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I was at the wrong place at the wrong time 8 years ago. I was arrested along with several others. When they first brought us in, they began questioning us, so we requested to have an attorney present. The questioning officer said we weren't under arrest and that we didn't have that right unless we were under arrest. That really confused me, shortly after he did put us under arrest, but released us a few hours later, with pending felony charges. I have had this on my CBI record ever since and it has affected my ability to obtain employment in major ways! I have other minor arrests, but they all at least show a "disposition", this arrest didn't so I went to the arresting agency and requested a copy of the report. In the report it states that the evidence wasn't what they thought it was, therefore they weren't going to bring it to the DA. I don't understand how they could arrest me, put it on my record and not give me the chance to prove my innocense in court. I don't even know how to go about clearing my name on this, who do I call?
I want to pursue my dream career in law enforcement, and I don't think this should be on my record! Can this "arrest" affect my chances even though I was never charged for the crime or convicted?
I don't have the money to pay a lawyer to get it expunged. I don't feel I should have to pay for this anymore than I already have.
Any comments are appreciated!
Thanks!

hbg522 says ...

YES it can

I concur.

If you were transported to the police station I would venture to say you were under arrest. When you requested an attorney the questions must stop at this time. If this was 8 years ago it is probably to late to have the arrest expunged. The arrest should not play a part in you seeking a law enforcement position. My advice is, if you cannot afford to retain an attorney contact an agency that employes paralegals. They are skilled at researching matters and the fees are nothing near the cost of an attorney. I wish you well as it appears you got a back shake on this.

Well, you might start with the agency that arrested you.  Tell them you want a disposition other that "pending", eg. released no charges.  If they won't do that get a lawyer.  If you can't afford one go to a law school clinic (free or reduced cost) or call the local attorneys bar (state licensing agency for lawyers) they have clinics to.  Attorneys are usually required to perform a certain amout of  "charity' work.   This is something you should not have waited eight years to deal with.

Jimmy85   

Cheif........With nothing but respect(as Im sure you already know)....I have to disagree. She stated she has "other" arrests too. That coupled with her accociating with people who commit felonies spells nothing but bad news.......

chiefdennis says ...

ShockUSMC87. I see where you are coming from. I wished she had done a better job of writing her comments. I am a little confused (could be a senior moment) She was not clear on the other arrest and it appears her biggest fish to fry is the felony arrest. Be certain you are not associating arrest with guilt. There is a world of difference.

LOLOL.....

O no.....Im all about innocent until proven guilty.

You seem to be very focused on this one felony issue that you never actually described.  Depending on the state's requirements, you are probably past the point of the statute of limitations for the felony.  Problem being, what is the description of the felony?  Yes a police department will find the arrest record, and they know how it all works for the different segments of your record, i.e. arrest, charged and disposition segements.

You also mention other "MINOR" arrests.  I know sometimes what I consider "minor" can be major to others. . . . .and vice-a-versa.  Some people may think that a minor arrest could be a Domestic Violence where one person only "slapped" or just "pushed" the other person.  Unfortunately, because of Former President Clinton, that administration made Domestic Violence a crime that keeps guns out of your hands. . . . permanently!  Many good police officers lost their jobs because they had a Domestic Violence on their record before the law went into effect and the law affected EVERYONE RETROACTIVELY.  So with that said, you could have the issue with the felony whipped before it is even a problem but still have a problem with a dfferent "minor arrest" that you didn't articulate.

This is why I try to avoid the people that come up to you at lunch and say, "Can I ask you a quick question?  My friend got stopped for a ______.  Can they do that?"  I answer and then they go on with, "Well, if _______ had occurred first, can they still stop them?"  It is a never ending question because the only thing they are looking for is the answer they want to hear without giving all of the needed information.

In the end, unless you are willing to lay the ENTIRE scenario out on the line for full scrutiny, the answer you get will be just as much garbage as the question.

