Expungement Granted to Law Student Charged with Public Drunkenness
A criminal charge might sound too light in theory. But, it brings along some rave consequences in real life! It’s a type of blemish on your record that can follow you forever. And this is especially true for those entering professional fields.
In a recent case, our client, a law student, was charged with public drunkenness. Now, a criminal record for this offense could have prevented him from being admitted to the bar. His dream of becoming a lawyer would remain a dream forever! He needed some serious legal help, and our skilled Pittsburgh criminal lawyers stepped in to help.
What happened next? Well, stick till the end of this blog to find out!
What Charges Did the Police Hold Against Our Client?
The incident occurred on a weekend. Our client was out with his friends, and they were celebrating the end of a long semester. The group was at a local bar. Our client drank a little too much and was visibly intoxicated.
Now, as he was heading home, he stumbled on the sidewalk. A police officer saw him and decided to intervene. The officer assumed that our client was a danger to himself and placed our client under arrest, with the charge was public drunkenness.
Public drunkenness is considered a summary offense in Pennsylvania. But the cop did not stop there. He also charged our client with disorderly conduct. This was also a summary offense.
While these charges themselves are not severe, they are still criminal offenses. Most importantly, such charges would appear on a criminal background check. And for a law student, this was going to be a serious problem. It could deny his admission to the bar. His future was on the line when our Pittsburgh criminal lawyers decided to take up the case and help him.
How Did We Get Our Client’s Charges Expunged
After careful examination of the police reports, our skilled Pittsburgh criminal lawyers advised our client to get into a diversionary program. This program allowed for first-time offenders to have their charges dismissed. Our client completed the program successfully.
After this, we started our negotiations with the prosecutor. Our client was a brilliant student and had a good report for conduct and character. This helped us stage our defense effectively. We also showed the prosecution about our client’s dedication to his studies, and highlighted his lack of prior criminal history. The prosecutor finally agreed to dismiss the charges. In fact, the disorderly conduct charge was also dropped! However, this was just the first step, which meant that our client would not have a conviction on his record.
But the arrest record still existed. This could still be a problem for him later. So, our Pittsburgh criminal lawyers immediately filed a petition for expungement. And given our client’s clean record, the court granted the petition. The public drunkenness charge and the disorderly conduct charge were expunged, and the arrest record was also sealed. Now, our client could move on with his life and pursue his legal career without any fear.
Mistakes are a part and parcel of our lives. But don’t let a mistake determine your entire future. If you have been held for similar charges, don’t hesitate to call us at 844.PITT.DUI and schedule a free consultation.