Dealing with an Arrest Record Forum

[ISL]

2 arrest. Charges dismissed in both cases. 1 is expunged.
Am I screwed for Law school or in the end will LSAT/GPA be the deciding factor?


cliffs on arrest: both instances were fights. I was arrested for just being at a fight (house party) and the second time arrested for breaking up a fight (officer confused me for fighting).

[LoyalRebel]

You won't necessarily rejected from law school for this, but it is very important that you make the charges clear up front in your addendum. Failure to do so can result in rejection of your license by the ABA after you graduate law school.

[CanadianWolf]

How recent are the arrests ? If within the past two to three years, then law schools might be a bit wary of accepting a trouble magnet.

[Legal Baller]

2 arrest. Charges dismissed in both cases. 1 is expunged.
Am I screwed for Law school or in the end will LSAT/GPA be the deciding factor?


cliffs on arrest: both instances were fights. I was arrested for just being at a fight (house party) and the second time arrested for breaking up a fight (officer confused me for fighting).

I'll be attending a Tier 1 school with a full ride and I had a pretty bad record. PM me if you want details.

[swilson215]

Reiterating what others have said, make sure that you disclose both instances -- even the one where the case was expunged -- in your application. Write a straightforward addendum, make sure that you give the school all of the information they need without making it seem like you're making excuses or shifting "blame" onto someone else. Some schools will care, and your cycle might have a few surprises because of this, but for the most part schools will look at many of your other factors/numbers before they make a decision.

It might not hurt for you to contact the C&F board of the state you'll be practicing in, just to make sure that the incident(s) won't harm your chances of passing the C&F portion of the bar exam.

[ISL]

In regards to the addendum, should I go out of my way to not shift any blame off myself whatsoever? The situation was such complete bullshit that it is hard for me to hide my bitterness.

[swilson215]

In regards to the addendum, should I go out of my way to not shift any blame off myself whatsoever? The situation was such complete bullshit that it is hard for me to hide my bitterness.

Try. Try really really hard. You're supposed to be showing how you've matured past this issue, and how it won't be happening again. It's hard for an adcomm to believe that if you come off as bitter, whiny, or irresponsible (ie - blaming everyone but yourself).

[LoyalRebel]

In regards to the addendum, should I go out of my way to not shift any blame off myself whatsoever? The situation was such complete bullshit that it is hard for me to hide my bitterness.

I would recommend something to the effect of:

"On (date), I was arrested and charged with (crime). Upon completion of court proceedings, the charge was dismissed and the record was ordered expunged."

I would keep it brief and concise, maybe saying something about how that happened a long time ago and you've not been in any trouble since then. I highly doubt law schools are interested in excuses.

[pasteurizedmilk]

Check the app. before you submit an addendum. Many schools only ask for convictions.