Caught Shoplifting in Mervyns

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Quoting greenapplegirl

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1. Is it on my permanent record because I didn't have to go to court but the police were involved?

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It depends on what you mean by your "permanent" record. If you are asking if you have a state criminal history? The answer is very likely, no.

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2. Does that mean I was arrested? For right now, when I apply for job or something, under the section have you ever been arrested, do I put yes or no? What about after I turn 18?

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Yes, you would appear to have been arrested. However, in CA most employers (with the exception of certain government positions and law enforcement) cannot even ASK about arrests - only convictions. Since you have apparently not been convicted or had a true finding for any criminal offense, you would not need to answer that you had.

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3. After I turn 21, if I want to apply to government jobs, would they have the access to see?

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It depends on the job. Not all government positions will have access to this information.

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4. And is there any way to check my record? (other than finding an attorney because I know it would cost a lot of money to hire one)

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As a juvenile it can be tough. If you have never been to court or fingerprinted, it's probably safe to say that the state does not have a record of you. Most juvenile actions like you describe stay within the probation department and are handled informally.

However, an attorney could help you navigate the ins and outs of YOUR situation.



- Carl

Thanks for all your help. I found this website, http://ag.ca.gov/fingerprints/security.php
and I was thinking about doing that. Do you think that is necessary because it says criminal records but it may not include arrests?

You can certainly do it ... but, if you have not been booked (photographed and fingerprinted), and you have not been before a court, then you shouldn't have a CORI file.

- Carl

:( ! so there's no definite way to find out if I have an arrest record or not?

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Quoting greenapplegirl

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:( ! so there's no definite way to find out if I have an arrest record or not?

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The first thing you have to understand is that there is no one single file somewhere that contains your "arrest record". There would be a number of records ... an agency that has detained or arrested you will have a record ... the agency that houses you on the charges (jail or juvenile hall) will have a record ... if you were fingerprinted or sent to court over a crime, the state might have a criminal offender record ... the court will ALSO have a record.

If you want to see what these places have on you, then you need to do a lot of legwork to check out what everyone has on you. But, if this is what you say, and it's your only police contact, you have little or nothing to worry about.

- Carl