subdeoetlege
New Member
Hi all, I have a question that hopefully someone can answer. Currently I am living in Europe, and have been doinf so for the past 5 years. My mother is a US citizen, and my date for my green card interview is coming up. My question(s) is regarding the criminal background check. ( I attended law school in the US but never graduated) I know the INS has different standards when evaluating criminal backgrounds. When I was at college in Va, I was arrested once for being drunk in public. There was no trial, it was just the drunk tank, I had to pay 50 bucks the following morning and I was let go. The next thing I have hanging over my head like the sword of Democles is that in 2002 I was cleaning a gun when it accidentally discharged (almost shot my toe off). Of course a worried neighbor heard the shot and the police were called. I thought that using humor was the way to go but the officer had no appreciation for humor and charged me with reckless use of a firearm. Shortly after, my lawyer explained how certain details were lost in translation and the DA dismissed the case if I agreed to volunteer a week at a Salvation Army store for a couple days, which I happily agreed to. I know that if I had accepted a plea bargain during the trial, for immigration purposes I would have been in trouble, but the specfic wording is dismissed before trial, not a finding of not guilty AT trial in exchange for some punishment, which for INS purposes means guilty as charged. I know anything related to firearms is a hot button issue for the INS people, so my question, two prong, is whether either the drunk in public arrest or the dismissed reckless use of a firearm charge would cause me to fail this upcoming background check. Since 2005 I have been living in Hungary and the UK and I do not have as much as a speeding ticket in either jurisdiction.
Thanks for any insight in advance guys
Thanks for any insight in advance guys