EmbarassingQuestion
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- Aug 26, 2018
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I'm a nontrad applicant who had a rough adolescence, but turned it around. I've dedicated most of the last decade to improving myself and helping others, and my dream is to capstone that experience by becoming an MD. So far, everything looks like that might actually be a realistic goal. I caught another thread, however, which has me worried about my legal record from my youth.
I saw there are a couple threads from previous years where people discussed this, but I have some additional questions. I hope I can get guidance on those, and perhaps clarification of how previous advice might apply in my case.
So the quick-and-dirty rundown is that I had two legal cases in my past: one drug felony, and one misdemeanor DUI. Both were around 15 years ago, diverted successfully, and later expunged. This is where I feel like it's difficult to tell what to do. The wording in my orders of expungement stipulate that "the petitioner shall be treated as not having been arrested, convicted or diverted of the crime..." except in several cases which are outlined clearly, and come nowhere close to either applying to med school or applying for licensing.
I have read that AMCAS does not require disclosure of expunged records, so I looked up my local state licensing paperwork, and their application question says, "Have you ever been found guilty after trial, or pleaded guilty, no contest, or nolo contendere to a crime (felony or misdemeanor) in any court?" My understanding is that the wording of my court orders allow me to answer "No" to that question as asked.
Other threads have stated that a licensing board would have the ability to pull expunged records, but on the basis of their wording, that does not seem indicated. I was also wondering, is it possible to obtain a report about yourself from Certiphi, or is there a company which produces very similar reports for individual consumers, so I might know in advance what I might need to explain, regardless of legality?
That last question stems from another issue I hoped to get clarification on. I saw in other threads that people mentioned arrest records surviving the expungement process. Would it be worth contacting my attorney and starting a separate process to seal any remaining arrest records? My concern is that if a licensing board really does have the ability to obtain expunged documents (which still seems unlikely to me, as I don't see any wording anywhere granting them any such authority), then is there any point in sealing anything?
Thank you for reading this far. I will be deeply grateful for any guidance you folks can provide.
I saw there are a couple threads from previous years where people discussed this, but I have some additional questions. I hope I can get guidance on those, and perhaps clarification of how previous advice might apply in my case.
So the quick-and-dirty rundown is that I had two legal cases in my past: one drug felony, and one misdemeanor DUI. Both were around 15 years ago, diverted successfully, and later expunged. This is where I feel like it's difficult to tell what to do. The wording in my orders of expungement stipulate that "the petitioner shall be treated as not having been arrested, convicted or diverted of the crime..." except in several cases which are outlined clearly, and come nowhere close to either applying to med school or applying for licensing.
I have read that AMCAS does not require disclosure of expunged records, so I looked up my local state licensing paperwork, and their application question says, "Have you ever been found guilty after trial, or pleaded guilty, no contest, or nolo contendere to a crime (felony or misdemeanor) in any court?" My understanding is that the wording of my court orders allow me to answer "No" to that question as asked.
Other threads have stated that a licensing board would have the ability to pull expunged records, but on the basis of their wording, that does not seem indicated. I was also wondering, is it possible to obtain a report about yourself from Certiphi, or is there a company which produces very similar reports for individual consumers, so I might know in advance what I might need to explain, regardless of legality?
That last question stems from another issue I hoped to get clarification on. I saw in other threads that people mentioned arrest records surviving the expungement process. Would it be worth contacting my attorney and starting a separate process to seal any remaining arrest records? My concern is that if a licensing board really does have the ability to obtain expunged documents (which still seems unlikely to me, as I don't see any wording anywhere granting them any such authority), then is there any point in sealing anything?
Thank you for reading this far. I will be deeply grateful for any guidance you folks can provide.