MA/MS Old criminal incident, how to handle for licensing board

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turtlereef

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I wanted some ideas of what to expect in terms of preparing material for review, either from people who have been through it or have some knowledge about it. It is a single incident almost 20 years old with nothing like it before or after. I am clear about what I have to produce for documentation, though providing the actually police report seems extreme to me. The court records should be enough. Questions though circle this: how much personal detail do you include to help explain the circumstances? how detailed and how official does a response about rehabilitation have to be? What if it is so old that you do not remember the details, nor can track down certificates or proof that you did things to voluntarily address the issue? Finally are there simply certain instances that are just disqualified regardless? So there would not even be a point in going through this whole process.

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I would say to just explain the facts of the situation, as well as any steps you took to remediate the issue (both mandated and voluntary, and as best you can remember), in as objective a manner as possible. I'm sure there are certain offenses which would disqualify regardless (I'd imagine many felonies fall in this category), but it could vary from state to state. You could try emailing the board itself to see if they have a list of automatic disqualifiers.

Likewise, the required documentation probably also varies from state to state, and perhaps even from license to license (e.g., psychologist vs. social worker vs. LPC). If the application itself doesn't state which documents you need to provide, I'd just start with the explanation of the event itself, and if the board needs anything else, they should let you know.
 
Thanks for your response. I have contacted the legal team that works for the professional association of MFTs in my state, who give free legal advice. I asked about the process and some of the specific questions. It is done on a case by case basis so I don't think it is easy to find out exactly what things would disqualify you. (Mine was not a felony.) I was told the fact that this is so old works in my favor though it will be hard to find all the documentation of rehabilitation steps I took back then. The rehabilitation part is separate from the account of underlying circumstances that lead to the incident. With the account of the incident I was advised on how much personal information to include or not. The rehabilitation statement can include almost everything you have done since then to show that this was a single incident and that you have lead a productive, responsible life. Extra letters can be added to support you, which I may do since I will not be able to find old documents. I am also having an attorney expunge my record, which he seemed to think was just a question of filing paperwork. For the MFT you are required to report even if your record is expunged. I'm also going to be an LPCC, and I have not yet read what their requirements say, but it is the same board, so I imagine the same rules apply.
 
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