Hi my names Vitaliy. In 2007 a drunk sleepy passenger shot a chi hua hua, (which was his neighbor and apartment managers dog) from my cars p...

Question

Hi my names Vitaliy. In 2007 a drunk sleepy passenger shot a chi hua hua, (which was his neighbor and apartment managers dog) from my cars pas. window. I was shocked and drove away from the scene. We got arrested 30,min later and both charged w animal cruelty. My attorney didn't really help neither advised well and I ended up w attempted animal cruelty gross misdemeanor on my record and did 1 month in jail had to pay fines got sued all for something I didn't and had no intention doing whatsoever. It was totally messed up and ironic cause I really love animals and would never intentionally cause them any harm.

I would forget about all that as a horrible nightmare and move on, but I cannot do so. Every more or less decent job requires a background check which I obviously cant and didn't pass numerous times.

Is there any possible way to get it off my record or anything that can be legally done so it wouldn't appear on ny background check and I can get hired and can start actually living? Please help

Answer

It is possible to vacate the conviction because more than 3 years have passed since you were convicted and completed all of the conditions of your sentence. You have to go through a court hearing process and if the judge grants the request to vacate the conviction, you will be able to state that you have never been convicted of that offense. But, you must go through the process and do it correctly so that you come out of this process with the conviction removed from your record. However, it will always be there for use by the courts and prosecutors if you have another law violation of a misdemeanor, gross misdemeanor or felony.