How to answer a job employment application question?

Question

Five years ago I received deferred adjudication for theft under 50 dollars which was dismissed after completion. There was no probation officer or anything. I was not also fingerprinted or booked but given a citation for the defense. My question is when an application asks "Have you ever been convicted of a misdemeanor or felony, other than traffic violations or pled guilty or no contest to a felony offense?" how do I answer that? I've stayed out of trouble and gotten a bachelors degree and even worked for the MIS department at a hospital. I want to get a job within my city which would be City of Austin, Texas with their MIS department but I know there is a security clearance being that the tech deals with a lot of confidential material. I know that if I go and say hey I was arrested for theft five years ago without being asked, it will make employers close the door on me. Please, any advice or criticism is welcomed.

I sure do appreciate your quick and uplifting comments. I've done an online background check and even went to the texas dps page that is suppose to show criminal records but I do not see anything about me at all. Is a criminal record different from an arrest record? If so, where can I obtain my arrest record. I was arrested in Dallas so would Austin have my records? I would like to also thank those of you who can look past those teenage indiscretions. I was 17 at the time.

Any more suggestions as to what I should do?

Answer 1

No, you were never convicted.

A deferred adjudication is just that - the adjudication (ie the finding as to whether you are guilty or not) is deferred (put off) until you've had a chance to complete the agreed on terms. If you complete them, the case is dismissed, and no adjudication of guilt is ever entered.

Richard

Answer 2

If the case was dismissed, it should not show up on your record and therefore should not count as a conviction...so you can honestly answer No when asked if ever convicted and the question only asks if you have ever pled no contest or guilty to a felony offense..you can answer this one with a no also.

If it is found out on a background check by someone, then you tell them that your understanding was that the case was dismissed and not a conviction, so you feel your answer is truthful. Don't get defensive, just explain the situation. If they want to hire you, they will overlook this minor event.

You may want to run a background check on yourself to see what shows up.

Answer 3

Deferred adjudication by definition once completed is dismissed and no longer affects or influences you. The program itself, called many things in different states, was designed to satisfy the criminal justice system and yet give the offender an opportunity to not be hamstrung with a criminal record.

You can legally state that you have not been convicted of a misdo or felony and the issue should never come up.

Answer 4

It really doesn't matter if you were convicted or not. Dismissed offenses appear on your record. Legally they can't ask you about it, but they can SEE it, and make a decision quietly.
I have had a similar dilemma. I have a misdemeanor drug offense from 2002, and when I finish school in spring 2010, It will be 8 years since I got it. Some state jobs check back 10 years. Most check at least 7, so i wonder if it will still haunt me, because so far it has!

Answer 5

You should not be considered "convicted" of a misdemeanor, as you had a deferred sentence. If you stay clean during the time length of deferrment, your file is wiped and closed.

You're good, but if you're worried about it by all means contact the clerk of court where you paid the fine and ask her if the court reported a criminal record to the database. I think you'll hear no... :) Congrats on the degree!

Answer 6

don't bother. you are done for. you will never get a job. go back to your thieving ways thief.