sealing your record

[serrano6988]

im trying to become a chp but i have a misdemenor of police battery against a cop when i was 17. and went to juvie for a month. i learnd from my experiance havnet been in contact with the law since now im 21. the whole inccident started beacuse hes pushed me. when went to court and asked to show the video they automaticly reduced my charges to misedmenor and whould let me out that day with community service.....my question is that i have heard that if you seal your juvenile record they cant ask you about it is that true?

serrano6988

[Piggy]

No, that is not true. If you look at most background forms, including the one that the Federal Government uses (the SF-86), it specifically asks you about sealed and expunged offenses. It further warns you of the criminal penalties for giving false information.

It would be a whole lot better if you were to explain your situation to your background investigator and take responsibility. It doesn't sound like that is happening.

[GoDirectly2Jail]

In many cases background investigators have access to so-called "sealed" or expunged materials. Withholding that info on an application would put you on the fast track to disqualified-ville.

[FJDave]

This question belongs in Ask A Cop, not in the introduction area.

[Big_Montana]

It is called the "Rap sheets" portion though, you had to have seen this mistake comming a mile away sooner or later.

[Creeker]

17 is an Adult in my State.

Jail time is what you should have gotten.

Its hard to argue that you were "protecting" yourself.

You don't "suddenly" respect Authority (or other people, for that matter)when you've had no contact.

[FJDave]

It is called the "Rap sheets" portion though, you had to have seen this mistake comming a mile away sooner or later.

I know....just sayin' is all. I am still a bit jaded from the "other" site, and the way anyone posts anything anywhere. Drives me nutz! (short drive, BTW :D)

[Cat_Doc]

Court and police records are not sealed when it comes to public safety background checks, whether is was a juvenile record, expunged record, deferred prosecution, dismissal, acquital, whatever. Everything is revealed after the applicant signs the required release of information waiver. If the applicant refuses to sign the waiver, they are automatically disqualified from any further consideration.

They may be sealed from the public, but not from public safety agencies.

[L-1]

Seeing as you are in California, the answer is, "It depends."

Any person convicted of a felony (or of a crime in another jurisdiction that would be a felony in California) is prohibited from employment as a California peace officer [Government Code Section 1029(a)]. This prohibition holds even if the conviction was sealed, expunged, or set aside. It may also apply to any convictions that were subsequently reduced to a misdemeanor occurring on or after January 1, 2004.

Proceedings under juvenile court are generally not considered to be a criminal conviction under Government Code Section 1029 unless the individual was certified, tried and convicted as an adult. Therefore, juvenile convictions are not included as a legal bar to appointment as a peace officer. However, the conduct surrounding the offense should certainly be considered as part of the overall background.

[PapaBear]

im trying to become a chp but i have a misdemenor of police battery against a cop when i was 17. and went to juvie for a month. i learnd from my experiance havnet been in contact with the law since now im 21. the whole inccident started beacuse hes pushed me. when went to court and asked to show the video they automaticly reduced my charges to misedmenor and whould let me out that day with community service.....my question is that i have heard that if you seal your juvenile record they cant ask you about it is that true?

serrano6988

I commend you choice of agencies. That said, you may have some difficulty in convincing the oral board, or even your background investigator, that your actions were because you were only 17 years of age. You clearly responded with physical violence against a peace officer. That shows a lack of maturity, an inability to control your emotions and poor judgement. You were old enough to know what would happen if you challenged authority.

Oh yes, you may wish to take some classes in English compostion, creative writing, etc to improve your spelling and writing.

Good luck to you.