so ive fucked up quite a few times in the last 2-3 years, and that has led to me getting a collection of remarks on my criminal record, ive done my time in prison and i feel that a criminal record just keeps people in a bad pattern i would like to get a job, im aware that ive posted some stupid shit on this forum when drunk like '' i wanna go out and jack something for some money '' but ive not done it most of the time, and right now ive totally stopped it, and i want to get my life back on track and get a job but i cant, why, because in denmark you always need to show your record, and mine involves non-violent enrichment crimes, which shops are very much against, even though if i got a job in a store, i would not steal anything, why should i fuck it up if i got the chance?? i understand the need for a record when it comes to killers, rapists, molesters etc, so people know who the yare dealing with but its just absurd, that for someone like me who has done small time shit, that i need to deal with a 10 year stigma on my record untill its removed so what am i forced to now? being on unemployment, an i have to admit atleast in denmark its not so bad, since ive got some social problems like this prison shit, i get about 1700dollars a month for meeting up with some mentor and just tlaking for like half an hour, or atleast thats what they are planning wouldnt it be better for them and me, if they saved the government the need to pay me and instead didnt have these ridicouless long expiry on criminal records i mean if someone has done their time in prison, doesnt it mean they have been punished, do i really need to be punished for the next 10 years?? ofcourse its my own fault, and please refrain from telling me i deserve it etc, everyone can fuck up im wondering if anyone understands me?
I hear you. I have a good friend who was in the same boat here in Ireland. He tried and tried but could not get a job because of the big chain (prison record) hanging around his neck pulling him down and punishing him years after he had paid the price for his misdemeanours. Eventually he got lucky and an employment/social worker suggested he go back to education. To cut a long story short he went back (with his full benefits) and got a degree in social care. Now he works with kids fresh out of prison and his record helps him connect with them. He is "real" to the kids. There are niches out there where your record will help, you just got to root them out. Best of luck and don't give up, you have already paid the price for your "crimes". Sent from the back of a jihadist donkey...
I have a record as well and the onlyI way i have found out of the hole I dug myself in was to become my own boss. Try and think outside the box and find something you can do on your own. I'm trying to save up to invest in real estate. I'm hoping with the first one I can set myself up for the long run Don't work in a deadend job. A lot of these government benefits will keep us down and they try to control you and keep you from becoming beter
yeah the shit is terrible...i got 2 weed charges (both misdemeanors) and i have been turned down for a job stocking shelves at food lion before because they felt the charges were too recent (the latest one was 3 years old at that time)... in America (well at least in my city in North Carolina) you don't get unemployment for not having a job, you have to have been recently let go of a job, pass a hearing to be approved to get unemployment, then you get it for about 26 weeks... So there was no "fall back" for me, i had to go back to school and get certified in welding, then pass welding tests to get the good job i have now...in america the construction field in general doesn't bust your balls much about your record, but in welding you have to be able to actually weld... But if i was to leave this job and try for something else, i'd ve right back in the background check game and get rejected...i've seen people lose their jobs they held for 10+ years because the company decided to do a background check and something they did 17 or more years ago comes back to bite them now and they get fired... the shit is a trap they set and make you stay in
The lawyers office I talked to said in NC that if it happened after the age of 18 they won't expunge... I thought it was all a money game, but its more than that apparently
that's crazy. i had a pretty serious record and upon applying for a job that required a criminal check, i found out that my record was automatically expunged by the government because i had been a good boy. i asked the officer in charge of the check if maybe he missed something and he said i was in the clear. different country, better times
unfortunately there are people out there who benefit a lot from keeping prisons full. The system really makes no sense and we're always really slow to make changes where it's most needed :/
That's a pretty good plan, it worked for me. My record kept me from getting a decent job so I got a rent house and fixed it up, then I got another and now I have several. I'm not getting rich but I don't have to grovel or put up with random drug tests. OP you really can't blame people for not taking a chance with their business and livelihood on someone with a history of fucking people over. If you truly are a good person now someone will eventually see it and take a chance on you. For now be grateful you have an income at all and now would be the perfect time to learn a trade like 13 Amp did. Even if it's not something you'd like to do for the rest of your life it'll give you something to show a prospective employer that you're trying to be a better person.
There needs to be separate justice system for those who commit victimless crimes. There's no need to constantly drag those people down to the same position as people who hurt others. Hell, victimless crimes shouldn't even be considered crimes to begin with. and for those who do hurt others you should be allowed to have a second chance eventually. Maybe a marker on your record that reminds employers you've been crime free for several years.
