Legal Question in Military Law in California

Re: Is a Court-Martial Conviction considered a Felony?

You have a federal conviction. You must check your state law to see if it is a felony. If the offenses for which you were convicted at court-martial are a felony in California AND California considers a court-martial as a conviction for California purposes the answer is likely to be yes. You have what is called in vernacular a Grand Theft Auto charge. Most states do consider that to be a felony. HOWEVER you should check with a California lawyer. I do know and can say that for federal employment and for any type of federal security clearance your court-martial conviction at GCM is enough without them deciding if it is a felony or not.

Re: Is a Court-Martial Conviction considered a Felony?

Most civilian authorities would consider your federal conviction at court martial a felony conviction as it involved the theft of an automobile valued in excess of $200. Certainly in Missouri it would be considered a felony and would be a bar to state employment in most jobs.

Civilian employment, however, would be different. You should disclose your court martial conviction. While credit information out-dates in seven years (like bad debts) the same rules do not apply to convictions. Your conviction is stored in the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) in Washington. When a state or private agency does a background check to determine if you have been convicted of a crime that record will come up and it won't matter whether you wait one year or seventeen. That information never drops off the federal system.

Rebuilding your life starts with getting a good education and developing marketable skills. I would urge you to develop those skills in areas where you will not need a security clearance or a bond, as either of these requirements for a job will cause you to go through a background check and your conviction will be discovered.

Good luck.