Legal Question in Criminal Law in Maryland
Hello -
I'm currently an undergraduate student. A little over a year ago I was arrested for a small amount of marijuana(1gram). I entered a one year drug testing program with my University. The charges were dropped in court and I got my records expunged. My question in, will this effect me getting accepted into top 50 law schools? Do I technically have a criminal record?
2 Answers from Attorneys
I believe most law schools ask whether you have ever been arrested, regardless of whether it's been expunged. And I know they told us to report everything for the bar exam committee. But you should review the applications for each law school for their specific requests in the interests of full disclosure rather than getting caught in a lie. You do NOT have a criminal record publicly available, but the NCIC may report you to law enforcement agencies for the purpose of a new charge now. If you read the expungement law iin MD (available by googling Maryland Code online), you can read exactly what you are not required to disclose. I don't have it handy on my mobile. Feel free to email me later today and I will be at a PC with more info.
Law schools can accept or reject applicants without saying why. Even if you learned that the school had somehow found out about your case and used that reason, then you probably could not do anything about it, if it were a private institution. Maybe you would have an argument, if it were run by the same state that has expunged your record.
You do not describe a conviction, which is what most people understand a criminal record to mean. However, Maryland Judiciary CaseSearch is a website that lists court cases. Nothing should appear for you, if you have successfully expunged your case. Nolle prosequi, stet, and probation before judgement are not convictions, but they appear on the website, if they have not been expunged. Private citizens and institutions may use information to make decisions. Some will not consider applications for whom they find anything, even though that is not fair to the applicant.
If you have further questions, I offer a free initial consultation.
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