current/future RN's with drug charge/disorderly conduct in their past.

Meriwhen, ASN, BSN, MSN, RN · Aug 3, 2012

i pled guilty to the dui in exchange for the drug charge to be amended to a disorderly conduct, so that is what my file says when you check. if i go through the process of nursing school, do i have to state the original drug charge, or can i just say i got a disorderly conduct, since technically the judge through out the drug charge?

i would think that you'd only have to state what you were actually convicted of. however, i'm not a lawyer nor do i pretend to be: i would ask a lawyer what is the best yet most accurate answer to give.

psychRNinAZ · Aug 3, 2012

I actually had a girl ask me something similar to this the other day. I can not speak for your nursing board but I would contact them ahead of time, before you even enroll in classes. With a criminal record you don't want to pay for college just to find out that you can't get your license through the board after it's all said and done. I know in AZ if there are any "discrepancies" on your criminal background they can have you sit before the board and question you on the charges. The best advice I can give is to be honest up front. It was so long ago that you can clearly prove that you made a mistake as a young adult and have had no issues since.

Punkrocksn · Aug 11, 2012

Brief background: I have an underage dui at age 20 (zero tolerance in my state), and illegal use of 911 (charge dropped) tied to disturbing the peace by drunkeness. I'm 27 years old now, and these things were so distant to me that I never bothered to have my record expunged. I contacted my local board and hopeful school (that I now attend) and they all told me I'd have to apply and see what happened. Well, because I didn't clear my record, the board had access to not only the dropped charge, but the actual police reports from my arrest. They were not pretty. I received board clearance the day before clinical rotations started, with the provision that I was to appear before members of the board, explain myself, and hold to whatever they recommended for me. When I got to my "hearing," it was obvious that the decision had already been made. They apologetically ordered me to undergo an outpatient rehab evaluation 4 hours from my home for almost $2,000. After hours of interviews and tests, they asked me why I was there after so many years, and reported that I have no addiction issues. BUT they recommended that I undergo a year of monitoring "to prove" to the board that I'm fit for practice. This also meant that I have a formal complaint on my record, and was placed on probation for things that happened 7 years ago. I was given the option to have an actual hearing with the actual board, but would have to sit out a year and have that on my record as well. If I'd known all this when I started school 2 years before, I may have altered the path I took, but never the decision to go through nursing school.

On the bright side, if anyone questions the record that WILL be cleared by the time I look for a job, there will be a year of documented compliance with the board, and a year of sobriety from alcohol and drugs PLUS great grades, and exemplary performance in the clinical environment.

It's scary, but every case is different. If I'd expunged my record, a lot of this probably wouldn't have happened. It just depends on where you live. There are many many nurses and students with dui's in my state and bouts in monitoring.

If records are expunged or sealed in my state we don't admit dropped charges. However, we do have to submit narratives of the arrests. It's an embarrassing subject, but some students are straightforward in talking about their cases, and may have helpful information about how your local board deals with criminal records.

diva rn, BSN, RN · Aug 12, 2012

Just so you know, the State Boards of Nursing have access to expunged records.