Dismissed charges?

[the prodogy]

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I had to go to court for some stupid little thing a while ago after getting arrested and spending a night in jail. I went to court and got all the charges dismissed so the charges don't go in my records. I was wondering if anyone knew if you had to put this in your application to dental school. Also, can dental school see your records from this?

 

[Regmata]

How could they see it if it was expunged?

I sure wouldn't put it on there. If it comes up later, say you didn't include it in your information because you were never convicted.

 

[SuperC]

How could they see it if it was expunged?

I sure wouldn't put it on there. If it comes up later, say you didn't include it in your information because you were never convicted.

Agreed, hence the phrase "Innocent until proven guilty"

However, if the question asks, "Have you ever been arrested?" The game could change a bit.

-C

 

[ToothPrincess]

I am not sure if this goes for all d-schools, but I know some of them say that you should only put it on there if you WERE convicted... but if you are unsure block your number and call giving an alias name and ask about the situation and what they would suggest, but I would leave it off for now.

 

[tinman831]

Usually if all charges were dismissed then you are off the hook. However, the record of arrest is still probably there. You were still charged with the offense, just not convicted. You will have to petition the courts to have your records expunged. Laws do vary state by state, and things could get really ugly for you if you don't do things correctly. Make sure that your record is actually cleared. Contact a lawyer for more information on this as SDN isn't really a good place for legal advice. As for your application, you won't have to bring up the issue at allas long as it's taken care of.

 

[Regmata]

You may just have to fill out some paperwork to get it expunged completely...as the previous poster just stated it varies and you should look into it. However, we are going to be dentists, not lawyers. The line between arrested, convicted, charges dropped etc...can be murky and since the charges were dropped (before a not-guilty verdict was even necessary), I would think that you can get yourself out of an unlikely, sticky situation further down the road if need be.

 

[PorkChop2008]

Some schools do run a background check, such as the University of Washington. Definitely be prepared to talk about it if any school should ask. I know you say it's a "stupid little thing" but sometimes those things are all it takes to knock you out of the running.

Follow the previous advice in this thread and make the effort to ensure these charges are/were expunged and don't show up anywhere. If they are still showing up, get an attorney and pay the money to get them gone.

Good luck.