Moving w/Felony conviction

Just like to say thanks to rollitup and it's members for all the support and knowledge. With that being said I've finally finished with the court procedure. After I serve my time I will be leaving Texas after spending all 27 years of my life. I was charged and convicted of possession of greater than 4 oz's but less than 5 pounds. Filed a 1244 felony conviction but misdemeanor punishment of 365 in county (4-6 months depending on good behavior/trustee). Colorado seems like the location of choice especially since I have family who reside in the state. I plan on attending college and working. Will it be just as hard to get a job/attend college with a felony drug conviction in a legal state? Thanks in advance

Will be just as hard to get a job in Co.

SnapsProvolone said:

Will be just as hard to get a job in Co.

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He's right

Im confused...... Did you serve any Jail time? Or do you just have a felony conviction, no time served? It may sound silly, but it really makes a difference. Im a convicted felon, but never had to serve time.... My sentence was an 8 year "Suspended Sentence", with 8 years probation to run concurrently. Im in my last year of probation now, and over the last 8 yrs, Ive learned when the felony conviction question is on an application of any kind, Im getting denied..... It sucks. Doesnt matter what you did.... Your a felon.... For a job, they are a bit more lenient.... If your a felon, they will want to know if you served time.... If you did, your hangin by a string at that point. Its bullshit, especially because good people make mistakes... I went to college, got my BA in Criminal Justice/Sociology.... Was getting my Masters, and working in a Juvenile detention facility..... I got caught with like 30 e pills, and everything Ive been working for was tossed out the window... I can never work in the profession I went to college for.... Cant work with kids.... Cant even get a CDL license.... All because Im a felon.... Sorry to say bro, no matter where u go, its gonna haunt you forever.... 8 years later, Im still suffering

My apologies for the late response and I appreciate all the information. Unfortunately to say the least I served 4 months in county. Find it baffling that a legal state would still find it problematic. Would it still be a good idea to pursue my degree/certification in the IT field? Should I change my major seek trade school. For the mean time I've worked several jobs from brick laying to installing & programming servers. I know this board isn't necessarily the place to ask i'm just curious and appreciate someone with any wisdom from every point of view.

Trade school unless you can get the felonys expunged.

You won't be able to work in the MMJ industry.

Not many IT jobs of any value that hire without a clean background check.

Even expunged felonies show up on a background check, unfortunately. It'll say it was expunged, but the fact that its on there will keep most employers from hiring you.

SmokinErb22 said:

Even expunged felonies show up on a background check, unfortunately. It'll say it was expunged, but the fact that its on there will keep most employers from hiring you.

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Sometimes that can be even worse.....there is a felony there, but no explanation. Very rarely does a prospective employer look at the totality of circumstance, only the felony conviction.

After serving my time I am a convicted felon for possession of marijuana 4 Oz. My life is finally together after being on the run for way too long. I plan on picking up everything and moving staying in Texas seems like an inevitable cycle of jail and wasting money. What jobs are available in Colorado let alone for a convicted felon? Is marijuana possession charges still frowned upon in a legal state? I appreciate the help and information from all thanks in advance.

colorado is crooked, those shitbags are paying bud trimmers and tenders 8 dollars an hour, on top of that you have to waste so much extra money to stupid shit over there. illegal states are even better than that trash holy shit!! some times i look at the world and i just want to masturbate then jump off a cliff

the whole point of the criminal "justice" system is to destroy the people who don't obey (even when the law is wrong). If they could get away with it, everyone who broke any law would be summarily executed. But they realize that would cause a rebellion, so they back it off just enough that people don't riot and overthrow the gov't.

OP, your only real option for success would be to start your own business, so that you don't have to worry about being unfairly discriminated for something you can't change.

Look carefully into your states/countys laws (and where ever you want to move)

In many places your only leagly considered a felon for a period of 5 years after your last charges completed punishment (parole, comunity service, restitution, jail, ect.). As long as you dont catch any more charges.

