Expunged misdemeanor and nursing career

Been there,done that, ASN, RN · May 4, 2017

What you should do is, talk to your lawyer. We are nurses, only your lawyer can advise you on this matter.

Best wishes in your journey.

~Mi Vida Loca~RN, ASN, RN · May 4, 2017

In 2010 i was charged with a misdemeanor of resisting arrest. My lawyer said it would be expunged after 3 years. I am currently looking into nursing school because i want to be a nurse. I am scared and afraid that this misdemeanor will affect my education/career path in nursing. Please help me, what should i do? Thank you!

Charges aren't automatically expunged. You need to to file and request to have them expunged which that process would vary based on where you life. After it's expunged you need to contact various places to get them to update their systems if you're going to be having a background check done. Some places only update once a year if you don't request it. There is a whole process too it and from my understanding it saves a lot of time and headache to just pay for a lawyer to handle it. A good friend of mine just went through this whole thing.

Trauma Columnist · May 4, 2017

Moved for more answers

Meriwhen, ASN, BSN, MSN, RN · May 6, 2017

In 2010 i was charged with a misdemeanor of resisting arrest. My lawyer said it would be expunged after 3 years. I am currently looking into nursing school because i want to be a nurse. I am scared and afraid that this misdemeanor will affect my education/career path in nursing. Please help me, what should i do? Thank you!

Expungement may be able to let you answer "No" to certain criminal history questions on job and school applications. You should consult with your attorney to find out exactly how you should answer those questions when you have an expungement.

However, you WILL have to report expunged charges to the BON when it comes time to apply for licensure. There is no way around that--almost every (if not all) BONs require you to disclose the expunged charges.

Will this be a career-killer? Not necessarily. There are lots of nurses with criminal records who go on to get/keep their licenses and have successful nursing careers. And IMO, resisting arrest hardly sounds like the crime of the century and doesn't seem like something a BON would pitch a fit over. Though keep in mind that is merely my opinion and not your state BON's--they may see otherwise.

What WILL cause your record to be a problem is if you fail to report your convictions/expungements to the BON. BONs absolutely dislike finding out about your criminal record from other sources instead of straight from the applicant. To them, leave it off your application and it's like you've lied by omission. And the "I didn't know" or "I forgot" excuse won't get you anywhere--they've heard that line so often that they almost never buy it.

You can always ask your BON for more info, though keep in mind that most BONs will not give you a definite Yay or Nay answer about licensure until you actually apply and submit all required materials. And if you have any legal questions, seek the advice of your attorney.

Look though this forum and you'll find a lot of success stories of those who were able to get/keep their license despite having a criminal history. So if you are interested in nursing, by all means, pursue it even before you get your record expunged! Just keep in mind that you may/will have to fess up about your record and will need to address that.

Best of luck whatever you decide!

Skippingtowork · May 6, 2017

Check with your Board of Nursing. Even if you have your record expunged, the BON may still require you to report it. There are many answers to your questions on the site. You may want to investigate before applying to nursing school.

Nikilam · May 8, 2017

Thank you all!