Legal Question in Criminal Law in New Jersey

Re: Convicted or not?

You have been convicted of a disorderly persons offense. Municipal court shoplifting offenses, as opposed to shoplifting offenses prosecuted in Superior Court, are not crimes because the maximum period of a possible jail sentence does not exceed six months.

But you are not out of the woods. Shoplifting is theft and as such is an offense reflecling moral turpitude. You prospective employer will learn about this conviction and will probably not hire you. In any event, if you do not reveal this conviction you will not be hired because it will be discovered.

If you have had no other convictions since 1988 you are probably eligible to have your shoplifting conviction "erased" or expunged. You should call me about an expungement.

A conviction is the result of your pleading guilty before a judge in court or your being found guilty after sworn testimony in a trial.

Gary Moore, Esquire

Hackensack, New Jersey

800 273 7933

www.garymooreattorneyatlaw.com

Re: Convicted or not?

It sounds like you were convicted of the shoplifting. In New Jersey, shoplifting charges handled in the Municipal Courts are called disorderly persons offenses and not considered crimes. They can, however, show up on your criminal history depending on whether you were fingerprinted and/or whether the local police department entered it into the system. It sounds like you are eligible to have the charge expunged which would erase any record of it and would allow you to truthfully answer "no" to any question involving prior convictions. contact me if you'd like to have this done. [email protected]

Re: Convicted or not?

It sounds like you would have to answer yes. Even though New Jersey uses the term "crime" to classify what other states would call a felony, these questions on employment apps/licensing apps are more broad as in any criminal convictions, not just for felonies.

Provided you have no other offenses and have not already had an expungement, you can get this matter expunged from your record and then legally be able to say no - never arrested. You would only still have to reveal the information if applying for a law enforcement or Court job.

You can find lots more information on expungements at my website: www.expungemynjrecord.com. I handle many expungements and also offer free consultations, so feel free to call or e-mail if you want to discuss your situation further.

Daniel B. Kelley

(856)616-8080

[email protected]