newbie questions

[cableguy]

Hello all , I have been trying to figure out somethings here and cant really find the answers. First when I was about 16 or 17 i was arrested back in New Jersey when I lived there. I went to court but nothing ever came from it. I was never sentenced to jail time or community service or anything. When I was taken to the police station I was never finger printed or photographed. Do i need to disclose this? To be honest when we were in court I was so nervous that I really didn't hear what the judge said to me. Just recently my company went a very thorough background check for all employees and i came back fine. Several other people were not so lucky and lost their jobs even though the convictions were really old in 2 cases almost twenty years or more ago. Ok no fast foward to about 4 years ago I was stopped in Euless and taken in on a warrant from Dallas for a traffic ticket that I had. Again they took me in and straight to a cell no fingerprint no photos or anything. About 4 hours later after paying the fees I am on my way home. Do i have to report this one also? The Euless one shouldn't be a problem getting any paperwork that I need but the one in NJ is going to be a pain in the rear if i do. I am trying to get all this done now because I am suppose to take the class in June with Crossfire and just want to get all my ducks in a row before the class to make his process go as smoothly as possible.

P.S. sorry for the long post and for probably beating a dead horse once more.

[Dragonfighter]

Hello all , I have been trying to figure out somethings here and cant really find the answers. First when I was about 16 or 17 i was arrested back in New Jersey when I lived there. I went to court but nothing ever came from it. I was never sentenced to jail time or community service or anything. When I was taken to the police station I was never finger printed or photographed. Do i need to disclose this? To be honest when we were in court I was so nervous that I really didn't hear what the judge said to me. Just recently my company went a very thorough background check for all employees and i came back fine. Several other people were not so lucky and lost their jobs even though the convictions were really old in 2 cases almost twenty years or more ago. Ok no fast foward to about 4 years ago I was stopped in Euless and taken in on a warrant from Dallas for a traffic ticket that I had. Again they took me in and straight to a cell no fingerprint no photos or anything. About 4 hours later after paying the fees I am on my way home. Do i have to report this one also? The Euless one shouldn't be a problem getting any paperwork that I need but the one in NJ is going to be a pain in the rear if i do. I am trying to get all this done now because I am suppose to take the class in June with Crossfire and just want to get all my ducks in a row before the class to make his process go as smoothly as possible.

P.S. sorry for the long post and for probably beating a dead horse once more.

Crossfire will be your best source for walking through this. I don't know how long ago your Jersey arrest was or if there was a disposition. The disposition is where the hang up might be. The arrest for the outstanding ticket, I am pretty sure does not apply as it is, in all intents and purposes, a traffic citation.

Again Crossfire is top notch and you'd be well served to start a dialog with her.

[JAguirre]

I think a good rule of thumb is to disclose any and all arrests and attach the appropriate CERTIFIED disposistion or CERTIFIED letter from the County Clerk's office showing they couldnt find record of the arrest. Let DPS tell you that the arrest wasnt important to CHL process instead of them finding out and making it a hassle for you.

[PvilleStang]

I think a good rule of thumb is to disclose any and all arrests and attach the appropriate CERTIFIED disposistion or CERTIFIED letter from the County Clerk's office showing they couldnt find record of the arrest. Let DPS tell you that the arrest wasnt important to CHL process instead of them finding out and making it a hassle for you.

One thing to note: I had an OLD case from my youth that was thrown out of court and I disclosed it to them. I attempted to get the paperwork from the P.D. where it occured, and it was sealed away in file storage offsite, and they said it's quite possible it's not even there. Now this occured in my juvenile years, so the record is sealed, and it was supposed to be exponged (sp). I was driving in west Texas 5 years later on my way to big bend, and was pulled over by a Sheriff for doing 84 in an 80 zone, and he asked if I had ever been arrested, and I said NO, then he found that arrest on my record (even if exponged, they can still find the dings on your record). I explained the situation, and he was probably one of the nicest cops I've encountered. He ran the plates and while he was waiting on results, we talked about guns and hunting outside the vehicle I was driving while the other passengers were thinking I was going to the slammer. He let me off with a written warning, and told me more than anything he was trying to catch and warn drivers before the Super Troopers got a hold of them (the local S.T. was issuing tickets for 2 over on that stretch of I-10). Moral of the story, ALWAYS DISCLOSE! The DPS can go deeper than a cop on the side of the road, and he can get deeper than most are comfortable with.

[cableguy]

Thanks guys. I filled out my paperwork online today and did disclose the one in NJ. I am going to try to get paperwork for that one and the in Euless and send them in when I finish my course. Hopefully I will have my plastic before the summer is over.

[USA1]

Hopefully I will have my plastic before the summer is over.

You should. As long as you send in all the necessary documents there shouldn't be an delays in your processing.

Good luck with the class.

[Crossfire]

Welcome to the forum! Looking forward to meeting you in June!

Since you have already listed them on your application, you will have to provide documentation.

Juvenile records can be hard to obtain, even if they are your own. If DPS needs them, they can assist you in getting them.

[cableguy]

Thanks for all the help everybody. I am going to try to call the PD back in NJ tomorrow to see how things go, and hopefully stop by Euless also to see if I can get the disposition paperwork.

[cableguy]

Sorry to bring back an older post but I am having some problems. I called the pd back in NJ and the officer that called me back said that they only give out dispositions in person. He also said that he would see what he could do since I am in Texas now and that he would call me back. Well he hasn't so I called in today an left him a message. Lets see if he calls back. Now don't get me wrong I know that an officer is a busy person but from talking to him on the phone and after him asking me what I needed the disposition for and after telling him what it was for it felt like at that point he was no longer interested in helping me. Is there any other way I could go about getting the disposition paperwork short of flying back to NJ?

[cableguy]

ok thats weird there are 2 post missing since the last one I posted.

[JAguirre]

Cableguy, here in Texas, dispositions are available through the County Clerk's office where the court resides. I'm not sure if LE agencies get copies of the court dispositions. Maybe you should inquire with the County Clerk or New Jersey's equivalent. Also, Id be willing to bet that if you call the court directly they can lead you in the right direction to obtaining the disposition. Just remember it has to be certified, or DPS will reject it. Hope this helps.

[cableguy]

Cableguy, here in Texas, dispositions are available through the County Clerk's office where the court resides. I'm not sure if LE agencies get copies of the court dispositions. Maybe you should inquire with the County Clerk or New Jersey's equivalent. Also, Id be willing to bet that if you call the court directly they can lead you in the right direction to obtaining the disposition. Just remember it has to be certified, or DPS will reject it. Hope this helps.

This really did help. I called them today and they instructed me on on how to get it thru the mail for 5 dollars.