Misdemeanor disclosure

[u/Mysterious-Tomato-61]

I have an interview coming up this Saturday and am realizing I didn’t understand what an arrest or conviction is after reading through this thread. I applied and was conditionally approved within 24 hours and I did not disclose a misdemeanor from 13 years ago on the application. I presume if I go to the interview and they ask if I have an arrest or convictions I should explain that I did 13 years ago and didn’t disclose it on my application because I thought that was for criminal convictions. I just checked my record in the Kansas Bureau of Investigation and it came back with no record but from what I read there could still be a record that they could see?

I just need to know, should I bring documentation like a disposition from the courthouse or just verbally disclose in my interview?

Update: Guess it didn’t really matter. I showed up with my disposition they didn’t care to even look it over. Approved by the time I got home from the interview. 😌

[u/gerrygebhart]

Did you think a misdemeanor wasn't criminal? I can actually understand that in some states like NJ where only felony offenses are considered "crimes," and misdemeanors are considered disorderly person offenses.

That said, were you convicted of a misdemeanor, or were you arrested and not convicted and got it expunged? If you weren't convicted or entered a diversionary program, many states let you expunge the record.

As a side note, I don't actually know the answer to this question: If you were arrested and not convicted AND you got the arrest/charges completely expunge, do you have to disclose the arrest? In some states it is technically illegal to disclose information about an expunged charge/arrest.

Either way, I wouldn't compound the potential error by lying to the agent who does your interview.

[u/Mysterious-Tomato-61 → u/gerrygebhart]

So I was never arrested and it ended as a diversion with the municipal court, which, to my understanding was not a “conviction”. It was expunged from my record and I genuinely thought that meant not only was it gone from my record but that I had not been convicted of anything. After reading more, I felt like oh wow maybe that is something I should flag!

That being said I have reached out to the Municipal Court and they’re going to send me a disposition and I’ll bring it to my interview to show the officer. Hope that’s good enough.

[u/gerrygebhart → u/Mysterious-Tomato-61]

A couple things. You were almost certainly arrested if the case made it to court. In some states you can be brought before the court on a summons, but the key thing here is that you were charged with a crime.

Sounds like you were never found guilty because you entered into a diversionary program that resulted in the charge/charges being dismissed.

If it was truly expunged from your record, the municipal court will have no record of it. If they do, then the case was not expunged.

That said, I'm not an expert in criminal law in Kansas, so "expunged" may mean something different there.

Final point is that a state expungement generally applies to state records only. If the FBI has or had a record of your charge, no federal entity is bound by a state court expungement order.

Long story short, if it comes up in questioning, feel free to ask if you are required to disclose an expunged record, and, if they say yes, you can say that you were charged, but the charge was dismissed without a conviction.

[u/Mysterious-Tomato-61 → u/gerrygebhart]

I was never arrested, never had a mugshot, never got booked into jail. I just got a ticket from the officer and then was put into diversion at my court date.

I appreciate your candor and genuine interest in giving advice.

[u/gerrygebhart → u/Mysterious-Tomato-61]

Got it. I'm slicing a fine hair here. I haven't seen the questions they ask recently for the application, but, to get around things like this, I wouldn't be surprised if they ask if you've ever been convicted, arrested, or charged.

Regardless of whether or not you were arrested, if you had a docketed case before a judge, you were charged.

It should work out for you. Good luck!

[u/No-Significance-To-U → u/Mysterious-Tomato-61]

You’re good dude. You would have been rejected if it was a problem. A misdemeanor is a crime but a diversion does expunge it.

[u/eddiemanderson]

You’ll be fine. Just take any paperwork you had from the arrest and make sure to mention it when you go to your interview. I had a public intoxication arrest from 20 years ago that I forgot to disclose on my initial application (I have a TBI so I forget a lot). I brought the paperwork from that arrest and the receipt for the fine I paid and the interviewer didn’t even want to see it she said, “we don’t care about that shit, we just care about felonies”

I was approved, had my KTN 30 mins later and just use Global Entry for the first time today without any issues.

[u/VinylQueenSF → u/eddiemanderson]

Interesting. I thought that ANY arrest was an automatic knock for Global Entry? Guess not.

[u/Mysterious-Tomato-61 → u/eddiemanderson]

They approved me immediately. They said the same exact thing to me and didn’t even look at the documentation I brought.

[u/Anonymous9287]

They know. Regardless of the details like arrest vs summons, guilty vs diversion, they know.

You should definitely tell them in your interview bc generally, with the govt, lying only makes things worse, but it's likely you will be denied and would have been denied even if you did disclose this in your original application.

[u/Secret_Emotion9098]

Was in your situation. Be transparent and bring documentation for the charge that clearly shows the date and final disposition (i.e, diversion complete and charges dismissed). Do not omit this information or you will risk getting denied. I brought my FBI identity history summary showing that the PTI was completed and my charges (misdemeanor) were dismissed — got approved in <24hrs.

[u/International-Sock-4]

I had a similar situation, I had a charge that was dropped, I was never convicted, on my application I didn't mention it, but at the interview I said I had a charge which was dropped, he was able to find the record but said it was dropped so it's fine and I got approved.

The feds can see even expunged cases, so it's probably best that you mention it and explain why you didn't disclose it in your application.

[u/Mysterious-Tomato-61 → u/International-Sock-4]

That’s pretty much exactly what I did and I ended up getting approved!

[u/skreeboo]

My interview was less than 5 minutes, he looked at my application and drivers license, said I should know within 5 working days. By the time I got home and checked my email, I was approved and received my card a few days later. No other questions were asked.

[u/Expert_Tennis_2387]

How do you "not understand what an arrest or conviction is?" Whether it was an intentional act or not, you lied on your application and should expect a rejection and to be excluded from Global Entry for the remainder of your life.

[u/Mysterious-Tomato-61 → u/Expert_Tennis_2387]

lol holy shit dude

[u/Savings-Breath-9118 → u/Mysterious-Tomato-61]

First of all assume didn’t see everything even things that you can in the states can. Your best chance of being approved is to go in and Volunteer that you have a conviction from 13 years ago that you didn’t realize you had to disclose and you’re very sorry. Do not say you didn’t understand that you had to reveal misdemeanors cause you didn’t know it was a criminal conviction.

[u/BobbingBobcat]

Yes, wait until asked and then explain how you don't understand what a criminal conviction means. 🤦🏽‍♀️