MISDEMEANOR

[Mrs.Ola 0]

Hello vjers, this is going to be a long one and a little bit tricky situation but i hope someone can enlighten me, I am a legal permanent resident for 3 yrs now (well going to be this sept 12,2017) i acquired the GC sept 12, 2014 thru marriage to my US citizen husband. I am in the process of removing the conditions of my Green card since i was only granted with a conditional 2 yr one. I know that i can file for N-400 (naturalization) since I am under a 3 year rule even though the ROC is still pending. Here is the thing MAY 15, 2015 i was convicted with a petty theft/ misdemeanor, (biggest mistake in my life and until now i've been regretting),. first offense, I paid a fine and in a 3 year unsupervised probation, NO arrest, No imprisonment, NO community service/counseling (ending OCTOBER 2018) and case was dismissed. Never messed with the law since then NO OTHER RECORD up to date not even a traffic violation. I also found out that I qualifies under petty offense exception. My question now is how long should i wait or hold before I can file for citizenship? Is it even possible for me to become a US Citizen? Please if anyone know or can help thank you. I am not perfect I made a mistake but trying to move on and live well specially for my son. THANK YOU!

[Going through 5,674]

3 hours ago, Mrs.Ola said:

MAY 15, 2015 i was convicted with a petty theft/ misdemeanor, (biggest mistake in my life and until now i've been regretting),. first offense, I paid a fine and in a 3 year unsupervised probation, NO arrest, No imprisonment, NO community service/counseling (ending OCTOBER 2018) and case was dismissed. Never messed with the law since then NO OTHER RECORD up to date not even a traffic violation. I also found out that I qualifies under petty offense exception. My question now is how long should i wait or hold before I can file for citizenship? Is it even possible for me to become a US Citizen?

Some advice for you:

 

Do not apply until your probation is completed---in other words, don't even file the application before then.  This is because you have to submit documentation regarding your charge with the application, one of which will be proof that your probation is over.

 

File the application after the ending date of probation, but keep in mind that since it's a CIMT, it can be used as a reason for denial...this doesn't mean that it WILL automatically result in a denial, only that the adjudicator could hold it against you depending upon how early you file the N400 (in your case, filing under the 3-year marriage rule, you must show at least 3 years of Good Moral Character after the 2015 arrest).  However, since you were placed under probation, SOME adjudicators MAY deem it necessary to show the 3 years GMC after the 2018 probation end date.  Unfortunately it can be subjective depending upon whom you get looking at your application.

 

Personally, from the dates you gave above, I wouldn't file the N400 until at least mid-2019 since your probation won't be completed until October 2018.

 

Yes, it is possible to become a US citizen.  One CIMT misdemeanor charge in your past is not going to prevent this, again depending on the date of your filing.

 

You will need to submit evidence of your charge, arrest, disposition, proof of fine paid, and proof of probation completed --- all of which you can obtain from the court.  USCIS will require the documents are court-certified (except for the proof of fine paid---which may simply be a copy of the check, bank statement, receipt, etc.).  Contact the court house that had jurisdiction over where you were living at the time of your arrest to get certified copies of these.  Contact the police headquarters that had jurisdiction in the city you were living to get a copy of the arrest record, which does not have to be certified in any way (or a letter from them that the record no longer exists if it was purged---since the arrest was in 2015, it won't have been purged yet which is a good thing).

Edited September 9, 2017 by Going through

[Mrs.Ola 0]

35 minutes ago, Going through said:

Some advice for you:

 

Do not apply until your probation is completed---in other words, don't even file the application before then.  This is because you have to submit documentation regarding your charge with the application, one of which will be proof that your probation is over.

 

File the application after the ending date of probation, but keep in mind that since it's a CIMT, it can be used as a reason for denial...this doesn't mean that it WILL automatically result in a denial, only that the adjudicator could hold it against you depending upon how early you file the N400 (in your case, filing under the 3-year marriage rule, you must show at least 3 years of Good Moral Character after the 2015 arrest).  However, since you were placed under probation, SOME adjudicators MAY deem it necessary to show the 3 years GMC after the 2018 probation end date.  Unfortunately it can be subjective depending upon whom you get looking at your application.

 

Personally, from the dates you gave above, I wouldn't file the N400 until at least mid-2019 since your probation won't be completed until October 2018.

