Is my Career Over???

Well If I was in your case I'd just quit drinking all together, its defenetly not a good thing for you.

Good luck in court!
 
I arrested a few minors during my tour in the Coast Guard. Caught a couple of kids under 21 drinking on a boat. I didn't want to arrest them, but one of them got mouthy and so be it, shackles went on and Mommy and daddy weren't too happy.

I don't understand why you minors drink in public. Its like you're asking to get caught. Now I know that not everybody is a saint, hell I drank when I was underage, but it was usually at my parents or friends house, not in public. If you're smart, you'll do what it takes to keep this from being an issue. Talk to the officer. I issued a DUI to guy a few years back. He was a nice guy, cooperated, but the law is the law and I had to enforce it. The next day he showed up at the station with hand written apology letter and wanted to speak with me. We talked for a bit and I realized the guy was a first time offender and he was pretty sincere. I dropped the DUI charge and instead issued him a careless operation ticket. If the Officer is a decent guy, and you can somehow speak with him, you might be able to have him do something for you.

Typically the prosecutor goes to the issuing Officer and asks his recommendation, which is usually based on whether or not you cooperated, things you might have said, your attitude towards the Officer. If you were extremely polite and didn't give them a hard time, he might tell the prosecutor to cut you a break and lower the charge. Most Law Enforcement Officers are hands down stand up guys. They really are good people who understand. You do get the occasional prick, but most officers I know are good guys. As long as you showed respect, your chances of getting this erased are pretty good.

Either way, good luck. I hope it doesn't affect your career, but from the sounds of it you should be okay.
 
NW004 said:
Well If I was in your case I'd just quit drinking all together, its defenetly not a good thing for you.
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And go into a hidden Tibetan Bhudist monastery for the rest of his life:sarcasm: :whatever:
 
Kristie said:
ok, the only statement i want to make is to those folks that are saying "possession of a minor" is *NO* big deal....comeon guys.... you all know that breaking the law is breaking the law and i bet you there's more than one judge out there whose willing to take the example offender and make their lives a living hell...

you had a month to go - what WERE you thinking? you wanna be a pilot, your gonna have to be a lot more dedicated with what temptations you allow yourself to enjoy....

enjoying a beverage as a minor IS a big deal because you could literally be shooting yourself in the foot if you get caught.. and it's not "if", it's "when", as flytothesky has realized....so you really have to ask yourself.. is it worth it? if it's NO big deal, then it must be "ok" and sorry, i tend to disagree....

the only thing this thread shows me is that if i were younger than 21, wanted to be a pilot... underage drinking wouldn't really be THAT big of a problem because i might be able to get the charge expunged...i won't get my license suspended and the airlines probably won't find it that big of a deal since it's "just" an arrest and citation and i wanna make sure all you youngin's out there understand that it IS a big deal and you could really be harming yourself and/or others by "going by example"

misdemeanor is a misdemeanor, it's not a felony...but it is still a crime!

how badly do you want that career? if you want it bad enough, you won't cross the criminal line, for anything....
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i would have to agree with you. a former lady friend of mine was one that was made an example of. she was drinking a beer in a bar when low and behold an undercover officer comes up and asks for her id. she gets the cuffs and the ticket the whole nine. she goes to court crying and promising she will never do it again and wham! the judge threw a nice fine her way as well as the charge staying in her record until her 28th birthday. she got it good but she deserved it so not everyone gets out of it with a slap on the wrist. the law is well known and if you break it you should be punished. im not saying that i am some perfect guy but when i get pulled over for speeding i say yea i was speeding take it in stride and hope to god i qualify for drivers school. kristie is right when she says that if you are serious about a career no matter if it is in aviation or whatever you should think how your actions now can effect you in the future.
 
First of all, sorry that it happened. Second, if you are not old enough to drink alcohol in the first place...why were you in public, @ a bar no less...drinking?

My friend, chalk this up as experience. Take every measure to limit your bad decision making. WE ALL HAVE MADE THEM, including myself. I'm not trying to badger you, but I think it is safe to say that you have learned a very valuble lesson.

First, let the case go to trial. The DA will probably try to get you to plea to a lesser charge. Tell him/her that you want to take it to trial. Chances are the charges will be dropped b/c the cops probably won't show up for the trial. If they do, and you're convicted...immediately go to the Clerk of the Court/Criminal Division and get an expungment packet. The Clerk will explain everything you need to do to get this charge or conviction removed from your record.

Now, later on down the road, if you're in an interview and the question is posed to you...FOR GOD SAKES TELL THE TRUTH. Then explain that the incident has been removed/expunged from your record and how much you have grown from this youthful indiscretion. Trust me your conscience will be clear and you will have nothing...absolutely nothing to hide.

Hope this helps.


atp
 
Thanks for all the input guys.

As it turns out, it is not a misdeamenor. It is a violation of a city ordinance (equivalent of a speeding ticket or walking a dog without a leash). Fortunately though, a guy that plays in a band with me happens to be an attorney who knows the city attorney very well. He will work with her personally to get everything settled. I will get supervision for a few months and then hopefully get it expunged off my record later down the road.

My question is, do I expose this on an application even if it is off my record? I'm sure they they have ways to find out. My theory is to disclose anyway, because you may never know.

I know I made a bad decision. It was a college town bar and I should have known better. This is how the city makes makes its money. I bet the raid last night easily put about $5000 into their pockets. It's an easy game for them to play and an easy game to lose. Probably close to half of the kids at the bar last night were underage.

I definetly learned a valuable lesson last night.
 
