Eligibility

biblefreak · Post by **biblefreak** » Sat Jul 28, 2007 11:36 am

Hello all, new guy here with a technical question. More of a "when" question than an "if".
It has been 5 days shy of 10 years ago that I was standing in front of a judge as he was going through the motions of handing me a deferred adjudication sentence to a felony and a misdemeanor charge; possession of a controlled substance and possession of marijuana under one ounce. I was 18 at the time and I have been clean as a whistle since. As a matter of fact, I am licensed with the Private Security Bureau, am a Texas Notary Public, and work for a company with pretty stringent background requirements.
I understand that 411.1711 considers me eligible after 10 years, but is that 10 years from the the fateful day Aug. 2 1997, or is it 10 years from the time that I successfully completed the 18 months of probation that followed or is it from the time the judge signed the paperwork dismissing the cause after successful completion?

Sorry for the long post and thanks in advance for any advice.

BrassMonkey · Post by **BrassMonkey** » Sat Jul 28, 2007 11:44 am

You are fine... 10 years starts from the date of your final court appearance (sentencing if you will) IF you completed probation sucessfully.... Anyone who tells you different does not know what they are talking about...

Post by **Skiprr** » Sat Jul 28, 2007 1:31 pm

Yep; Brass is correct. GC Â§411.1711 is clear that you can apply on a date not less than 10 years from the date of actual filing of the deferred adjudication, providing the deferred adjudication wasn't for an offense under Texas Penal Code Title 5, or Chapter 29. (http://tlo2.tlc.state.tx.us/statutes/petoc.html)

rm9792 · Post by **rm9792** » Sat Jul 28, 2007 9:29 pm

It is ten years from final sentencing ie, standing before the judge. i actually waited 6 months longer than I had too because no one wold clarify it for me. DPS told me they could answer, AG office said they couldnt interperet the law (!?!?!!) for me, 3 lawyers wouldnt call me back. I finally just paid the money and took a shot. You will need to send in certified copies of the judgements from your courthouse. I didnt notice that and it delayed me 3 weeks.

biblefreak · Post by **biblefreak** » Sat Jul 28, 2007 11:07 pm

What is considered certified copies? I have copies of all the records that I obtained from the court house a couple years back. Do you think those would suffice or is there an official means of obtaining them? BTW this was in New Mexico.

Thanks.

rm9792 · Post by **rm9792** » Sun Jul 29, 2007 1:10 am

I went to the courthouse and paid a $1/page for certified copies directly. I dont knwo what you would do for NM.

Post by **Charles L. Cotton** » Sun Jul 29, 2007 9:13 am

I'm going to call DPS tomorrow for information. The statute doesn't address what triggers the beginning of the exclusionary period when dealing with a deferred sentence, for either a felony or misdemeanor. I talked to DPS years ago and was told they consider the end of the deferment period as the beginning of the exclusionary period. The charge we were talking about was a misdemeanor, not a felony, but that shouldn't make any difference.

I'll try to get an update, as this can make a significant difference, especially for people who had a year or two deferment on a misdemeanor.

Chas.

biblefreak · Post by **biblefreak** » Sun Jul 29, 2007 9:39 am

Charles L. Cotton wrote:I'm going to call DPS tomorrow for information. The statute doesn't address what triggers the beginning of the exclusionary period when dealing with a deferred sentence, for either a felony or misdemeanor. I talked to DPS years ago and was told they consider the end of the deferment period as the beginning of the exclusionary period. The charge we were talking about was a misdemeanor, not a felony, but that shouldn't make any difference.

I'll try to get an update, as this can make a significant difference, especially for people who had a year or two deferment on a misdemeanor.

Chas.

Thanks. My deferment was 18 months so it would be significant. The way I read the statute is 10 years from the time you were given the deferment. It seems like the law would mention something in regards to completion or dismissal in the wording if it were the end of the deferment period.

Post by **Skiprr** » Sun Jul 29, 2007 11:56 am

Charles L. Cotton wrote:I'm going to call DPS tomorrow for information.

Thanks, Charles. Now you've got me keenly curious. My legal opinion is worth about as much as my opinion on navigational instructions for a Mars lander (meaning less than zero; ahem), but I thought GC Â§411.1711 was pretty explicit. Lookin' forward to the response!

(Another reason why this Forum is the best value for the money!

)

BrassMonkey · Post by **BrassMonkey** » Sun Jul 29, 2007 12:00 pm

The judge signs the order the last time a person is seen. Not after court provisions have been met. The actual disposition is ordered and filed on that date, it is only revisited if a violation occurs. It is date of disposition, not date of program completion.

From the relevant statute:
"if an order of deferred adjudication was entered against the person on a date"

txinvestigator · Post by **txinvestigator** » Sun Jul 29, 2007 12:44 pm

biblefreak wrote:What is considered certified copies? I have copies of all the records that I obtained from the court house a couple years back. Do you think those would suffice or is there an official means of obtaining them? BTW this was in New Mexico.

Thanks.

Certified copies have a stamp or seal on them stating they are certified.

rm9792 · Post by **rm9792** » Sun Jul 29, 2007 12:45 pm

Charles L. Cotton wrote:I'm going to call DPS tomorrow for information. The statute doesn't address what triggers the beginning of the exclusionary period when dealing with a deferred sentence, for either a felony or misdemeanor. I talked to DPS years ago and was told they consider the end of the deferment period as the beginning of the exclusionary period. The charge we were talking about was a misdemeanor, not a felony, but that shouldn't make any difference.

I'll try to get an update, as this can make a significant difference, especially for people who had a year or two deferment on a misdemeanor.

Chas.

I called DPS and they told me to get a lawyer to explain it as they wouldnt. It was strange to me they didnt want to explain their own rules. I wasnt asking for a legal opinion from them but a better explanation of their law.

AEA · Post by **AEA** » Sun Jul 29, 2007 12:48 pm

Those Peeps at DPS are getting pretty snotty these days..........

BrassMonkey · Post by **BrassMonkey** » Sun Jul 29, 2007 12:49 pm

The attorney has been giving them crap for transferring people to his VMail. Normal state nonsense.. They only have one attorney assigned to them you know...

Post by **Charles L. Cotton** » Sun Jul 29, 2007 5:49 pm

BrassMonkey wrote:The attorney has been giving them crap for transferring people to his VMail. Normal state nonsense.. They only have one attorney assigned to them you know...

I don't know how many attorneys they have in the CHL area, but it's at least two. One guy is great; the female attorney (who also teaches part the CHL Instructor Course) isn't.

Chas.