It should come as no surprise that if you have anything on your criminal record, you will experience some consequences related to those crimes. Unfortunately, what many people do not know until they have one or more convictions on their records is that the effects of criminal convictions can extend far beyond fines and jail time into just about every area of a person’s life, for many years after the conviction occurred.
While we would like to think that people who commit crimes experience punishment, and then choose to live their lives as upstanding citizens after having learned from their mistakes could do that without running into additional detriment from their earlier misdeeds, it is unfortunately not true. The effects of a criminal conviction can follow an individual far into the future and jeopardize things that they have worked very hard to accomplish.
For example, a man who started a successful locksmith business over thirty years ago is now being denied an operating license because he had participated in crime while he was a teenager. The man, whose company has served over a hundred thousand customers and has garnered excellent reviews from the Better Business Bureau and other business ranking agencies, did not commit any other crimes after he drove the getaway car for his roommates after they broke into someone’s house. Not only did he not commit any more crimes, he got punished for his role in the break-in – he spent five years on probation and also paid restitution.
What’s more, after the Texas DPS started regulating locksmithing and other professions, the man was able to get a locksmith license based upon the length of time since his conviction and his good behavior since that single mistake. He maintained that license until last year when he got a notice that said that his license would not get renewed because of the past conviction. It is unclear why the license wasn’t renewed after getting renewed for many years despite the conviction, and it could be because of a technical glitch or some other error. He’s currently pursuing reinstatement of his license, but he is already experiencing negative consequences of being unlicensed – he’s been unable to work as a locksmith for over six months, he has lost his BBB accreditation because he’s not licensed, and more.
Unfortunately, the locksmith isn’t the only person whose past mistake is causing him present-day harm. Over two hundred Texas laws that relate to employment bar people with past convictions from certain types of work. Those laws send a message that rehabilitation and reform don’t happen, that crime is a permanent barrier to many kinds of employment. That is not a message that it would be helpful for society to believe, nor is it a message that will prove useful in deterring crime.
Texas Criminal Defense Attorney Alex Tyra – Defending the Accused
If your criminal record prevents you from pursuing the work that you want to do, a Texas Criminal Defense Attorney might be able to help you. Call Texas Criminal Defense Attorney Alex Tyra, at (903) 753-7499, or contact us through our website by using our online contact form.
