IMPACTS OF A CRIMINAL CONVICTION IN ALASKA
If you face a criminal conviction in Alaska, you must know how a criminal history can ruin your future. You also must know that a skilled criminal defense lawyer in Alaska can aggressively fight for your legal rights and work hard to get your criminal charges diminished or even dropped. Even if a criminal charge is dropped altogether, or if you are found not guilty, that does not establish that the criminal charge will be deleted from your history. But in certain instances, it may be omitted after some years have passed, and an option also exists to obtain earlier removal or expunction of a charge. It is essential to do everything you can to lessen your exposure to criminal prosecution — not just to safeguard your freedom now but to decrease the ways a criminal history can come back to hurt you in the years to come. Even one criminal conviction can haunt you.
If you have been charged with a criminal crime and need an experienced criminal defense lawyer in Alaska, please Contact Now or call at 907-262-9164 our experienced attorney Eric Derleth in Anchorage and Soldotna to learn more about how we can help you.
HOW CAN A CRIMINAL RECORD IMPACT YOUR FUTURE LIFE? LET US EXPLORE THE CONSEQUENCES:
- Employment: A criminal conviction on your criminal history can reduce your earning potential and can hamper your ability to find a good job. Usually, prospective employers have a legal right to explore your criminal history via a background check. Employers may not award you a job based on past criminal charges or indictments. Employers also may inquire of you personally if you have gone through any criminal convictions or ask whether you have ever even been charged with a crime, including felonies and misdemeanors. Even a misdemeanor can affect your employment prospects, whether it is a conviction or charge. You must reply truthfully, but you are not explicitly asked to disclose arrests that did not lead to a misdemeanor or conviction, which were later omitted from your record.
- College Admission: A criminal history can reduce your chances of obtaining college or graduate school admission, even if it is for a misdemeanor. This usually relies on the individual college or university. Also, a drug-related or sexual offense on your history can make it hard to gain financial help to attend college. A drug conviction can technically lead to a college student not being eligible for Federal Financial Aid to participate in a college or university.
- Healthcare, Law, or Other Professional Licenses: With a criminal record, you may find it challenging to obtain a healthcare license, such as a nursing license, even with a misdemeanor conviction.
- Child Custody: Unfortunately, if you have a criminal conviction history, it could decrease your rights with child custody, specifically if the conviction involved domestic abuse or other violent acts. Even a misdemeanor can lead to losing your child custody rights.
- Adopting Children: You will not be permitted to adopt a child in Alaska if you've been charged with a misdemeanor crime involving a family. Also, if you let a minor have access to a firearm, you may not adopt a child.
- Driving Privileges: Depending on the severity of the crime, persons with a criminal history may lose their right to drive. In Alaska, a criminal record involving alcohol or other drugs can lead to a suspension of your driver's license and a requirement to take a drug education course before you can regain the right to get a driving license.
- Firearms: A conviction in Alaska may mean you lose your right to possess a firearm. This is likely if your charge was for any felony or a Class A misdemeanor crime. In such instances, Alaska may revoke your license to carry a firearm. Some domestic violence convictions will also preclude you from owning a gun.
- Immigration: If you are a foreign national, a criminal history can hinder you from obtaining a green card, altering your immigration status, or becoming a naturalized citizen of the USA. You also could lose your right to get a job and, sometimes, be deported, even for a misdemeanor.
- Renting & Leasing: In Alaska, a landlord may decline to rent to you if you have criminal charges on your history, which happened within a specific number of years.
- Subsequent Crimes: If you face a new criminal conviction and already have a criminal history, your criminal record can lead to harsher penalties if you are charged and sentenced.
- Security Clearance: A criminal charge or conviction can have detrimental effects on those seeking a security clearance for a government job. Employees have lost jobs because they could not maintain a security clearance after a criminal charge.
DO I NEED A LAWYER IF I AM CHARGED WITH A CRIME?
Defendants convicted of crimes are always best served by getting an experienced criminal defense lawyer. Most criminal defendants are represented by an attorney, especially when a prison sentence is a possible outcome. It is challenging for a person to handle their criminal trial competently. While there are no accurate statistics available on how many people select to represent themselves in criminal cases, estimates show that range is less than 1%. Relying on a public defender is also within your rights, but many public defenders are way overworked and underpaid. They maintain heavy criminal caseloads and may not devote the appropriate amount of time necessary to a criminal matter.
SEE A CRIMINAL DEFENSE LAWYER NEAR YOU
A criminal conviction can affect your life in various negative ways. That is why it is imperative to lessen the charge on your record by visiting a knowledgeable and seasonable criminal defense lawyer in Alaska. If you live in Anchorage, Soldotna, Kenai, and the Palmer/Wasilla or any other areas of Alaska, contact Eric Derleth today at the Trial Guy. Eric is a criminal attorney with over 25 years of experience handling criminal defense matters in Alaska. We have offices to serve you in both Anchorage and Soldotna. We will present you with a complete explanation of your case. Then, we will try and get your criminal charges dismissed, diminished, or take your case to a jury trial. We also may obtain a charge deleted or expunged from your criminal record.
Call at 907-262-9164 today and let us get defended your legal rights.