Steve

When I was 22 yrs old,on Jan 31, 1996- Denver PD arrested me for assault and disturbing the peace. I was jumped by a girl at a bar, her boyfriend was the bouncer at the bar.

11 months later on Oct 26,1996 I was arrested in southern colorado by the Colorado Dept Reven for Liquor-UE Liquor Enforcement. I was on tour with a 5 girl dance troop, we performed topless and allowed customers to be within 10 inches of us where liquor was being served.

The felony arrest was by Westminster PD for Dangerous Drugs Possession of Schedule II on August 27, 2001. I was staying with a friend and two of his friends (boyfriend/girlfriend) began arguing and they left, I guess they hit each other in their cars, then she tried to stab him. The girls mother called the police stating that the guy was in our house on drugs and that her daughter had stabbed him.The police came in and arrested the guy for drug warrants, they took her to hospital for being suicidal and arrested my friend and I because they thought a cupful of OXYCLEAN was meth. Once it was tested they decided not to bring it to the DA.
After this I provided Thornton Police with information that led to the arrest of Jeff Green, he was on Colorado's 50 most wanted list, I also helped recover stolen thermal camera equiptment that belonged to the Lakewood Fire Department,Jeff Green was in possession of this at the time of his arrest. (I am an ebay powerseller and Green wanted me to sell the stuff for him,after researching the stuff I suspected it belonged to a rescue dept).
I also assisted information and testimony that led to the arrest and conviction of a meth manufacturer (there was a child in the home,so he was also convicted of child abuse).

On November 30, 2003 I was arrested for Misdemeanor Narcotic Equip-Possess and Marijuana Possess - I pled guilty to the parafanalia and the marijuana was dismissed, paid $100 fine. The pipe belonged to a good friend of mine that died in an accident, I had been keeping it as a keepsake, it was all I had of his and I was disappointed they confiscated it. Lucky for me Colorado is "pro" marijuana, as the charge was dismissed.
And on October of 2004 I was arrested by Thornton (yes,the city I had prior assisted) for Fugitive Other Jurisdiction - this had to be for non-payment of child support. I was living in my car, unemployed and wasn't aware my license had been suspended due to non payment, I had no address to get the notification letter. I had agreed to pay $300 per month when I was a dancer and when I quit dancing I wasn't able to afford that much. I have since paid off the support owed and current.

There it all is!!
I have made some poor choices in my past, and I have suffered dearly for my mistakes.
I have learned a lot about myself, and have learned to choose my friends wisely.
I completed a inpatient treatment program and
I have been clean for over 4 years. I am very educated about addiction and want to share my knowledge and help others learn to lead healthy,happy,clean lives.

Feel free to ask questions or comment.
I think most will read this and say "NO WAY"..."NO CHANCE"
I think I have a lot to offer, and you would have to know me as a person to see that.
Only so much can be seen on a site like this.
Sweet Dreams!!

chiefdennis says ...

After viewing your last entry I would advise you against seeking a law enforcement career. It appears you had some major character issues and did not use good judgement in whom you associated with. Once this is revealed in early stages police agencies will not take the risk in hiring you. Lots of drama and poor decisions. My advice get a degree in social work and assist others. With the volume of police applicants with clean records and little to no drama in their life you will not be able to compete. You will be viewed as a risk that agencies do not want to take. Sorry if I come across so harsh however, want to be honest with you.

He's the nice cop. I'm not.  Please seek employment elsewhere. In my opinion you have a zero chance. 

I can see no reason any department would hire you. You would be a liability. We are judged by our actions, decisions etc. That is why we perform background investigations.  For a Law Enforcement career, you have shown a total lack of good judgement, commitment, character.  This stings. But they were your choices in life.

