Arrested about 8 years ago but never booked and no charges were filed

[rsss32 0]

Hello everyone.

I've been living in the United States since 2005 and now currently have a permanent resident card. I am planning to apply for citizenship soon.

The only issue is that I was arrested in 2009 during my senior year in high school for hacking. No charges were ever filed against me and police officer took me home so I was never actually booked in jail or had a court date, however he did tell me that I was being detained and read me my rights.

 

Will this still show up on my record even though I was never booked in jail, photographed? If i report it on my application how can I show that it is not on my record since I never had to go to court and there was no case number?

 

Aside from that I had 3 speeding tickets, last one about 3 years ago. 

[Going through 5,674]

1 hour ago, rsss32 said:

Hello everyone.

I've been living in the United States since 2005 and now currently have a permanent resident card. I am planning to apply for citizenship soon.

The only issue is that I was arrested in 2009 during my senior year in high school for hacking. No charges were ever filed against me and police officer took me home so I was never actually booked in jail or had a court date, however he did tell me that I was being detained and read me my rights.

 

Will this still show up on my record even though I was never booked in jail, photographed? If i report it on my application how can I show that it is not on my record since I never had to go to court and there was no case number?

 

Aside from that I had 3 speeding tickets, last one about 3 years ago. 

You do have to disclose it as the question on the application covers detainment as well---there is no question of "if" you should disclose it.  I would include a short cover letter explaining that you were only detained and questioned, then released, and not charged or had to appear in court/pay a fine.

 

It won't show up on a criminal records search, but it **may** show up on your name search since it involved computer hacking, as there would have been an occurrence report filed by the officer regarding your detainment (if the officer read you your rights, took down your name information, etc. this is a good indication that an OR was written.)

 

On an aside, the officer took it easy on you, so be glad about that  

 

Disclose it, don't be afraid of it----if you don't disclose it and they discover it, it will become a VERY huge deal then...

Edited September 13, 2017 by Going through

[Kimberlia 4]

Before admitting anything like that, go down and pull a criminal history report on yourself through the state that you live in.  Did the officer ever give you a citation? It doesn't sound like it.

 

Call an attorney and have them check for you.  You need to know before answering a question like this.

Edited September 13, 2017 by Kimberlia

[Going through 5,674]

Just now, Kimberlia said:

Before admitting anything like that, go down and pull a criminal history report on yourself through the state that you live in.  Did the officer ever give you a citation? It doesn't sound like it.

"Detainment" is included in the question, though---so he needs to disclose it.

[rsss32 0]

11 minutes ago, Going through said:

You do have to disclose it as the question on the application covers detainment as well---there is no question of "if" you should disclose it.  I would include a short cover letter explaining that you were only detained and questioned, then released, and not charged or had to appear in court/pay a fine.

 

It won't show up on a criminal records search, but it **may** show up on your name search since it involved computer hacking, as there would have been an occurrence report filed by the officer regarding your detainment (if the officer read you your rights, took down your name information, etc. this is a good indication that an OR was written.)

 

On an aside, the officer took it easy on you, so be glad about that  

 

Disclose it, don't be afraid of it----if you don't disclose it and they discover it, it will become a VERY huge deal then...

 

Thanks for your reply! I was lucky the school didn't press charges on me.

Would they check high school records as well? Do i need to provide any official documents regarding that incident? Overall what are the odds of my application being denied considering it happened almost 9 years ago?

I was able to pass a background check and get a CA guard card with no issues when I worked as a security. I even got a gun permit and was able to pass a background check when purchasing a firearm without a problem.

Somebody suggested me to do a live scan background check and attach it to my paperwork but I don't see the point in doing so since they will do a background check of their own anyway.

 

10 minutes ago, Kimberlia said:

Before admitting anything like that, go down and pull a criminal history report on yourself through the state that you live in.  Did the officer ever give you a citation? It doesn't sound like it.

 

Call an attorney and have them check for you.  You need to know before answering a question like this.

 

The officer informed me I was under arrest, took my statement and then took me home. There was never a court date and I was never taken to jail.

[Going through 5,674]

13 minutes ago, rsss32 said:

Thanks for your reply! I was lucky the school didn't press charges on me.

Would they check high school records as well? Do i need to provide any official documents regarding that incident? Overall what are the odds of my application being denied considering it happened almost 9 years ago?

