Judge not and condemn not, lest YOU be judged!
>>>> The merciful shall obtain Mercy!
>>>>
>>>> There is a higher power to listen too and obey than the
>>>> biases of mankind and His name is God Almighty whom this
>>>> nation was founded UNDER.
>>>>
>>>> FREE those who are wrongly being continually oppressed and
>>>> give the Lord a mightly flood of justice and mercy towards
>>>> those in trouble, in need of help, and who are poor.
>>>>
>>>> I am pissed off and angry as hell at what I see going on
>>>> around me with ex-offenders and with myself.
>>>>
>>>> Unless things change, society is going to see an EXPLOSION
>>>> of criminal activity, until rights are restored to
>>>> oppressed and discriminated ex-offenders!
>>>>
>>>> The whole sitaiton is PATHETIC and I am deeply ashamed!