Exusted

diane227, LPN, RN · May 11, 2011

First of all, do not lie on your job applications. Be up front about the conviction. Was it a felony conviction? If it is off your record, why do you think you were not hired because of it? Battery is an offense that can keep you from getting a job where you care for patients because patients are considered a vulnerable population.

macca · May 11, 2011

Thank you for taking the time to reply...... In reponse to your questions

1. The charge was a misdemeanor...and there was no conviction, only the arrest.

2. A background check was done through a company, that found the expunged court records...when ask to bring the paper work, I gave the expunged order and the deposition which says..no pros.....after I gave the info. I called numerous time, only to hear my application was denied.

3. Battery is not only a hit, but a touch....which includes bumping someone....that combine with an officer who ask no questions in his determination, and guess what.....welcome to my situation

FLmomof5 · May 11, 2011

@Diane... Here is the issue. There was a PTI, charges dropped, record expunged. This means that there was no formal conviction. This is why the BON states that you much claim these in very specific terms. Normally the benefit would come after the BON check and license award. Employers do not get to see the same "record" that the BON gets to see. There should have been no record of this on the background check and she should be able to tell employers that she wasn't convicted. {There MAY be an exception for certain types of employers, but I don't know this for sure.}

Unfortunately, it is a day late and a dollar short for the OP. I would have recommended hiring a lawyer and refusing the PTI....I would have fought to have charges dropped. Sorry, OP, that you are having to deal with this.

macca · May 11, 2011

Thank you for taking the time to reply... I posted earlier, not sure if it was recieved.

In response to you questions......it was a misdemeanor charge which I wasnt convicted. A outside company did the background check, which they located records of the arrest.....when I was asked to present the paper works from the court, I gave the expunge order and the deposition which resulted in no pros. After a few back and forth calls, I was told my application was rejected, now this is after I was offered the job. Well this happened 2x, the last company also reniged on their offer, only there was no one to call, because they didnt answer the phone when I called. Like, I said " unjust system "

Tiger747 · May 13, 2011

Hello Macca,

I am in Indiana with a misdemeanor battery from 2001 which was a conviction. I could have easily had it dismissed had I had the money for a descent lawyer (I had plenty of witnesses that could have testified that it never happened, including the arresting officer), but I opted for a plea bargain to get it over with. Stupid, I know, but back then, a misdemeanor was like a parking ticket. Now, Indiana no longer allows expungements. Again, in 2001 misdemeanors were so irrelevant , that applications did not even ask. I have worked as a substitute teacher in 2005, 06, and 07; gotten on as a tax preparer for a large nationwide firm since 2005, etc. The "crack down" in Indiana dates from about 2008 to the point where even credit histories and simple arrest records and civil matters (divorce, etc.) are included. When you see this "list" of marks on your record, it makes you look horrible. LOL

Anyway... I am in the exact same boat as you in that I cannot get anywhere in the hiring process. So, my question to you is: what conclusions have you come to? 50% of me says I should keep trying; 50% of me says it is the definition of insanity to keep banging your head against something expecting a different result.

The title of your thread, "Exhausted", says it all for me as well. I know that there is always someone who gets hired as a nurse with a "past"; but, IMO, the exception doesn't prove the rule. What is your gut instinct telling you?

Horseshoe, BSN, RN · May 14, 2011

It's a tough deal, and I sympathize with you. It's amazing to me that an arrest with NO conviction can be this damaging.

It's a tough market from all accounts, with multiple applicants for every job opening. If they have five qualified candidates, they are going to choose the candidate with no criminal record just about every time. If everything else is equal, the favor will always fall to the applicant with a clean record. That's really not all that surprising.

It's scary, because any one of us could be falsely accused of something. We count on "justice" being served, especially if we are ultimately shown to be innocent. How troubling that an innocent person wrongly accused but ultimately exonerated will still pay as though guilty.

macca · May 16, 2011

Its a shame to see the direction we are finally in. No one is perfect, and its unfair we are being catagories ...( w/ crimal, credit, civil, financial records,ect..). Any type of encounter with the law, that leads to a fingerpriting be produce........You will surely need divine intervention to find any job...thats my gut feeling.