 

Yes, it is possible to become a US citizen.  One CIMT misdemeanor charge in your past is not going to prevent this, again depending on the date of your filing.

 

You will need to submit evidence of your charge, arrest, disposition, proof of fine paid, and proof of probation completed --- all of which you can obtain from the court.  USCIS will require the documents are court-certified (except for the proof of fine paid---which may simply be a copy of the check, bank statement, receipt, etc.).  Contact the court house that had jurisdiction over where you were living at the time of your arrest to get certified copies of these.  Contact the police headquarters that had jurisdiction in the city you were living to get a copy of the arrest record, which does not have to be certified in any way (or a letter from them that the record no longer exists if it was purged---since the arrest was in 2015, it won't have been purged yet which is a good thing).

THANK YOU! THANK YOU! been waiting for someone to clarify it for me before consulting a lawyer to save money. As for the arrest i tried going to the police headquarters i was told that theres no arrest record shown with my name. When that "incident" happened I was stopped by a security detained in the back/security room and a police officer came and gave me a ticket, NO fingerprints too. But i do have a court's record with me.

I was thinking the same thing in regards to applying citizenship after my probation, I just want to know if its going to be safe to apply 3 years after the incident happened (2015)as long as my probation is done (2018) or  Apply for citizenship 3 years after the probation (2018) which will end up 2021 which is four years from now.

PS. Do you have any input regarding my Removal of Conditions? Do you think it may cause some red flags that would end up in denial of a 10 yrs GC?? I Did enclosed and submitted the documents in regards to the conviction. I filed august 2016 did the biometrics october and No answer til now. Thank you again Going through! I appreciate it a lot!!

[Going through 5,674]

1 minute ago, Mrs.Ola said:

THANK YOU! THANK YOU! been waiting for someone to clarify it for me before consulting a lawyer to save money. As for the arrest i tried going to the police headquarters i was told that theres no arrest record shown with my name. When that "incident" happened I was stopped by a security detained in the back/security room and a police officer came and gave me a ticket, NO fingerprints too. But i do have a court's record with me.

Get a letter from the police headquarters stating there is no arrest report for your charge.  If the police officer came to the store to take your statement and issued you the desk-ticket, then there is a report filed by that officer.  Arrest reports and criminal/arrest records are two different things---you want the arrest report. (sometimes called the "occurrence report")

 

It sounds like you got a desk-appearance ticket (I got one too) to appear in court at a later date...you most likely would have been fingerprinted/photographed before your court appearance.

 

6 minutes ago, Mrs.Ola said:

I was thinking the same thing in regards to applying citizenship after my probation, I just want to know if its going to be safe to apply 3 years after the incident happened (2015)as long as my probation is done (2018) or  Apply for citizenship 3 years after the probation (2018) which will end up 2021 which is four years from now.

Re-read what I suggested above regarding the probation and when is a better timeframe for you to apply, in my opinion.

 

7 minutes ago, Mrs.Ola said:

Do you have any input regarding my Removal of Conditions? Do you think it may cause some red flags that would end up in denial of a 10 yrs GC?? I Did enclosed and submitted the documents in regards to the conviction. I filed august 2016 did the biometrics october and No answer til now. Thank you again Going through! I appreciate it a lot!!

ROC applications are handled and approval criteria is handled differently than N400 applications.    You should have no issues with the ROC since their main concern is marriage fraud when adjudicating those---they are somewhat concerned about criminal history, but not on the same level when handling N400 applications, and mostly only with more serious crimes (ie. felony charges).  It is good that you disclosed it on the ROC application, and your disclosure of it in the past will also carry weight when you are disclosing it again on the N400 (in other words, you've shown you have no intention of misrepresentation when it comes to your criminal past).

[Yan_Inna 32]

15 minutes ago, Mrs.Ola said:

THANK YOU! THANK YOU! been waiting for someone to clarify it for me before consulting a lawyer to save money. As for the arrest i tried going to the police headquarters i was told that theres no arrest record shown with my name. When that "incident" happened I was stopped by a security detained in the back/security room and a police officer came and gave me a ticket, NO fingerprints too. But i do have a court's record with me.

I was thinking the same thing in regards to applying citizenship after my probation, I just want to know if its going to be safe to apply 3 years after the incident happened (2015)as long as my probation is done (2018) or  Apply for citizenship 3 years after the probation (2018) which will end up 2021 which is four years from now.

