GA BON and 25+ year old criminal history

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I'm my to stay positive while all my classmates are getting their licenses.

I just graduated recently and got my ATT in GA and am working as a graduate nurse with an NCLEX date scheduled too. I got in a lot of trouble before I was 18. I also had some charges as an adult teen, which are expunged. All of the legal troubles were between 25 and 30 years ago with no continued criminal history.

My question is, has anyone been in a similar situation with the GA BON keeping them on pending status even after authorizing the ATT? I'm doing everything I can to stay positive, and don't want to lose my nursing job due to delays. Any feedback or first hand experience would be greatly appreciated!

This is what my checklist looks like on their website:

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Hey RightMeowRN!

Do you mind telling me how everything went with you? I'm currently in a similar situation in GA. I did my PearsonVue/application/background check on May 5th and they sent our transcripts on May 12th. I hired a lawyer for this process (back in March) and completed an MPE, got my dispositions, did a few NCSBN courses, letters of recommendation etc. I'm kind of sad; because he wasn't able to send everything until May 16th, but it included all that plus the certified court docs and the letter of explanation. My criminal hx is mostly arrests w/o convictions and one misdemeanor conviction. All over 8 years old. I've worked at the same hospital for a year and have a job offer there. Anyway, I too am freaking out a bit as all my classmates got their ATTs like the day after transcripts were sent, and I'm trying to stay positive, but it's hard. Especially since I haven't even gotten an ATT yet, even though the documents were sent on May 16th. All I want to do is test and they can decide one way or the other later, LOL. Because I'm kinda type A, so I won't stop studying until I can test LOL. How long did it take you to get your ATT once your documents were sent? It seems like it happened quickly for you, so congrats on that!! I just want to take the exam, and then if Board Review takes longer, so be it. It looks like you got your ATT despite Board Review not occuring yet, is that right? I hope you are doing well, working and enjoying your career :)!! Thank you for any advice and for your time!!

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On 5/23/2022 at 12:36 PM, HopefulERnurse2B said:

Hey RightMeowRN!

Do you mind telling me how everything went with you? I'm currently in a similar situation in GA. I did my PearsonVue/application/background check on May 5th and they sent our transcripts on May 12th. I hired a lawyer for this process (back in March) and completed an MPE, got my dispositions, did a few NCSBN courses, letters of recommendation etc. I'm kind of sad; because he wasn't able to send everything until May 16th, but it included all that plus the certified court docs and the letter of explanation. My criminal hx is mostly arrests w/o convictions and one misdemeanor conviction. All over 8 years old. I've worked at the same hospital for a year and have a job offer there. Anyway, I too am freaking out a bit as all my classmates got their ATTs like the day after transcripts were sent, and I'm trying to stay positive, but it's hard. Especially since I haven't even gotten an ATT yet, even though the documents were sent on May 16th. All I want to do is test and they can decide one way or the other later, LOL. Because I'm kinda type A, so I won't stop studying until I can test LOL. How long did it take you to get your ATT once your documents were sent? It seems like it happened quickly for you, so congrats on that!! I just want to take the exam, and then if Board Review takes longer, so be it. It looks like you got your ATT despite Board Review not occuring yet, is that right? I hope you are doing well, working and enjoying your career :)!! Thank you for any advice and for your time!!

I am in a similar situation misdemeanor in 2011, 11 years ago expunged for possession of alcohol underage… I’m still waiting for my ATT code as well! I’m so nervous !! I have called and no one can tell me anything! 
Any update on yours ?!  

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On 6/3/2022 at 4:27 AM, Lilone22 said:

I am in a similar situation misdemeanor in 2011, 11 years ago expunged for possession of alcohol underage… I’m still waiting for my ATT code as well! I’m so nervous !! I have called and no one can tell me anything! 
Any update on yours ?!  

Yes!! My lawyer called to check the status and they did give me an ATT. I took NCLEX last Friday and passed!! However; I don't have a license yet, and I won't have a license until Board Review. The GA BON meets once a month in GA. I think, obviously, having my lawyer check for me helped me to get my ATT quicker, but your arrest record is more tame than mine, so you'll be fine and you should have no problem getting it. Just make sure you turned in all your disposition documents and letter of explanation. You'll get it soon if you haven't already. Some people who did their applications later, haven't gotten it yet and they don't even have a criminal history, so don't worry!

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On 6/3/2022 at 4:27 AM, Lilone22 said:

I am in a similar situation misdemeanor in 2011, 11 years ago expunged for possession of alcohol underage… I’m still waiting for my ATT code as well! I’m so nervous !! I have called and no one can tell me anything! 
Any update on yours ?!  

Update!! I just checked the State Licensing website and I have an active RN license now ?!! I have no idea how Board Review happened before their meeting day, but I'm super stoked!! I guess they can complete a Board Review even if it is not their once-a-month meeting. Anyway, I should post my story on here at some point, because I was EXTREMELY concerned about whether or not I could get licensed. I think a) amount of time that has passed b) most arrests did not result in convictions c) having a lawyer and d) Lots of Prayer!! definitely helped. I had to jump through quite a few hoops before I even turned in my application, so doing the work preemptively saved me the headache later. Let me know how it goes with you, but you'll most likely be fine it may just take a little longer.