I understand OP. It is embarrassing. People don't look at you the same. Been to jail 5-6 times don't remember. It takes time unfortunately for people to start trusting you again. Even though you may be a great person. People will always look at the mistakes in your past. Which most people that judge probably have done worse things that should put them in prison.
^^True regarding victimless crimes. And actually it's getting caught that's worse than the crime in many instances. In his youth Obama committed more crimes than many and everyone knows it but since he didn't get caught he gets a pass. Shit, if everyone who's fucked a 17 year old got caught we'd all still be in jail....well you'd be still in jail, I'd be out by now but still registering as a sex fiend.
thanks for all the interesting and nice replies, im certainly not alone on this, this problem does seem systemic, and one has to wonder if people in high places are happy to keep the little guy down but yeah i agree i just gotta keep my hope, there will be someone who has an open mind, you just have to be honest and connect with them that you will be real but its certainly not easy but yeah everybody is smarter in hindsight ay? oh and can you expunge your record for some reason in america? not here, in denmark if you get sentenced and go to jail you are gonna have whatever stains you get for 10 years, no matter what, its crazy, considering we are such a small country and always talking about lack of labor we are keeping so many perfectly fine citizens locked, while importing eastern workers to fill in the jobs in this tiny country dont take me for one of those '' their taken our jobs '' type, its just denmark is incredibly small, 6 million population and only 3-4 big cities, 3 of them not being big at all, so jobs are scarse and we are open to the entire EU to come and work, and most construction jobs are being given to eastern workers because bosses get to pay them less
Go to college, get a degree in counseling, mentor young men in trouble. teach them that when you do not follow the laws of the land you pay the price for years. What crimes are you paying for to this day? did you deny someone of their right not to be robbed, scared to death, or a store owner who hires people to ensure his goods are not stolen which affects how he pays those he has credit with? You may have paid for your crimes by sitting in jail, but an employer has a large segemnet of society who has proven their trust. if you cannot obey the laws of your country how is an employer to expect you to obey the rules of his company? On top of that, he has to deal with his public reputation. If you molested children why would he have you work for him, he would lose so much business. I wish you well, keep trying and do not fall back into a world you know only hurts others, shames you and your family, and makes people suspicious of you. Takes being strong after being wrong.
Not sure how it works in other countries but in the USA or at least in CA a job application will state if they are going to do a back round check. So just read the fine print and only apply to spots that don't check. Granted these places may not be the cream of the crop but it will be honest work. Other then that you can try to work for a small business as they can't always afford the back round checks.
The employer has the right to a background check on whoever they're hiring. However I agree with you, you is did your time! All you want to do is work and make a living! But the government is wasting their money by just handing it to you when you are perfectly capable of working.
Start doing some type of volunteering related to what you were caught up in.You need to have something to tell people that goes something like this: "Although I've made poor decisions, since then I've been working with at-risk youth in order to make a positive difference, so other people don't make these mistakes." A few years ago my dog got caught up in a VERY serious drug case. From what he tells me, normally this would be a 7-10 year charge. I won't go in to details, but moving forward he has been sober for about 3 years, has volunteered with other alcoholics/addicts, used to bring weekly meetings to a treatment center, blah blah blah. These are genuinely worthwhile things to do anyway, but when people hear that you've made a positive difference, they tend to view you in a positive light. Not to mention, most people don't volunteer at all, so they have trouble looking down on someone who does. Food for thought.
Nobody likes a fucking thief! I see you wrote "enrichment crimes" so I assume you are either stealing from people or scamming people to benefit financially. Either way you were probably making somebody more poor while gaining $ for yourself. Either way it speaks volumes about your character, and you can bet your ass I wouldn't hire a thief if you paid me to. Once a thief always a thief. I know you "wouldn't" do it now, but you as a person have questionable morals and values. It doesn't matter how well you shaped up, you fucked up now you have to pay for it. And when you post about getting drunk and wanting to do the SAME STUFF it just shows you are still the same person, only this time you don't act on it. Thug thoughts are still thug thoughts.
As you know I'm in NC as well but I have heard a much different story from lawyers in the past. I was told that after a certain period of time (I don't remember the exact number of years) if your record stays clean you can get misdemeanor pot charges expunged. I'm sure there is some kind of a fee involved and possibly a drug test as well. I've probably got a few more years to go though since I got busted 3 times when I was 18 and not very smart. Luckily I haven't gotten in trouble at all since then and all of my probation and stuff is taken care of and long gone. The one that worries me was the third and final charge which was a DUI for being under the influence of cannabis. I don't think that one will go away as easily.