PS. Do you have any input regarding my Removal of Conditions? Do you think it may cause some red flags that would end up in denial of a 10 yrs GC?? I Did enclosed and submitted the documents in regards to the conviction. I filed august 2016 did the biometrics october and No answer til now. Thank you again Going through! I appreciate it a lot!!

Hi.

First of all call and find out when it can be expunged. Then go through the process and get it off your record. After that, like other people suggested, collect all the proof that you were "convicted" and when you fill out N400 include that you had a misdemeanor but it was expunged. Also keep all your records that you paid your fine. When you go receive your certificate of naturalization, bring it with you. They might ask for it. They asked me and luckily I had it in my wallet.

[Going through 5,674]

3 hours ago, Yan_Inna said:

When you go receive your certificate of naturalization, bring it with you. They might ask for it. They asked me and luckily I had it in my wallet

Was this for a charge that happened between your interview date and oath date?  If not, I'm really surprised they wanted to see it again.

[Pinkrlion 2,725]

You may not have been arrested per say but your crime is on your record.  You had a court date, went before a judge was issued a judgement of 3 years probation.  You do not have to physically sit in jail to have a police record.  

[Mrs.Ola 0]

8 hours ago, Going through said:

Quote

Get a letter from the police headquarters stating there is no arrest report for your charge.  If the police officer came to the store to take your statement and issued you the desk-ticket, then there is a report filed by that officer.  Arrest reports and criminal/arrest records are two different things---you want the arrest report. (sometimes called the "occurrence report")

          -Okay I will try again and ask for the arrest report. thank you for the information very helpful since as you can see I am very clueless.

 

Quote

 

It sounds like you got a desk-appearance ticket (I got one too) to appear in court at a later date...you most likely would have been fingerprinted/photographed before your court appearance.

 

 

        - Yes i got a desk-appearance ticket to appear in a court after 1 month of the incident BUT you know what is interesting I dont know if theres a difference or not but when i hired a lawyer to handle my case I didnt apppear in court so NO PICTURES AND NO FINGERPRINTING on the day of my court date until to the last date when i get dismissed. So I am not quite sure why. do you have any clue?
 

Quote

Re-read what I suggested above regarding the probation and when is a better timeframe for you to apply, in my opinion.

          -Yes thank you for your suggestion I will wait 1 more year or mid 2019 to appy for citizenship i think thats the best thing to do   

Quote

ROC applications are handled and approval criteria is handled differently than N400 applications.    You should have no issues with the ROC since their main concern is marriage fraud when adjudicating those---they are somewhat concerned about criminal history, but not on the same level when handling N400 applications, and mostly only with more serious crimes (ie. felony charges).  It is good that you disclosed it on the ROC application, and your disclosure of it in the past will also carry weight when you are disclosing it again on the N400 (in other words, you've shown you have no intention of misrepresentation when it comes to your criminal past).

         -THANK GOD! and never ending thank you! feels like a heavy stone was lifted over my shoulders. Plus i couldnt risk to get anymore red flags by not disclosing it or lying about it. My future is relying to it that i cannot bear anymore problems. T o think that Just 1 mistake it can ruin my family and my life. thank you again going through

Quote

 

 

[Mrs.Ola 0]

8 hours ago, Yan_Inna said:

Hi.

First of all call and find out when it can be expunged. Then go through the process and get it off your record. After that, like other people suggested, collect all the proof that you were "convicted" and when you fill out N400 include that you had a misdemeanor but it was expunged. Also keep all your records that you paid your fine. When you go receive your certificate of naturalization, bring it with you. They might ask for it. They asked me and luckily I had it in my wallet.

GOOD POINT and Yes that is also my plan to expunged the misdemeanor record but i have to wait until october of 2018 since i got a 3 years probation before i can even start the process of expungement. also yes i keep all my original copy from my lawyer to the court house and the receipt. Thank you for helping I appreciate it a lot.

[Going through 5,674]

2 minutes ago, Mrs.Ola said:

GOOD POINT and Yes that is also my plan to expunged the misdemeanor record but i have to wait until october of 2018 since i got a 3 years probation before i can even start the process of expungement. also yes i keep all my original copy from my lawyer to the court house and the receipt. Thank you for helping I appreciate it a lot.

