Need recruiting advise

[bmarutnj]

Hello Marines. Back in April of this year my son 22 decided to join the Marines something he has wanted to do since he graduated high school. He went to the local recruiting station and started the process. During his interview he informed the recruiter that he was arrested when he was 19 for procession of marijuana (30.12 grams). When he went to court the judge informed us that all charges will be dropped as long as he kept a clean record for the next year in which my son did and continues to do so. His recruiter informed him that a waiver was needed before he could continue.

His waiver was approved and he was sent to take his ASVAB in which he did very well. Next he was sent to MEPS for a physical in which they stopped because he had informed the doctor that he had broken his wrist in high school while playing soccer. He needed to obtain the medical records from the treating doctor along with the x-rays and return them to his recruiter and would have to set up another date at MEPS.

In the meantime his recruiter left his job for another and my son was assigned to another recruiter. During this time all his paperwork was misplaced but found a month later. His new recruiter was told by his supervisor that my son was to be DEP’d as soon as possible since it is now the end of June and this kid has been there since April. Two weeks ago his recruiter told him at PT that the following week he was to be taken to MEPS to finish his physical and be sworn in.

The night before he was to go to MEPS, his recruiter called to inform him that his waiver is now denied and cannot become a Marine. To say the least we were all shocked, I had my cousin who is a Colonel in the NJ Army National Guard call Staff Sergeant to see if he could talk to anyone about reconsidering but Staff Sergeant told my cousin that even though he is fighting for my son his Commander will not change his mind.

My questions are can a waiver be approved and then denied just like that? What my son did was foolish but was given a second chance by the court. Could he go to another recruiting station command (Philadelphia)? Do I call the Commanding Officer and plead my son’s case for him? I feel so bad for him and I just want to help in anyway I can. He has worked so hard on getting into shape he has gone to PT every Tuesday and Thursday since April and just wants to become a Marine.

In closing I just want to thank all of you for what you have done and will continue to do.

[sparkie]

All I can say is things are tight at the moment, and they can do whatever they want. The varable is the current demand. It's tough luck, but if he wants it bad enough, he doesn't give up.

[MicMarine]

Your son is a adult, a man. He needs to fight is own battles. He, not you, needs to stay on top of things. A current Recruiter I am sure will come along to answer this.

[slimmy07]

Waivers are tougher to come by as the fiscal year comes to a close. The new recruiter your son was working with probably had to run the waiver again. The C.O. of the recruiting station doesnt approve those waivers. that waiver was probably sent out to district. Another thing they take into consideration is the fact that your son did not inform the recruiter about his wrist injury, The officer at district is probably thinking....what else is this young man not telling us. My suggestion is to wait till the fiscal year is over and go see a recruiter and have that waiver run again. Things might have changed since I finished recruiting duty (2007) but times are tough and its tougher to get into the Corps right now than ever before.

[bmarutnj]

Thanks all for your advise, he is going to step up and fight for this. He is calling his recruiter today to try and setup a face to face with the Commanding Officer and sell himself.

As far as him not letting his first recruiter know about the wrist, he did. the recruiter suggested he not metion it as it was not a big deal. When he got to MEPS though he felt guilty not saying anything and informed the Doc.

[marine95]

Here is a little more info for you. I'm from NJ and NJ has been making their contracting and shipping mission for some time now. They are just about to have a change of command as did the 1st Marine Corps District CO. Just tell your son to keep the recruiter in the loop because you never know who is going to flake out at the last minute. Especially toward the end of the month. MISSION DAY!!!!

[bmarutnj]

Well last night my son went to PT and spoke with his recruiter. He asked Staff Sergeant if he could setup a meeting with him and the command that is denying his waiver and sell himself. He was told he could not speak to him and handed all his paperwork back. Staff Sergent then suggested he contact the Deleware Recruiting Command and apply there. He also suggested that he try the Army and after a year he can transfer to the Marines.

[usmcdanno]

All sounds like a kind of fishy to me. If he was granted a waiver for drugs, then the waiver should hold for at least 6 months. A broken wrist is pretty much nothing and wouldn't require a waiver of any type that I know of. Granted, your kid (especially at his age) should be able to stand on his own, however calls from Moms and Dads of the country will get notice sooner than his. Doesn't matter if he goes to Delaware or not....it's the same district. Perhaps your son is not telling the entire story.

If your son was arrested for possession of 30.12 grams of marijuana, then that is over an ounce, which in the vast majority of states is a felony. If he was 19 years old, and convicted, then a judge cannot "seal" the case as he wasn't a minor. By federal law and Marine Corps standards a felony can be waived by a General Officer. In other words, his waiver would have to have been approved by the Commanding General of Marine Corps recruiting Eastern Region, which is also the CG of Marine Corps recruit depot Parris Island. Recruiting district commanders (usually a Major) have no authority over such waivers. These waivers are rarely approved and never for drug charges, which leads me to believe that his waiver never was approved.

Sorry, but your son's only hope to join the Marine Corps is to have his felony conviction expunged and even that is no guarantee.

[Zulu 36]

And expungments are usually not granted until at least five years after ALL aspects of the sentence are completed satisfactorily (jail time, probation, fines/costs paid, etc). So if he completed everything at age 20, he would have to wait until he was 25 to motion for an expungement - which is not automatic. A judge could still deny it.

Different states have different laws regarding expungements, but five years seems to be the norm for misdemeanors or low-grade felonies.

[Petz]

it sounds as though the commander won't give drug waivers. they have that right.

If he said to goto deleware it's 'cause it's a different command and different mentality.

There are COs who feel they can make a difference by being strict on their policies, and in many cases they do a good job at it.

If he's really willing to travel he can always move to another district and enlist from there (wouldn't be the first time)

[usmcdanno]

Read the above post SSgt Petzold. When you don't know what you're talking about, it's best to keep one's mouth shut. Stop trying to misinform these people about things that you have no clue about. Read, digest and do your homework long prior to giving advise. Semper Fi, Gunny Dan

[Petz]

gunny, you're right I don't know. I should have stated that. But his recruiter is telling him something and he should be asking him why. There is nothing but speculation in this thread because unless you are in the command and know the intricacies of their day-to-day there then you can't say one way or the other who is right or wrong.

So, I suppose I should be more concise in the future when I'm blabbering on about how things have so many possibilities that it's impossible for us to know.

Semper Fi.

[usmcdanno]

Not really, I encourage all who have read this thread, and all that consider joining the Corps, parents and young people, to read the following at the link provided below. Read carefully, it certainly is straight scoop. Ensure you read it completely. Sometimes recruiters don't know some of the more complicated issues involved in the entire recruitment process. They are taught rudimentary recruitment techniques in a six week school. Not that they don't work hard, committed to the Corps, but they are trained to make contact, discover likely disqualifying issues, find them a job and ship them off to boot camp. They don't always know the nuances of the whole process.

http://usmilitary.about.com/od/marin...minal.-um-.htm

[Petz]

like saying ADVICE opposed to ADVISE.

good gouge gunny, thank you.

[bmarutnj]

Thanks guys and sorry for using advise instead of advice, I'm an accountant not a writer. I had a friend pull his court order and charge disposition, he was given a conditional discharge for the offense of 1 year with no criminal code violations and was ordered to pay all court costs. Even though he has no criminal code violations do the Marines still consider this an arrest?