Like Chief said get the degree and do something else. I agree with Sgt405. I do backgrounds at my department and once I saw your  criminal history even though you may have explained it in you personal history statement. You would you would receive a DQ letter. It is great that you have tried to clean up your act but your past will always follow you. Even if you were to be able to get it expunged you would still have to tell about the arrest/detentions or drug usage or possession sometime in the application process. 

angelic, please do not misunderstand what I am about to say.  Life, as you know better then most can be very hard.  By your post I can tell thet you are a smart person.  To sugar coat my reply would be insulting your intelligence so here goes.  And I mean no insult.

It is obvious from your post that you are a recovering drug user (addict).  I say recovering becuase as you know better than me an addict never fully recovers.  You sound like a bright, honest and good person.  BUT, law enforcement officers are under a very unfair microscope.  Every little mistake an officer ever makes has the potential to end up on CNN or Youtube.  And it has the potential to cost the agency millions of dollars and worse their reputation.  So no LE agency with any kind of responcibility would hire a recovering addict.  No matter how good of an officer they would make.  Becuase if that addict made even the slightest mistake, and the media found out about it.  It would be absolutely a disastere for that agency.  The liability is just to high.

Also judgment is what a cop does.  Making the best decision under the worst possible circumstances with little information.  Your past shows lack of judgement.  You may have plenty now.  Accually you know better then most people how judgement effects a persons life.  But the only method a department has for checking someones judgement is to look at their past decisions.  You have to admit yours have been questionable. 

And in the post I am hearing a lot of things that scream "criminal error thinking".    This is a type of mind set we deal with all the time.  You are deflecting blame for most of your past decisions.  You are suggesting that the things you were arrested for "happened" to you like some kind of comic accident.   Which is of course not what happened, your decisions placed you in a situation that led to the arrests."I got jumped"  "Denver PD arrested me"  Not- I was fighting in a bar and I was arrested.  You even throw in that the other girl's boyfriend was the bouncer.  Suggesting that you believe the only reason you were arrested is becuase he was a bouncer.  I am sure you were not just standing there and a girl jumped you out of the blue for nothing.  There was most likely a trigger of some kind.  A decision you made that led to it.  You might not have been intending the outcome but you still had something to do with it. 

Even your statement of being in the wrong place at the wrong time.  Why were you there?  A person who is making good decisions is able to avoid putting them selves in the wrong place at the wrong time.  You were obviously hanging out with drug users were you not?  That is what led to your arrests.  I hear alot from people that they were arrested becuase of something their friends did while they were there.  A person with good judgement would not be there with friends commiting crimes.  They would see that there was some criminal behavior in their friend and use judgement to make the decision to no longer associate with that friend.  We as Police Officers have lost many friends becuase we choose not to be associated with their behavior.

BUT, there is one aspect of Law Enforcement that a person in your situation is perfect for.  As a recovering addict whos past decisions have had unwanted effects on their future.  You are very qualified to educate.  Using civillians as an example when reaching out to communities especially young people is much more efective in saveing at risk people then when a police officer does it.  You are in a rare position to do some real good and stop people from making some of the mistakes you did.  That is more powerful and more effective that a police officer could ever be in fighting crime.

I think you should look else where for employment. Sorry to say, seems there is a lot of baggage from your past.

Angelicwear,

I think you better forget about a career as a LE officer.  In civil law there is this thing called vicarious liability, one part is whats called negligent hiring.  It means the dept hired someone they should not have hired.  No offense intended but your background (as stated by you) screams negligent hiring and civil lawsuit.   If you need a more detailed explanation I would suggest you ask Chief Dennis or an attorney in your area.   

Now to your future.  ITS UP TO YOU!   You will have a good bit of credibility with teens and tweens.  You might consider a degree program in counseling, phychology, social work, drug rehabilitation etc.  You can explain to them how their choices affect their future and limit their options.   That last sentence illustrates why I am not an english teacher.   I think God has given you a bushel of big lemons.....all you can do is make a big pitcher of lemonade! 

Good luck!                     Jimmy85