Just keep in mind that even if you get it expunged after your probation is over, you still have to disclose it on the N400 form and provide documentation  

[Mrs.Ola 0]

4 hours ago, Pinkrlion said:

You may not have been arrested per say but your crime is on your record.  You had a court date, went before a judge was issued a judgement of 3 years probation.  You do not have to physically sit in jail to have a police record.  

I agree. It's like "No arrest no jail time but i have it on my record".

[Mrs.Ola 0]

2 minutes ago, Going through said:

Just keep in mind that even if you get it expunged after your probation is over, you still have to disclose it on the N400 form and provide documentation  

I will, I wont forget  btw Going Through i have another question as to what you said in the previous reply, I got a desk-appearance ticket to appear in a court after 1 month of the incident BUT you know what is interesting I dont know if theres a difference or not but when i hired a lawyer to handle my case I didnt apppear in court so NO PICTURES AND NO FINGERPRINTING on the day of my court date until to the last date when i get dismissed. So I am not quite sure why. do you have any clue?
 

[Going through 5,674]

22 minutes ago, Mrs.Ola said:

I will, I wont forget  btw Going Through i have another question as to what you said in the previous reply, I got a desk-appearance ticket to appear in a court after 1 month of the incident BUT you know what is interesting I dont know if theres a difference or not but when i hired a lawyer to handle my case I didnt apppear in court so NO PICTURES AND NO FINGERPRINTING on the day of my court date until to the last date when i get dismissed. So I am not quite sure why. do you have any clue?
 

Ok first of all I need to comment on what you said before.  An arrest is an arrest is an arrest.  What I mean by this, is that just because you were not thrown in handcuffs, taken in a police car, dragged down to the station, put in jail etc. does NOT mean that you were NOT arrested.  By the security officer detaining you and questioning you in the store under a civil arrest, and then the police officer coming down to take your statement, and certainly by issuing the desk-ticket (citation/subpoena) to appear, that IS a form of arrest, albeit on a civil level.  

 

Without knowing all the particulars of your case, it can depend on what how your charge was listed...a municipal ordinance violation, or a misdemeanor criminal charge (or a felony criminal charge, which obviously doesn't apply in your case).  Since your lawyer did not mention you were REQUIRED to appear in court, and afterwards there was no warrant for failure to appear in court, sounds like it was charged as a municipal ordinance violation  (the finding of guilt is, however, automatic in municipal violations when the defendant does not appear).

Edited September 9, 2017 by Going through

[Mrs.Ola 0]

2 minutes ago, Going through said:

Ok first of all I need to comment on what you said before.  An arrest is an arrest is an arrest.  What I mean by this, is that just because you were not thrown in handcuffs, taken in a police car, dragged down to the station, put in jail etc. does NOT mean that you were NOT arrested.  By the security officer detaining you and questioning you in the store under a civil arrest, and then the police officer coming down to take your statement (where you may have had your rights read again), and certainly by issuing the desk-ticket (citation/subpoena) to appear, that IS a form of arrest, albeit on a civil level.  

 

Without knowing all the particulars of your case, it can depend on what how your charge was listed...a municipal ordinance violation, or a misdemeanor criminal charge (or a felony criminal charge, which obviously doesn't apply in your case).  Since your lawyer did not mention you were REQUIRED to appear in court, and afterwards there was no warrant for failure to appear in court, sounds like it was charged as a municipal ordinance violation  (the finding of guilt is, however, automatic in municipal violations when the defendant does not appear).

GOTCHA! Now i understand it more. thanks. is there a difference between municipal violations vs misdemeanor criminal charge?

[Going through 5,674]

10 minutes ago, Mrs.Ola said:

GOTCHA! Now i understand it more. thanks. is there a difference between municipal violations vs misdemeanor criminal charge?

A Municipal Ordinance Violation is not a criminal offense in that a MOV does not carry any possible jail time and always results in a monetary fine and/or probation.  A misdemeanor criminal charge can result in jail time...MOVs cannot.

 

This does NOT mean that you did not commit a crime---you did, but more so that you would not have a criminal record in the end.  (most likely, it wouldn't have gone on your record anyhow since it was a petty theft AND your first offense)  Either your lawyer pleaded your charge down, or it was how the police officer wrote out the desk-ticket.

 

 

Edited September 9, 2017 by Going through