Legal Question in Criminal Law in Michigan

I have been convicted of use of marijuana at the 57th distric court in Michigan .Now I cant get a job. Can I still get 7411


Asked on 6/13/13, 2:17 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys

Neil O'Brien Eaton County Special Assistant Prosecuting Attorney

You don't say how long ago the conviction was entered, which may have an effect on your options. My opinion is that you cannot do anything about this right now. If, however, it is your one and only criminal (misdemeanor or felony) conviction ... ever ... anywhere ... then you have to wait 5 yrs after your conviction to petition the same court to set your conviction aside. If you're not eligible to do that, your other option is to file a request to withdraw your guilty plea (which is rarely granted after a sentencing, and especially when the reason is "ooops, I messed up and didn't ask for 7411 status") or a motion for relief from judgment (again, a similar argument). You're not saying that you're not guilty of the crime, that there was some error in the plea-taking process, that you were coerced into pleading, that someone in the process misrepresented something, etc., so your argument boils down to "I should have asked for 7411 and didn't". That's not 'manifest injustice', it's just "I didn't get as good an outcome as possible', which isn't likely to be sufficient. But instead of trying to settle these issues on a Q&A web site where we know only a snippet of your history, you need to sit down with an attorney who can go over an updated copy of your criminal history and driving record (relevant for the possible expunction option), the police report in your marijuana case, the ability to review the court file, the ability to review how any attorney who represented you originally handled the case to see if you received constitutionally ineffective assistance for not petitioning you under 7411, etc, etc. So, hire an attorney -- or at least consult one -- about your situation. If you leave it to a free Q&A site to resolve all your legal issues, you're getting what you're paying for.

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Answered on 6/14/13, 5:36 am


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