I have charges as a young man as well. but honestly it has never ben a issue , I have a solid work history with never ben fired or questionable 'lay offs'.
Present yourself as a man that has made mistakes in the past but is SORRY for your crime (even if it's BS) and has learned better. Keep yourself clean cut, inshape and be polite. And you should minimumize any issues

Also every 5 years try to have your record exponged . It's highly unlikely to happen ,but you will likely meet a judge face to face who will stand in your corner on many issues ,like job references / as long as your strainght

LIBERTYCHICKEN said:

Look carefully into your states/countys laws (and where ever you want to move)

In many places your only leagly considered a felon for a period of 5 years after your last charges completed punishment (parole, comunity service, restitution, jail, ect.). As long as you dont catch any more charges.

I have charges as a young man as well. but honestly it has never ben a issue , I have a solid work history with never ben fired or questionable 'lay offs'.
Present yourself as a man that has made mistakes in the past but is SORRY for your crime (even if it's BS) and has learned better. Keep yourself clean cut, inshape and be polite. And you should minimumize any issues

Also every 5 years try to have your record exponged . It's highly unlikely to happen ,but you will likely meet a judge face to face who will stand in your corner on many issues ,like job references / as long as your strainght

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If being questioned, just answer Yes or No.
Don't elaborate.

Consider being a drug counsler. Most of them come from bad situations like this.
Plus we will always have addicts
job security

Nutes and Nugs said:

If being questioned, just answer Yes or No.
Don't elaborate.

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You should run your name thru several sites first, most have 2 or 3 catagories state, county, local . and see what pops up or does not many sites are very innacurate . Or many times a employer will only run your state record becouse it's cheaper to do and will only bring back 'serious' charges . Many employers will only goggle your name

Point is know what can be used against you so you can effectivly counter it or even avoid it

flipnlu said:

Just like to say thanks to rollitup and it's members for all the support and knowledge. With that being said I've finally finished with the court procedure. After I serve my time I will be leaving Texas after spending all 27 years of my life. I was charged and convicted of possession of greater than 4 oz's but less than 5 pounds. Filed a 1244 felony conviction but misdemeanor punishment of 365 in county (4-6 months depending on good behavior/trustee). Colorado seems like the location of choice especially since I have family who reside in the state. I plan on attending college and working. Will it be just as hard to get a job/attend college with a felony drug conviction in a legal state? Thanks in advance

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Why in the world would you ever ADMIT such a thing?

I've done a few month in County for a pot beef, but I never tell anyone.

SmokinErb22 said:

Even expunged felonies show up on a background check, unfortunately. It'll say it was expunged, but the fact that its on there will keep most employers from hiring you.

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You guys are assuming they will even check.

If you don't say anything, they cannot check.

Very soon, it will be illegal to even ask.

In fact, already in my State, this is happening.
http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/State-job-applications-won-t-ask-about-criminal-4885798.php
People who seek jobs with state or local government agencies in California will not be asked on their initial applications whether they have been convicted of a crime, under legislation that was signed into law Thursday by Gov. Jerry Brown.

AB218 by Assemblyman Roger Dickinson, D-Sacramento, effective in July, will prohibit most government employers from requiring disclosure of past convictions on initial applications, information that often ends any realistic job prospects. Supporters promoted the bill as offering a second chance to ex-offenders.

Doer said:

Very soon, it will be illegal to even ask.

In fact, already in my State, this is happening.
http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/State-job-applications-won-t-ask-about-criminal-4885798.php
People who seek jobs with state or local government agencies in California will not be asked on their initial applications whether they have been convicted of a crime, under legislation that was signed into law Thursday by Gov. Jerry Brown.

AB218 by Assemblyman Roger Dickinson, D-Sacramento, effective in July, will prohibit most government employers from requiring disclosure of past convictions on initial applications, information that often ends any realistic job prospects. Supporters promoted the bill as offering a second chance to ex-offenders.

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Who thought this was a good idea? What a waste of everyone's time. This only stops employers from asking on the initial application, not subsequent interviews or what have you. This just means the first question they will ask you after the initial application is "Have you been convicted of a felony?".

This will help NO ONE. The employer will still ask, and still deny the felon. Now it is just a question of how much of everyone's time will be wasted.

No you are just guessing.

I on the other hand, am a Sr. Mgr at a big Tech company and have hired and terminated, around 50 people. Not all I hired were terminated, only a few, but there were others I let go for cause.

There is no national data base of criminal record by name. Not legal, or there would be. It is state by state.

If you don't say anything they cannot check.

In CA, because we all know this, they can't even ask. If they can't ask they have nothing to check. And with this ruling, it means checking is not allowed, iac.