Serious misdemeanor? Forum

[tmo]

I am working on my UC Davis application and it asks you to check 'yes' if you have a felony or a "serious" misdemeanor. I have a Wet and Reckless charge (basically a DUI), and am answering yes with an addendum to most applications. This however caught my eye - is a Wet and Reckless a serious misdemeanor... or just a misdemeanor? I am thinking I should just mark it to be on the safe side, but wanted some second opinions. Thoughts?

[the rza]

Sorry, I'm not really sure...but they seriously call it a 'wet and reckless'? That's hilarious!

[tmo]

Yeah, I thought it pretty funny too - it's a lesser charge than a DUI so I was grateful, but when I explain to people what I got they tend to think I did something rowdy and raunchy.

[the rza]

well for what it's worth, i'd say you are doing the smart thing by just reporting it anway

[sirhitch]

I have never heard a DUI called a "wet and reckless" before. Very amusing. Misdemeanors are classified as such because they are more of a misdeed than a serious offense. I recommend disclosing your offense on every application unless the charge is expunged and the school explicitly allows you to ignore expunged offenses. If you are unsure, talk to a representative from the school to explain what the application question is asking.

[orangeswarm]

Go ahead and disclose just to be on the safe side (it won't affect you very much anyway). Who knows, they may even get a laugh out of it too!

[The Agitator]

I think you should disclose it. An 'unserious' misdemeanor would, to me, seem like something such as a noise violation, or a curfew violation.

Anyway, since there is no way of knowing, just disclose it.

[sirhitch]

I try to stay away from classifying degrees of misdemeanors because there is always the question of what impact the incident may have had. A noise violation that made a person lose sleep, and consequently get in a car accident, appears to be worse than a verbal assault that may have caused positive change in the "victim". In my opinion, they are all just a bunch of minor forgivable mistakes.

[The Agitator]

I wasn't personally classify them. There are violations of local ordinances - noise violations, not picking up dog poo, curfews, etc. - which are probably unserious misdemeanors and then there are violations of state codes.

[tmo]

Ok, I'm definitely disclosing it then. Can it be just a paragraph and straight to the point? I don't have a lot to say about it - I was planning on stating the offense, what my charge ended up being (and the penalty I received), and stating something along the lines of regretting a poor choice and having learned my lesson. How much are you supposed to elaborate on the latter (repenting, that is)? I don't want to make more of it than necessary, but also don't want to look like an irresponsible jerk.

[sirhitch]

If it is an isolated incident, you probably only need a paragraph or two at most. In my case, I had a handful of transgression which placed me in the position of having to elaborate out over a page double-spaced.

[LaffyTaffy]

Meow mix meow mix please deliver

[sirhitch]

Although I do not doubt that your break down of misdemeanors is accurate, I do think your advice to not disclose is very dangerous. Many of the questions on application forms are openly worded enough to require inclusion of EVERYTHING there could possibly be a record of all the way down to simple warnings and traffic violations. CAUTION: local police departments are very good at keeping track of everything that comes to their attention, like the time your neighbors complained the music was too loud and a patrolman was sent to politely ask you to turn it down, regardless if a citation was issued or not.

[LaffyTaffy]

Meow mix meow mix please deliver

[sirhitch]

Apologies if i misunderstood the question, but I have come across no apps that leave it up to the applicant to make the distinction between serious and non serious misdemeanors except maybe BU and BC. In short, answer exactly what the question asks. If unsure, call admissions.