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Employment with a felony? (Thank you everyone who helped me, I appreciate it very much)
First I would like to thank anyone and everyone who responds to this message. When I was 19 back in 1999 I was arrested for unlawful possesion of drug paraphenalia and possesion of a controlled substance. To make a long story short I was driving with "friends" when I was pulled over for speeding, my "friends" hid their contraband in my car without my knowledge and since it was in my car and they denied owning the above mentioned articles, I was arrested and charged. It has been 10 years since then and now that I know I want to become a firefighter I am afraid that this will keep me from obtaining my dream...so I guess my question is, am I screwed? Should I just try and forget about becoming a fireman? What if I can get this felony expunged? Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you and God bless
Thank you and God bless
Replies are closed for this discussion.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by BillySFCVFD on
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Nick,
Can help but think of the old saying, show me your friends and I'll tell you who you are. You only mentioned that you were charged. What about convicted? More importantly the first step in improving your life is admitting wholeheartedly your mistakes. Your profile displays you are a volunteer FF. Did you divulge your criminal record to you VFD. Honesty is paramount in the fire service. Good luck TCSS -
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Permalink Reply by Paul Montpetit on
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Good point Billy....Charged and convicted are two different things....and as your profile shows you are in a department did you reveal that to them when you joined...? If not, in my department, that would be grounds for expellment....you cannot be in this business if people cannot trust you.....many times later in life we have to pay for mistakes made earlier in life and this just might be the one for you......Paul
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Permalink Reply by Art "ChiefReason" Goodrich on
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To make this go away, you are going to need TWO things:
1) Money
2) Attorney who specializes in these matters and who is well connected
Otherwise, you will be explaining yourself for the rest of your life.
Most companies, when they run a background check, look at the past 7 - 10 years.
So, you might not have to worry about it, unless one of the questions is: have you EVER been convicted of a felony?
If you feel that it will affect your employability, then get it removed.
TCSS.
Art -
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Permalink Reply by Nick Jackhammer P.I. on
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I am not a volunteer ff, I must have accidentaly listed I was when I signed up and yes, I was convicted. I have heard of that saying Billy, but that saying does not apply to me. I have never used drugs in my life, perhaps I was to trusting of people as a kid? If you knew me you would know that I am the most trustworthy, dedicated, loyal person in the world. I give my last dollar to homeless people on the street if I see one. I am not a bad person and I know that when people see a felony, they judge you right there. I do not want this to keep me from my dream.
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You're right Nick, I don't know you and possibly either will future employers. Another saying is, actions speak louder then words. Keep up a trustworthy lifestyle and it will follow you. Ever thought of joining a VFD to gather experience and a fire service history? Since they are local with people who do or might know you there is strong chance that you can join based on your more recent history. Many a career FF has gone that route. Once again good luck and keep up your honesty. TCSS
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Permalink Reply by Jay Nicholson on
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Do whatever you can to either expunge the felony or have it reduced to a misdemeanor. If you are looking into becoming a career FF, you will be competing with about 1000 people for every 1 job opening. Most of those will not have a felony conviction on their record. Since most if not all depts. around here require EMT as a requirement, I copied this from a county's web site regarding being certified as an EMT.
Single DUIs and most minor misdemeanor convictions will not affect your ability to get an EMT certificate. Theft convictions and felonies will receive a close review and you may or may not be certified depending on the circumstances of the case, the length of time of since the conviction, and actions you have taken for rehabilitation. If you are currently on probation, especially for a theft, you may have to wait until the probation is completed.
The state you live in may have different requirements. All things being equal, if I was a chief of a VFD, and this was the ONLY black mark on your record, I wouldn't have a problem hiring you. -
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Do you think if I explained my situation to whoever does the hiring and let them know all the details of the felony, that I would stand a better chance?
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I'm going to say depending on the dept. you are applying with. If you are looking at a career dept. that is interviewing 1000's of applicants for a very few jobs, then your chances of explaining this away are slim. You just interviewed after some clean-cut, college grad, EMT-P, VFD experience. Probably the next guy they interview after you is the same. Your best bet is to expunge/reduce the offense, volunteer at a FD while this is all taking place and then apply. With the economy the way it is now, a lot of depts. will be on a hiring freeze anyway.
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Scott....That's just it....He ISN'T in a department.....Sorry man but as I see it you are screwed....unless that felony disappears you wouldn't make it into our department...it would show up on your background check....I had a misdemeanor for disorderly conduct and was asked about it....so a felony isn't going to fly.....Paul
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Permalink Reply by Brian Dumser on
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In the State of Illinois, when you get an arrest expunged, you actually get back the fingerprint cards and mugshots from the arrest. All traces of the arrest are gone, and will not show up on a background check. It will, however show up when police do a record search if you're arrested again. I know this from personal experience. Although, my arrest was a misdemeanor offense, and the case was dismissed. Since you were actually convicted, you should check the laws in your state. Good luck & stay safe!
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Thanks Brian. That's actually where I am, in Illinois. Sugar Grove, IL to be exact. I guess I should schedule a free consultation with a lawyer and see what they have to say. Thanks for your input.
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With the current "climate" in Illinois, you may stand a better than average chance of getting some help with this.
But, let me ask you: if you get the conviction removed from your record and down the road, you are asked: have you ever been convicted of a felony; how are you going to answer?
Are you going to say straight out "no", which isn't exactly the truth or "yes", but it was expunged, which is going to lead to more questions.
To me, you are asking for a "pardon".
For the record, I am one who believes in second chances.
TCSS.
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