Expert: Howard Lorenz - 4/29/2010

Question
Good day. My son wants to get into the Army.  He is 22, but had a past from his youth.  At 17 he passed a counterfeit bill, he was "COIF" after serving probation with no problems, he was charged with assault and battery (fight) but the charges were dismissed by the DA, at 18 he was found in posession of a stolen goods, paid restitution, served probation period with no problems, and was "coif" after probation. Lastly, his sister got mad at him and called police, they charged him with assault, but she went to court and admitted she lied and charges were dismissed by DA.  He has one incident too many for a waiver.  He wants to go talk to the DA to have the 2 dismissed charges removed from his record "expunged"? not sure if this can be done, but would like suggestions on how he should approach DA. He has done fine with no run ins or problems with the law in 3 years and just wants to serve his country, but sadly finding his past in the way.  Any suggestions?

Answer
The problem is that even if it were expunged, the Government will still see it. Having your record expunged just means that civilian companies that are looking for a background check will not see it. With the way the economy is the recruiters have a pick & choose market. They are turning away more than they are taking in. Those who have waiverable offenses are not getting in like they were a couple years ago. My suggestion is have your son get some more education, this makes him more marketable and the likeliness of him getting in after the economy picks up. Once the job markets start looking better, the majority of folks will turn away from the military as a place of employment and the military will again be forced to accomplish waivers on those who want to get in.