Legal Question in Criminal Law in New York

Re: employment and criminal law

My view is that you should always tell the truth and then you don't have to worry about being caught in your lies. If the question comes up I would tell them that you were arrested, but it was some mistake because the charges against you were later dropped. Also, at least in New Jersey, you can move to have your arrest record expunged (cleared from your record). By doing this you can then honestly answer that you have no arrest record. You can contact the court in the town where you were arrested and they can send you the packet for doing an expungement of your arrest record. If you get that and have difficulty filling in all the papers or would like to hire an attorney to do the paperwork for you, I can do that for you. I am an attorney who has handled many cases similar to yours in various courts in New Jersey in the past. Please call me at 908-272-0111 if you have any questions about this or any other legal matters in New Jersey. Thank you.

Sincerely yours, -Ronald Aronds, Esq.-

www.njworkerscompensationlaw.com

Re: employment and criminal law

It depends on what New York laws provide for sealed records. They may provide authority for you stating that you have never been charged with a crime or been arrested. If that is the case you should feel free to use this authority.

Gary Moore, Esquire

Hackensack, New Jersey

Re: employment and criminal law

The other 2 responses listed are incorrect.

NY law is very specific on this matter: a criminal charge (arrest, etc) if met with a 'favorable disposition' may entitle the defendant to later respond to the question, 'have you ever been arrested' with the answer "NO".

It is clear that a dismissal is a 'favorable disposition' under the law and you may, if the arrest/indictment was in NY, answer "NO".

However, I recommend that you answer 'yes, but the matter was dismissed'. You can elaborate;

'it was a retaliation charge and did not go very far'. Do not indicate there was an indictment. If the employer presses you, you may go as far as, "look, it was all very unpleasant. Why don't I just sign a release and you can look up the whole thing. I just get upset thinking about it. I had to hire a lawyer and spend all that money and everything".

I myself am a 'full disclosure guy - secrets are destructive. But now you know the law, your rights, and have a suggestion on how to 'finesse' the question.

I think that covers most of your options. If you have any other questions, the first consultation is always free.