I just want to know whats up with all these underage drinkers getting arrested for possession. When I still worked at Chase a friend of mine was out with her friends a a popular club called the "Buzz". Cynthia my friend was 20 and was caught drinking (in the club :insane: ) the police asked her to go outside with them and they questioned her and wrote her a citation. End of story. When she went to court she got probation and commjnity service.

Geez these police are hardcore! Oh and at age 20 are you really a minor?
 
killbilly said:
Arrest means that you were detained. It does not mean you were "charged." And, depending on the situation (this is the lawyer part) you can have your record expunged.

I was arrested for bartending underage in a club with no liquor license once. Went to court, the arrest and charges were crap (long story, that one) and I was ACQUITTED. Attorney had the record expunged and that was that. It did cost a couple grand, but it's possible.
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A quick word on expungements. The FBI does not comply with the expungement orders of local or state-level judges since they lack jurisdiction. So while you can have an offense expunged from your local and state records, it's gonna be in the NCIC database forever unless you can convince a federal judge to order it (and good luck with that; there is no provision for expungements under federal law). And guess which one is checked for your 10 year background investigation when you start working in the airline biz? Yup, that one. So this MIP ticket will show up anytime the TSA or FAA pull your rap sheet. Keep that in mind when filling out applications in the future.

When you go to court, I'd also suggest pleading "no contest" rather than "guilty". "No contest" is not an admission of guilt; a "guilty" plea is. How you plea is recorded in the court docket, which is public record.
 
aloft said:
A quick word on expungements. The FBI does not comply with the expungement orders of local or state-level judges since they lack jurisdiction. So while you can have an offense expunged from your local and state records, it's gonna be in the NCIC database forever unless you can convince a federal judge to order it (and good luck with that; there is no provision for expungements under federal law). And guess which one is checked for your 10 year background investigation when you start working in the airline biz? Yup, that one. So this MIP ticket will show up anytime the TSA or FAA pull your rap sheet. Keep that in mind when filling out applications in the future.

When you go to court, I'd also suggest pleading "no contest" rather than "guilty". "No contest" is not an admission of guilt; a "guilty" plea is. How you plea is recorded in the court docket, which is public record.
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Aloft - Good point, but not the most accurate. The LEA must voluntarily FORWARD violations to NCIC (and they must meet certain req's)... they don't just show up. If every MIP violation was forwarded to NCIC, the system would be ridiculously bogged down. In fact, there are very specific requirements for records to meet NCIC eligibility. Even some local extradition warrants do no show on NCIC: you have to run them through your state's system (NYSPIN, etc.) to retrieve the information.

THAT BEING SAID, Aloft's point is valid in MANY ways. If a company asks "have you ever been detained, convicted, or indicted," you better be honest. Now that background checks on pilots are getting more and more thorough, all it takes is a records check with your local police agency to get information on you. Just because "it's off YOUR record" doesn't mean that it's been removed from the PD's cabinets.

J.
 
Most of them are on power trips. They probably got beat in high school.
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That's exactly what I think. The worst is that the cops that busted me were university cops...puppy patrol we call 'em. They are only a few years older than me, but hey, they were the cops and I treated them how I would any cop.

Again, the blame is all me...I'm manning up to it...I didn't want that to sound the wrong way but it is my opinion of our local police force. SOME (not all) get a kick outta busting parties that they were never invited to go to.
 
Maximillian_Jenius said:
I just want to know whats up with all these underage drinkers getting arrested for possession. When I still worked at Chase a friend of mine was out with her friends a a popular club called the "Buzz". Cynthia my friend was 20 and was caught drinking (in the club :insane: ) the police asked her to go outside with them and they questioned her and wrote her a citation. End of story. When she went to court she got probation and commjnity service.

Geez these police are hardcore! Oh and at age 20 are you really a minor?
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If you cant fallow a simple law and are dumb enough to break it in public then i guess you are a minor. No one care if you agree with the law, its there so fallow it.
 
flyTotheSky said:
I think checking the box "have you ever been arrested" would be the career killer....

Jon
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I know of several regional pilots who ticked that box and were hired, and for worse offenses. One even got to pick between two job offers from two top regionals. It's not a career killer (at least as far as regionals go).

Having said that...you've just made your future interview experiences that much harder. Now assuming you're in this career until 60, HR will eventually lose interest in that MIP arrest from when you were 20...but it's probably going to be at least 15 years or so until that happens. Until then, you're going to have to print out court records etc, review them, take them to interviews and be prepared to explain yourself.

Also keep in mind that you've just lost your "buffer zone" as far as getting into trouble is concerned. Any more arrests or even a serious traffic citation (eg- reckless driving) will start to show a pattern of irresponsible behaviour that you will never be able to explain away.
 
I bet you really only feel that bad since you were caught, and not because you did the crime.
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Yeah, and you know me so well that you can make that kind of judgement....thanks

Also keep in mind that you've just lost your "buffer zone" as far as getting into trouble is concerned. Any more arrests or even a serious traffic citation (eg- reckless driving) will start to show a pattern of irresponsible behaviour that you will never be able to explain away.
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Yes, I do realize this. But just to clarify, I was not arrested. Just issued a city ordonance violation. I guess I freaked out initially about the whole thing and from what I've been hearing from all you guys and my attorney, it's not going to be as damaging as I previously thought. Just have to be clean until I'm 21.
 
Correction...you have to be clean and remain clean your entire aviation career!
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Yes, you are completely right. What I meant by clean was not having an alcoholic beverige until I am 21...like I have been saying, it's not worth it.
 
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