I was able to pass a background check and get a CA guard card with no issues when I worked as a security. I even got a gun permit and was able to pass a background check when purchasing a firearm without a problem.

Somebody suggested me to do a live scan background check and attach it to my paperwork but I don't see the point in doing so since they will do a background check of their own anyway.

The FBI check covers the criminal record history, and the FBI name check covers mostly things like fraud and national security issues.

The chances of you being denied for your detainment are slim to none, especially since you were never officially charged with anything.

Don't waste your money on the live scan background check for two reasons:  1) Like you said, FBI will conduct their own search, and 2) The database your live scan would use to produce information found on you is *nothing* compared to the databases the FBI/USCIS has access to.

 

The reason I said above to not worry about disclosing your detainment is that it cannot be used as a reason to deny your application since you were only DETAINED and QUESTIONED...you were not CHARGED with anything.  

 

The reason I said it could become a huge problem if you don't disclose it, is that even though you were only detained---purposefully leaving out that information on your application could lead to a denial based on factual misrepresentation if they do uncover it.

 

In your case, it's better to disclose it as required and have nothing negative happen as a result of the detainment....than not disclose it, and have your application denied...simply because you didn't fess up on something you really didn't have to worry about in the first place.

 

As for documentation, you could contact the police headquarters that had jurisdiction over where you were living at the time of the occurrence and request a copy of the OR (if it hasn't been purged yet, since it happened in 2009).  There is usually a small fee for this, normally around $20 or less.

Edited September 14, 2017 by Going through

[rsss32 0]

1 minute ago, Going through said:

The FBI check covers the criminal record history, and the FBI name check covers mostly things like fraud and national security issues.

The chances of you being denied for your detainment are slim to none, especially since you were never officially charged with anything.

Don't waste your money on the live scan background check for two reasons:  1) Like you said, FBI will conduct their own search, and 2) The database your live scan would use to produce information found on you is *nothing* compared to the databases the FBI/USCIS has access to.

 

The reason I said above to not worry about disclosing your detainment is that it cannot be used as a reason to deny your application since you were only DETAINED...you were not CHARGED with anything.  

 

The reason I said it could become a huge problem if you don't disclose it, is that even though you were only detained---purposefully leaving out that information on your application could lead to a denial based on factual misrepresentation if they do uncover it.

 

In your case, it's better to disclose it as required and have nothing negative happen as a result of the detainment....than not disclose it, and have your application denied...simply because you didn't fess up on something you really didn't have to worry about in the first place.

 

That's what I was thinking. Thank you very much!

So just a cover letter explaining what happened should suffice right? How detailed should it be and how much should I actually admit to?

Should I write something like: "To whom it may concern. On <date> I was detained by a police officer <name of officer> for allegedly obtaining access to certain computers on a school district network without authorization. No charges have been filed etc.."

[rsss32 0]

11 minutes ago, Going through said:

As for documentation, you could contact the police headquarters that had jurisdiction over where you were living at the time of the occurrence and request a copy of the OR (if it hasn't been purged yet, since it happened in 2009).  There is usually a small fee for this, normally around $20 or less.

I will try that, thanks. What about school records regarding the incident?

I do still have a copy of my original statement to the school board when I had a hearing regarding my suspension and possible expulsion.

Edited September 14, 2017 by rsss32

[Going through 5,674]

Just now, rsss32 said:

 

That's what I was thinking. Thank you very much!

So just a cover letter explaining what happened should suffice right? How detailed should it be and how much should I actually admit to?

Should I write something like: "To whom it may concern. On <date> I was detained by a police officer <name of officer> for allegedly obtaining access to certain computers on a school district network without authorization. No charges have been filed etc.."

As for documentation, you could contact the police headquarters that had jurisdiction over where you were living at the time of the occurrence and request a copy of the OR/Arrest Report (if it hasn't been purged yet, since it happened in 2009).  There is usually a small fee for this, normally around $20 or less.

 

As for the cover letter, I suggest the below:

 

On (DATE), I was detained by the (NAME OF POLICE DEPT.)   for approximately (LENGTH OF TIME) and questioned regarding obtaining access to (NAME OF SCHOOL) district computers during my Senior High School year.  The officer read me my rights, took my statement, and then released me into the care of my parents.  At no time were official charges filed, no fine was issued, nor was I issued a desk-ticket to appear in court regarding this matter.  In the interests of full honesty, I have disclosed this incident on (QUESTION PART NUMBER) of my N400 application.

