Lawyer Monthly - December 2021 Edition

What is a Youthful Offender Adjudication? A youthful offender is an individual who is charged with a crime alleged to have been committed, when said individual is between ages 16 to 19. A youthful offender adjudication is not a judgment of conviction for a crime or any other offence and does not bar an individual from holding public office or public employment or to receive any license granted by public authority. Except under limited circumstances, where required or permitted by statue or court authorisation, all records and papers related to this adjudication are confidential and may not be made available to any public or private agency. Pursuant to Family Court Act §380.1, except where required by statute, an applicant need not disclose this adjudication. What is a conviction? A “conviction” is the entry of a plea of guilty or verdict of guilty upon an accusatory instrument other than a felony complaint, or to one or more counts of such instrument. What is a misdemeanour? An offence, excluding a traffic infraction, for which a sentence of imprisonment for more than 15 days may be imposed; however, the term of imprisonment cannot exceed 1 year. What is a felony? A felony is an offence for which someone may be sentenced to a term of imprisonment for more than 1 year. Understanding the differences between these terms can both help an applicant become more knowledgeable about their criminal history and enable them to answer questions related their past more accurately. As an example, assume the applicant has confirmed they have EXPERT INSIGHT 51 DEC 2021 | WWW.LAWYER-MONTHLY.COM a criminal history record. What next? Perhaps their criminal history includes felony and misdemeanour convictions, and they may feel discouraged. After all, bias exists and employers, wrongly or rightly, may judge an applicant based on their past. First, it is important to note that the past does not determine a person’s future. Criminal convictions are more commonplace than one may realise. By examining some statistics, it is evident that many New Yorkers have a criminal conviction history; in 2020, adult arrests of individuals 18 or older within New York State totaled 255,592. Of those arrests, 101,369 were for felony arrests and 154,223 were for misdemeanour arrests. Next, we examine criminal convictions in New York State. In 2020, 10,366 adult arrests resulted in a felony conviction. In 2020, 13,735 adult arrests resulted in a misdemeanour conviction. Despite these astounding numbers, many New Yorkers are unaware of some of the resources available to them to help mitigate the impact of a conviction. For example, a Certificate of Relief from Civil Disabilities and/or Application to Seal Criminal Conviction are two useful tools that may help one move forward past a criminal conviction. Sealing A Criminal Conviction As of 7 October 2017, an eligible person may petition the court seal one of the following: 1) up to two misdemeanour convictions; 2) one misdemeanour and one felony conviction; or, 3) one felony conviction. New York State Criminal Procedure Law §160.59 requires that the petitioning individual remained crime free for 10 years, and there are certain restrictions on the types of convictions that may be sealed. Many New Yorkers are unaware of some of the resources available to them to help mitigate the impact of a conviction.