PhoenixTech, LPN · May 16, 2011

Exactly Macca

That's the key, prayer. Trust me God is able to do 'exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think...', Ephesians 3:20). Having gotten to the gates of Nursing so to speak and then turned away I know things seem bleak but don't give up. A lot of times we're being led through a different path to achieve the end result. How unfortunate that an expunged charge, not an expunged conviction should stretch 11 years forward to haunt you. My blessings to you.

Tiger747 · May 16, 2011

Wow!

When I was looking into expungement, I was told that in addition to the legal expungement process, one had to also pay someone to get the record removed from all over the net as well. In other words, expungement does not mean that record of the incidence (arrest records, etc.) are removed from the various data bases. I was also told that to have this done makes the legal fees for the expungement look small.

This is what the various legal specialists I talked to told me. In my case, an expungement is not even allowed in Indiana; but, for you maaca, maybe that was the problem.

Everyone-- even with a spotless record--- should be scared unto death at what is happening. 65,000,000 Americans unemployable due to little-bitty misdemeanors (according to the 2010 U.S. Census, which wouldn't hire anyone with a mark on their record either). So many parents with children out there, and even more people in relationships that will end very painfully though they seem romantic bliss today. In the heat of passion it all happens so fast, you do not even know what is occuring. That is why they say "all is fair in love and war." They actually are very similar. I had a 103-year-old nun at the Oldenburg, IN convent tell me, "If we could see our future, it would scare us to death." I guess the only 100% safe solution is to never enter an adult relationship, and, if you have children, let them do whatever they want. LOL My Father's belt, and my Mom's wooden spoon kept me and my sister in line. I know most of my neighbor kids were raised with at least as much discipline. Principles and teachers one and all used the paddle, and the good old-fashioned "back hand" was better than soap and water for a foul mouth. But, then, we didn't sit in front of a Play Station playing "Grand Theft Auto", either. Sad

alexiscc · May 22, 2011

Indeed, this country had turned into a giant police state, where corrupt wealthy rob the poor, without reprecussions.

I know of a nursing student, young guy, who lived with a woman 10-years older than him who already had a child (the child lived with her mother). She came to LA from Sacramento apparently to engage in working in Media industry, as it turned out... She seduced that guy in his early twenties and lived off him, in his apartment. Eventually, he broke up with her and she had to leave (his) place. So, the last night she stays there (asked him to let her stay)... guess what happens? She files RAPE charges, and he's in jail--no money to post bail, he's a poor student and his mother is a poor immigrant. Wrongfully accused, jailed and ruined.

One should be very careful about what kind of people they hang out with, if they're in medical field.

Tiger747 · May 22, 2011

Essentially, you should not hang out with anybody if you are in the medical field or any other field. LOL Too risky. LOL

When a person can scream "battery" and not have a mark on them, you know something is very, very wrong.

Through experience, I have learned one thing: If ever accused of anything, demand a jury trial at your initial appearance. If you are going to have a little bitty misdemeanor on your record, at least have the satisfaction of making the state pay dearly for it. If more people would do this, they would be forced to be more selective and professional in who they charge with petty crimes. As it stands, it is just too easy to get revenue out of people. It is like catching fish in a barrel for them.

You are supposed to call a cab if you have too much to drink. Right? Well, in Anderson, IN they will arrest you for P.I. on the sidewalk getting into the cab.

On Bibles stacked to the ceiling I swear.

This stuff is so zany, that if you told anyone on the B.O.N.-- or even a potential employer-- they would not believe you. LOL They would think, "Sure." That is, until it happens to them or their loved ones.

See... that is what is going to prevail in the end. Right now it is real funny because it is the other guy. When some of these people start seeing their spouses, parents, and children incapable of finding work because of this nonsense, it won't be so funny.