[Going through 5,674]

6 minutes ago, rsss32 said:

I will try that, thanks. What about school records regarding the incident?

I do still have a copy of my original statement to the school board when I had a hearing regarding my suspension and possible expulsion.

I would not submit this with your application, but hold onto it and bring it with you in case you are further questioned about the detainment during your Naturalization interview.  Does it specifically state no charges will be filed by the school?

Edited September 14, 2017 by Going through

[rsss32 0]

16 minutes ago, Going through said:

As for documentation, you could contact the police headquarters that had jurisdiction over where you were living at the time of the occurrence and request a copy of the OR/Arrest Report (if it hasn't been purged yet, since it happened in 2009).  There is usually a small fee for this, normally around $20 or less.

 

As for the cover letter, I suggest the below:

 

On (DATE), I was detained by the (NAME OF POLICE DEPT.)   for approximately (LENGTH OF TIME) and questioned regarding obtaining access to (NAME OF SCHOOL) district computers during my Senior High School year.  The officer read me my rights, took my statement, and then released me into the care of my parents.  At no time were official charges filed, no fine was issued, nor was I issued a desk-ticket to appear in court regarding this matter.  In the interests of full honesty, I have disclosed this incident on (QUESTION PART NUMBER) of my N400 application.

 

That's perfect, thank you!

 

14 minutes ago, Going through said:

I would not submit this with your application, but hold onto it and bring it with you in case you are further questioned about the detainment during your Naturalization interview.  Does it specifically state no charges will be filed by the school?

I don't believe it states anything about charges one way or another. I was suspended for a week and had a board hearing about possible expulsion since the school principal recommended me to be expelled. The school district board decided to allow me to finish the rest of my senior year on the condition that I would do 40 hours of community service at school and would not be allowed to use computers on school grounds. 

[Going through 5,674]

 

 

5 minutes ago, rsss32 said:

 

That's perfect, thank you!

 

I don't believe it states anything about charges one way or another. I was suspended for a week and had a board hearing about possible expulsion since the school principal recommended me to be expelled. The school district board decided to allow me to finish the rest of my senior year on the condition that I would do 40 hours of community service at school and would not be allowed to use computers on school grounds. 

It's not necessary to send that with your application---the school punishment is by no means a criminal consequence (in the sense that the school is not the same as a courthouse).  As I suggest, bring it with you to the interview in case you are questioned about it.  Make a copy of it first for your own records in case they take the original document to add to your file.  Also, see about getting a copy of the arrest report/occurrence report through the police headquarters---if it is purged/destroyed, they will issue you a letter stating that no records are found, no outstanding charges, etc.

 

Good luck with your filing!

Edited September 14, 2017 by Going through

[rsss32 0]

4 minutes ago, Going through said:

 

 

It's not necessary to send that with your application---the school punishment is by no means a criminal consequence (in the sense that the school is not the same as a courthouse).  As I suggest, bring it with you to the interview in case you are questioned about it.  Make a copy of it first for your own records in case they take the original document to add to your file.  Also, see about getting a copy of the arrest report/occurrence report through the police headquarters---if it is purged/destroyed, they will issue you a letter stating that no records are found, no outstanding charges, etc.

 

Good luck with your filing!

Thank you for your help!

[Suss&Camm 2,213]

16 hours ago, Kimberlia said:

Before admitting anything like that, go down and pull a criminal history report on yourself through the state that you live in.  Did the officer ever give you a citation? It doesn't sound like it.

 

Call an attorney and have them check for you.  You need to know before answering a question like this.

Definetly not. Sure he could pull a report on himself but that should not be anything that he considers in the decision making. It's very simple with immigration. Be truthful, disclose when asked. Anything but that can come back and bite you in the rear in a serious way.  If you're caught lying for citizenship  (or any immigration benefit) there is always a risk if losing said benefit. 

[Hypnos 6,579]

A cover letter is useless. 

 

You will require an original letter from the agency which detained or arrested you confirming that no charges were filed as a result of the incident. 

 

This is clearly stated in the N-400 and its instructions.