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@HopefulERnurse2B

Hi Hopeful! Congratulations of getting your license!! Thank you so much for sharing your story. I have a similar background/history and am early in the process of submitting my applications to the local cc’s to take my pre-reqs. Did you have difficulty getting hired by the hospital, and getting into a nursing program (did you disclose your history to both prior to being hired/accepted)? Do you recommend the lawyer you used? TIA

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Hello Luna!

I had all these questions starting off too, and I actually did my pre-reqs and my RN degree at a local cc. The cc I went to has one of the highest NCLEX pass rates in the state and no debt….LOL. As far as school, so my history is mostly arrests. Most of which have been dismissed or expunged (First Offender). There was one misdemeanor criminal trespassing that was 6 years old when I applied (now 8 years old), so I disclosed that honestly, since they asked about convictions and that was my only conviction and the only one that showed up. The Summer after my Junior year I did an externship at a major hospital in the area and I also have a new grad residency job in the ER of this hospital. They did not ask about arrests on the application, but some hospitals may ask about convictions. Anyway, they only went back 7 years, so the misdemeanor didn’t even show up at that point and the expunged arrests, which were even longer ago didn’t show up because of course – they’re expunged!! I still work at this hospital, volunteered there during my pre-reqs, did my practicum in the ER at one of their locations, and am transferring to ER RN residency this Summer.

I don’t know your specific situation, but if a hospital asks about ARRESTS and CONVICTIONS you must disclose both (I did not apply to the hospitals that asked this, but I did disclose ALL arrests and convictions to the BON). If they ask about convictions only, then list convictions. A lot of places have “banned the box” and most background checks go back 7 years and look for convictions, not arrests. The BON checks for arrests and convictions without a time limit, but in my experience, hospitals and schools do not, so those background checks were not a major problem for me. The one misdemeanor that used to show up was 6 years old (now 8 years old) and the school said it was acceptable LOL.

YES!! I recommend my lawyer. He is also a Registered Nurse. Again, I don’t know your specific situation, convictions, arrests, etc. but he was wonderful!! Set aside several thousand though; because it’s not cheap….but totally worth it. Also, I had no debt from nursing school and saved so much money by going to a cc. I didn’t know if it would be possible, but I trusted God and took a leap of faith and He made a way….Good Luck!!

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On 7/2/2022 at 6:15 AM, HopefulERnurse2B said:

I don’t know your specific situation, but if a hospital asks about ARRESTS and CONVICTIONS you must disclose both (I did not apply to the hospitals that asked this, but I did disclose ALL arrests and convictions to the BON). If they ask about convictions only, then list convictions. 

 

No offense HopefulERnurse28, but that is not entirely true.  Each state is different IF you have had a record expunged.  Some states have literally state laws in place that literally state a person can answer NO to the questions of have you ever been charged, arrested or convicted IF your record has been expunged in that state.  Some states allow you to answer NO if your record was expunged due to completion of a pre-trial intervention program, and this is literally written into state law.  South Carolina is one example of this.  

Now, here is the kicker though,  State and Federal are not the same thing.  If you are applying for a Federal Job, for example, a VA Facility and your have an expunged record in a certain state, then yes, you should answer truthfully to ever being arrested or convicted, etc.  Also, lets say for example, your record was expunged in State A and you now live in State B and are applying for a job in State B, even though State A allows you to say No in answering charged, arrested or convicted, State B, which is where you are now applying to work or living may not have such a law, so you would need to know the law for that state (State B) as to whether you answer yes or no.

Each state varies regarding being able to answer yes or no on expungment cases and it's literally written into law in some states where a person is authorized to legally answer NO if a record was expunged and some states are not clear on the subject, so better to answer yes.  Always know the state law for where you are living, applying and if you don't know it, ask an attorney to be sure.

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HopefulERnurse2B said:

Hey RightMeowRN!

Do you mind telling me how everything went with you? I'm currently in a similar situation in GA. I did my PearsonVue/application/background check on May 5th and they sent our transcripts on May 12th. I hired a lawyer for this process (back in March) and completed an MPE, got my dispositions, did a few NCSBN courses, letters of recommendation etc. I'm kind of sad; because he wasn't able to send everything until May 16th, but it included all that plus the certified court docs and the letter of explanation. My criminal hx is mostly arrests w/o convictions and one misdemeanor conviction. All over 8 years old. I've worked at the same hospital for a year and have a job offer there. Anyway, I too am freaking out a bit as all my classmates got their ATTs like the day after transcripts were sent, and I'm trying to stay positive, but it's hard. Especially since I haven't even gotten an ATT yet, even though the documents were sent on May 16th. All I want to do is test and they can decide one way or the other later, LOL. Because I'm kinda type A, so I won't stop studying until I can test LOL. How long did it take you to get your ATT once your documents were sent? It seems like it happened quickly for you, so congrats on that!! I just want to take the exam, and then if Board Review takes longer, so be it. It looks like you got your ATT despite Board Review not occuring yet, is that right? I hope you are doing well, working and enjoying your career :)!! Thank you for any advice and for your time!!

Hey, please help me if you can. So I took NCLEX yesterday & realized something was up when I didn't see my license number on the GA BON website this morning like the others I took it with. I called sec of state and spoke with the licensing dept & they gave me the info about it being sent for board review and that they only do it on the 2nd Thursday of every month. So the next one is 2/9 & that even after that, it could take up to 20 more freaking days for them to actually issue the license smh. I'm hoping it seriously does not even take that long bc that's like around march smh. What info have you gotten if any?

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