Misdemeanor ticket reduced to Infraction

[sdali]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? California

I received a ticket 5 years ago for a moving violation (Driving on Wrong side of divided highway) that was issued as a Misdemeanor (no arrest was made, only a court appearance). The day I went to court it was reduced to an Infraction immediately (Driving Over a divided highway) as I have no criminal history ever and to this date not even a speeding ticket on my driving record.

I pled guilty to the infraction, paid a fine and went to traffic school which rendered the case "dismissed". I recently had a background check run for graduate school and the case appeared as a Misdemeanor, Disposition: Dismissed. Is this correct? Should it have appeared as a "Misdemeanor" even though the court papers reflect that I was only charged with an "Infraction" and the case was subsequently dismissed?? I called the courthouse and they said it was entered into their system correctly, however it still doesn't seem right to me. As it appears on the background, it looks as though I was charged with the Misdemeanor and then the case dismissed.

Any explanation is greatly appreciated.

[seniorjudge]

Just a guess: The misdemeanor was indeed dismissed; then the infraction was filed.

[I_Got_Banned]

Originally Posted by sdali

... Should it have appeared as a "Misdemeanor" even though the court papers reflect that I was only charged with an "Infraction" and the case was subsequently dismissed??

You were charged with a "misdemeanor"...
You appeared on a "midemeanor"...
Subsequently, the charge was reduced to an "infraction" which was later dismissed.

I empathize with you and hope it all works out for you with the school.

Not sure how much this will help but considering the fact that it has only been 5 years (records are kept for 10 yrs), you should be able to get a copy of the minutes of the court session wherein all the changes are detailed. Might help you out as far as providing an explanation to the school.

Also, speaking from experience, I can tell you that obtaining a certified copy of the minute order for your case will prove helpful to you in the future. Get an extra copy and file it in a safe place for use in the future.

[sdali]

Thanks for the reply. I called a defense attorney in the city I live and he basically told me that the Misdemeanor was dismissed and it appears correct on the background check. The problem with this is that I appear to be guilty of the Misdemeanor because that is all that people see. It doesn't seem to matter that the case was dismissed. It also doesn't allow for any detail about me not being arrested or charged. They take one look at the "flagged" report and put my file in the trash.

Also, I don't qualify for expungement because I was never charged with the Misdemeanor! Expungement would have cleared this from my record except if I were applying for a job in law enforcement. SO, if I were charged, the school wouldn't have seen it on the background. Unbelievable. I do have copies of all the court papers showing that I was only cited with an Infraction, paid a fine and dismissed with traffic school. I guess I will now have to carry those around with me for the next 5 years.

Thanks Again!

[CdwJava]

Very few entities can see your CA state criminal history. What these generic background firms do is they find court records (public documents) and hold those for, I understand, 7 years.

Thus, an expungement might not have helped because the record would likely have been pulled even before the court expunged it. You might still be able top pay an attorney to go to court and attempt to get this removed, but whether it would be worth the expense and then the effort to serve it on any possible background agency that might hold this record is something only you can answer. I suspect that the record will speak for itself, and you can easily provide that information prior to hiring. Just give them the head's up that you had a traffic ticket that was initially filed as a misdemeanor and for some reason appears in your background as such, but is properly recorded as "dismissed".

- carl

[SMBI]

It will appear as a misdemeanor arrest because the citation is legally an arrest where you are released on a promise to appear. The later reduction to infraction was done by the court but strictly speaking you were still charged with a misdemeanor.

I can't imagine this would prevent you from passing any background, so long as you disclosed it prior to the background being done.