Legal Question in Criminal Law in California

Want to make sure I am understanding this the correctly. In California, PC1000, when offered to a first time offender, 1)requires a plea of guilty, which is noted, but not made official by the judge. This plea, and other predetermined qualifying factors, cause the judge to offer the defendant a certified rehabilitation/diversion program. When the defendant agrees to enter the program, the judge sets forth the requirements of the program, and sets follow up appearances to evaluate the defendant's progress. and 2)the referral to the program is not a judgement/conviction. Instead, it is just as it sounds, the judge refrains from making any decision, and all court proceedings in the case are frozen until the end of the program and until the final court appearance to prove completion of the program, and defendant's compliance with state and federal laws (no more problems/arrests), and proof that all payments and fees have been made. Now, if the defendant meets all the requirements of the program and reaches his FINAL court date with no further arrests or issues, the judge will withdraw the guilty plea for the defendant, and all charges against the defendant will be dismissed.

The way I understand it is that on the dismissal day, it is not a conviction that the judge dismisses(because no conviction was ever made or entered into record). It is not the case which the judge dismisses (although I suppose that is part of it). How it has been explained to me is that "all charges against the defendant are dismissed". At that point, unless the defendant should be rearrested at some point in the future, it is as if the arrest did not happen.

The second part of this is: the peron mentioned above is in a charitable/private non profit organization that frowns upon their members incurring felony convictions since becoming affiliated with that organization. If a member does suffer a felony once they are a member, they can be expelled from the organization. My question is, how can an organization accuse the member of having a guilty conviction and then move to expel the member for violating the laws of the order. Didn't the state/federal courts dismiss all charges against the member? If I understand the PC1000 explanations right, no conviction was ever handed down because the case was put on hold until the defendant's last court appearance at the end of the program's time period. At that appearance, no conviction was ever handed down because during the program period the defendant complied with the program rules and requirements, and did not incur any new arrests or charges. Having paid all fees, and made it through the entire program free and clear, this is the point where all charges are dismissed. Any regular court proceedings that would have followed a plea of guilty and resulted in a final conviction are avoided through the dismissal of charges. Any plea of guilty made is as if it was never spoken because the plea is only factual if regular court proceedings follow the plea in due course until final conviction is recorded and sentence imposed.

I know this is long and detailed, but I have spent weeks reading and re-reading about this, and the statutes of the organization in an effort to understand what is said about this subject. If anyone can answer, I appreciate any validations or criticisms of my understanding of this legal issue.


Asked on 5/04/11, 12:30 am

2 Answers from Attorneys
Michael Stone Law Offices of Michael B. Stone Toll Free 1-855-USE-MIKE

Technology, as well as human stupidity on the part of politicians and employers, has made the world a crappy place for people with records of arrests that did not result in convictions for whatever reason. Whether you did a PC 1000 program and escaped conviction for an offense you did, or you were acquitted of an offense you didn't do, you can expect it to be held against you forever in a variety of contexts. You are correct in your analysis. Private employers are not supposed o hold PC 1000s against you and "background check" companies are not supposed to report them. Government agencies, courts, and some organizations in the fields of child and elder care will treat them as equivalent to convictions.

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Answered on 5/04/11, 12:45 am
Anthony Roach Law Office of Anthony A. Roach

The procedure you refer to is called Deferred Entry of Judgment. If successfully completed, it results in a dismissal, not a conviction. The defendant who successfully completes the program does not have a felony conviction, and does not lose their civil rights. They can answer truthfully "no" when asked if they were convicted of a felony or misdemeanor for the offense originally charged.

Unfortunately, dismissal does not mean that the arrest records are destroyed, or even the fact that charges were filed, although eventually dismissed. If a private employer attempts to use this to terminate employment, or improperly asks this question during application, I suggest you speak to an attorney competent in employment and labor law.

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Answered on 5/04/11, 8:36 am


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