Not Convicted, But still fired. Now What?

[mitchell1029]

In 1990 I was young and foolish. I was arrested in San Diego, California for burglary (PC459) in the hearing I plead to a misdemeanor trespassing. (First and only offence) and granted 3 years probation. I thought I completed the probation.

After completing the probation I moved out of California and moved to Texas. During that time I went to work for the local government and also volunteered in the TDCJ prisons. I passed countless background checks and when asked if I was ever "Convicted of a felony" I said no.

15 years later, I am working for a state agency in North Carolina out of the blue, in a routine check is shows that I have a felony warrant dated 12/11/1992. Needless to say I was fired on the spot and almost arrested.

I don't know what the Statue of limitations are, what my next step is or what I am able to about this. I contacted the district clerks office about this but because it is so old, (the files are in the archives) and they won't tell me what the situation is.

Being unemployed now I am unable to hire an attorney right away.

As far as far as I know, I was never "Convicted" of a felony.
Can I be terminated for answering NO to that question?
I have a warrant, but no convictions

Does anyone have any suggestions?

 

[Beth3]

Can I be terminated for answering NO to that question? That isn't the issue here. You were working for a State agency and presumably in some occupation aligned with the criminal justice system. Of course they're not going to retain an employee whom they discover has an outstanding felony warrant. Even if that information is wrong, the employer acted in good faith based on the information they received.

It looks like you're going to need the help of a criminal attorney to sort out your situation and clear up this warrant. You might want to see if your local Legal Aid Society can help you if you can't afford an attorney.