I have a friend who got into some legal trouble...?

a couple of years ago, a friend of mine was accused of something she didn't do, and the whole thing went into the court system, she served no jail time, but she had to agree to a plea bargain, again even though she didnt' do anything. now she can't get a job or do anything with her life, bc this whole issue pops up on her background checks and no one wants to hire her. what are her options? if she changed her ss # would that help? i see stuff like this on tv all the time, where the character will change their names and then they are able to get jobs. Is that really true? this happened like 3 years ago, and she is at her wits end, i'm starting to worry about her bc she is getting depressed. does stuff like this stay on record forever? any help would be greatly appreciated
Additional Details
btw, she has seen lawyers, and the trouble is, is that what she was accused of was a felony and a felony cant be expunged.. i have no idea if this was an a, b,c or d type felony, but the bottom line is, it can't be expunged

countryman12001

i know how you feel and ive been through the same thing and believe me it isn't fun at all and it does stay with you for at least 7 to 9 yrs depending on the laws guide lines Ianthe state you are in but mine is a felony too and its still there too and the only way to get it off record is if you can prove with out a shadow of date that she didn't do it and get the Evidence you need to prove the case and take it back to court as you can have the case reopened and prove your case and that's about it or at least that's all i know i hope it can help out..

Lily

You must live in the United States....welcome to our wonderful court system. Perhaps she can start her own business or get a job with a church/Salvation Army. You can not change your name or avoid a felony tag and you can't change her SS#. Maybe she can volunteer somewhere and after they get to know her they will hire her.

This is a huge problem. When are people going to learn that there are 1000's of people with a felony (and multiple felony) charges that never did anything! The only thing the plea bargain did for her was keep her out of prison, which is a good thing because in prison you are treated less then a dog. (don't believe the crap you get 3 squares a day and free medical care, because you don't).

larry n

Don't illegally take on a new identity. That's another crime. There should be some assistance groups for people in her position to give advice. Also, running one's own business would work is so minded. Nobody does background checks on the boss.

Eric E

She should hire a lawyer and have it expunged from her record

J.C.

I'm pretty sure that unless you're a victim of identity theft, or have never had a SS#, that you can't get a new one.

That or you go into witness protection as a new person.

Not everything you see on t.v. is real.

General Custer

A plea is an admission of guilt, so stop trying to say she didn't do anything. Instead explain she made a mistake and has conducted herself properly since. Learned her lesson. Look for jobs where her conduct is not likely to appear.

vyxen

really depends on how old you were when you committed the crime. and how serious it was. since you accepted a plea bargain you pretty much admitted you did it, whatever it was. changing your ss# wont do anything because the change will be noted and it will go back to the old one. any way they search by name. there's not really much you can do. an employer has the right to dismiss you if you are not to their company's image or don't think you can uphold their ethics and morals. Stuff never gets wiped from your record. that's why its called a record, its there forever. its just a matter of how old it is and how relevant it is.

i presumed that your friend was you. if not, change it to her :) still the same deal.
you/she really has to live with what has happened and hope that there is an employer who will over look a criminal record. i hired people in my previous roles and i dismissed anyone that had a record that impinged on my company's image.
all the best

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