Will Juvenile Record (13Y.O) Keep Me Out of Med School (FBI Background Check Attached)

[MA65005]

Hey

everybody new to SDN,

So basically when I was young (11) my grandmother who I had lived with my whole life passed away so I was forced to live with my father who was on drugs and drinking heavily, he ended up going to jail. I now at 13, had fallen into a bad crowd at school and ended vandalizing 2 different walls with spray paint with those friends. I ended up getting caught and was adjudicated for a Felony and Misdemeanor for vandalism for both walls (one wall being a public building that’s why it was a felony). I wasn’t arrested right then and there. I was given a court date where I went and was sent to the juvenile detention center for 15 days and 3 years of probation with community service. Now at (20Y.O) Since that time I have not been in any other trouble and completed my probation with no trouble at all. I recently just got my records expunged (last month) but even before that I ran an FBI background check on myself and nothing came back i will attach my copy of FBI background check and also would my background potentially show up on a certiphi background check? I’m just wondering what my chances are getting into med school if my juvenile past were to show up and should I disclose them on my secondaries if nothing shows up on my FBI background check? Thanks everyone and sorry for the long post!

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[Detailfanatic]

You have to talk to a lawyer who can tell you what you need to answer on your primary and secondaries

 

[givesumacceptpls]

Ask Amcas, they have a list of states for which expunged juvenile records don't have to be reported

 

[Princeton Medical Student]

Carefully look if you are required to report this, but not a single med school will hold this against you.

 

[puahate]

Bro why did you even post this

 

[MedApplicant.com]

In addition to my time spend as a med school advisor, I have 25 years of law enforcement experience. Much of that spent working with juveniles. With that said, an adjudication is not a conviction and you should never answer yes to any question that asks if you have been convicted of a crime. You have not. Questions about arrests are a different story, but unless they specifically ask about juvenile arrests, I would still answer no. ASking about arrests is unfair and illegal in many states. Innocent until proven guilty! An arrest proves nothing. Hope this helps.

 

[MedApplicant.com]

Respectfully.... Your premise that certain employers like a hospital should have the ability to ask this question is wrong in my opinion. Let's say my neighbor who suffers from Schizophrenia has a delusion that I violently assaulted her with a spatula. She is also bleeding from her upper lip. She calls the police and they walk next door and knock on my door. I am home alone busily making a red velvet cake for my wife's birthday. I answer the door with a spatula dripping with red food coloring. Two hours later my wife and three kids come to the station and vouch that at the alleged time of the assault, I was at my son's Pee Wee baseball game with 50 witnesses to corroborate my story. I have also explained to the detective that my neighbor is a sick woman who suffers from schizophrenia which is now verified by the women's parents who explain that she has done this before and is prone to self harm including cutting and biting herself. I am released from the station with an apology and an explanation that based on the evidence at the time they had no choice but to arrest and question me.

20 years later and I am asked if I have been arrested when I am applying for a position as an attending physician. I am forced to explain the story to a hospital who will only have my word (which sounds improbable) for what really happened and I don't get the job because of it. Is that fair? Absolutely not. Is It is for this reason most employers will only ask about convictions. In some states, they do have the right to ask about arrests, but it is bad practice unless the employer is fully equipped to do their due diligence regarding the circumstances of the arrest and how the case was eventually resolved. In America, we are all innocent into proven guilty. Hundreds of thousands of people are arrested every year and charges are dropped, people are found innocent, and justice is served. With that said, as an applicant, you may be forced to answer the question and you should do it truthfully however unfair it is. If you have been arrested, you should know your rights in your state regarding how to answer this question and it varies from juvenile to adult and from state to state. But my previous comment still stands. Adjudication as a juvenile is not a conviction. Sorry for the rant 🙂

 

[Catalystik]

I consider this low risk issue for getting in and getting thru medical school

I agree.

 

[MedApplicant.com]

Whether it is wrong or not or that hospitals shouldnt be allowed to ask, many states have exceptions on sealed and expunged cases for certain or positions that allowed it to be asked. Many licensing boards by statue or policy must find the person to "be of good moral character," which allows them to get a complete arrest history. Having assisted with several people who were getting professional licenses (RN, CLSW) in situations I know this is how the licensing boards work.

Also, as I said previously, if anyone with old, juvenile arrest record who has successfully completed a professional level education, such as MD, and who will have letters of support from that program attesting to good moral character, this is a low risk issue

I agree it is a low risk issue. I don't recall being asked this question for my own CSW license, but then again it was 112 years ago. 🙂

 

[Walter Raleigh]

You wrote some curse words or something on a building when you were 13 and got busted for it. Bush league youthful stupidity; nobody's going to care about it. Unless you were drawing swastikas and racial slurs they'd even think the felony was excessive. And if you were drawing swastikas? You were 13, you've changed since then. This shouldn't stop you from getting into med school.