I'll ask a few officers I know. But for now, I found this. It looks like only applicants over the age of 40 are protected?
https://www.eeoc.gov/laws/types/age.cfmAge discrimination involves treating an applicant or employee less favorably because of his or her age.
The Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) forbids age discrimination against people who are age 40 or older. It does not protect workers under the age of 40, although some states have laws that protect younger workers from age discrimination. It is not illegal for an employer or other covered entity to favor an older worker over a younger one, even if both workers are age 40 or older.
I doubt it was a felony or you would have not been in the military as you would not have been capable of holding a firearm. If you were in deferred adjudication, it is possible the matter was reduced or even dismissed at the conclusion if you attended all the court hearings. At this point, you really need to find out what your record says.
https://www.dps.texas.gov/administra...oryrecords.htm
If it is a misdemeanor and not otherwise a mandatory exclusion from firearms possession or employment as a peace officer, 12 years of honorable and acceptable military should be sufficient to overcome a youthful indiscretion.
As for the age thing, this may vary by agency and retirement system. The feds have a hiring age minimum for peace officers as a result of their retirement system - as does the state of CA. Local agencies, however, are unable to have a hiring minimum. TX may be different, of course, but do not assume that the standard for one agency might be the standard for all. Per TX state law, there is only a MINIMUM age for certification as a peace officer (18 or 21, depending on other qualification)
The areas in NC I am considering applying have a cut off of 40yrs old, I am good in the age limit area.
@cdwjava- When I pulled my finger print records from the SBI in North Carolina and the FBI criminal background check, it was clear and nothing on them, it only should up when i did the fingerprint check in the state of Texas. Yes, it is a felony, I don't know why it is only showing there, but it doesn't say a conviction, only deferred on the disposition.
I cannot for the life of me think of how you got into the military with a felony on your record! You may want to have an attorney assist you. It may well be that while the initial offense was filed as a felony, the deferred adjudication reduced it.
How old were you at the time?
Some states have laws that specifically address the issue of felonies and peace officers.
For example in California, any person convicted of a felony (or of a crime in another jurisdiction that would be a felony in California) is prohibited from employment as a California peace officer [
Cal. Govt. Code §1029(a)].
With few exceptions, this prohibition holds even if the conviction was sealed, expunged, or set aside. It may also apply to any convictions that were subsequently reduced to a
misdemeanor occurring on or after January 1, 2004.
Perhaps it would be better to see if the state in question has a similar law. The OP may wish to call that state's Peace Officer Standards and Training agency and inquire as to what state laws address this area.