HS Grad on Probation, want to be a marine!

[clovis]

Okay!
I'm 18, will be 19 in December just recently out of high school and I want to be a Marine for four years minimum 6 maximum, if I don't change my mind along the way.

Right now its really hard to get a job anywhere and I want to go to college too. I just can't decide if I should do two years within the service and owe four, or just do my 4-6 and pay for it when I get out. If I do school first WITHIN the service, am I reporting in? Am I doing PT? Drills? Random UA? If I go that route what is expected of me while I'm in school.

I also am on probation currently for something that happened while I was in Texas. Originally it was a felony, reduced to a misdemeanor, and then I got deferred adjudication which kept me from being convicted of ANYTHING. I'd be done with "probation" by November, except my fine and court fees came out to 1400. I've been struggling to look for work but I can't find any and thus cannot pay my fines. Can I still join up on probation? All I need to do is pay the fines but seeing as how the job market in Hawaii is quite slim I have not been able to do so.


I would very much like to be a Marine! If I'm gonna do military I want to do it for real. I want to make my military fambam proud of me (They said anything but Marines but I wanna play with the big boys) and earn the citizenship I was born with....and honestly I'm soooo stoked to go to basic training and get my ass worked!!

I don't have a whole lot of direction as far as what career I want, and I've never committed fully to anything in my life so this is going to be a huge, monstrous, scary hurdle to overcome which is why right now I'm setting the bar at 4-6 years.

[Quinbo]

No

[Wyoming]

... other than wanting to, play with the big boys, being soooo stoked, go to basic training, and getting your ass worked, I am totally lost as to what you want.

WTF was the question?

[Phantom Blooper]

if I don't change my mind along the way.

If you are in the habit of changing your mind along the way...you would be better off not wasting your time or a recruiters time....to try to work with you on your waivers....let someone who has a clean slate fill that slot and you just go on with your life until you can make the right call without second thoughts.

Until you have you legal issues squared away you can not join any branch of military service.

[clovis]

If you are in the habit of changing your mind along the way...you would be better off not wasting your time or a recruiters time....to try to work with you on your waivers....let someone who has a clean slate fill that slot and you just go on with your life until you can make the right call without second thoughts.

Until you have you legal issues squared away you can not join any branch of military service.

Wait wait wait, my recruiter CAN get me a waiver, or I simply can't join? I have no conviction, just the probation and the payment plan, and I can get the payment plan readjusted I only have to make a request to my P.O.

I'm not changing my mind about enlisting, that's a sure thing. If I can't do it now I'll do it the second I get my fines paid off. Its the amount of time that I stay in for that I'm unsure about.

[Lynn2]

"I have no conviction, just the probation and the payment plan"

How in the world can this be?

Can any PO or lawyer here explain this?

[clovis]

"I have no conviction, just the probation and the payment plan"

How in the world can this be?

Can any PO or lawyer here explain this?

Deferred adjudication.

[clovis]

... other than wanting to, play with the big boys, being soooo stoked, go to basic training, and getting your ass worked, I am totally lost as to what you want.

WTF was the question?

lol, am I being over enthusiastic?
I'm just excited I wanna do this!

[Lisa 23]

You're fines have to be paid in full before any recruiter will do anything with you. Then there's the waiver issue which may or may not get approved. We're not recruiters here, so none of the Marines who are going to answer your questions, know if a waiver will get approved or not, either.
Your best bet is to talk with a recuiter face-to-face.

Do a search on the site, or even the internet, for criminal history, as that topic has been covered before.

[Zulu 36]

Deferred adjudication.

OK, that's nice. But here is the reality of deferred adjudication. All that means is if you behave during your probationary period (and pay all fines/costs), the judge will order your conviction waived. No conviction will appear on your public record.

Yes, you were convicted (or pled guilty or no-contest - same thing) otherwise you wouldn't be on a deferred adjudication.

As far as the military (or any other potential employer) is concerned is that you were still arrested and still faced some form of legal punishment (probation/fines/costs). Your non-public record is still available to those who have proper need and authority to access it.

Now if you want to argue this was a juvenile case and not an adult case, it doesn't matter. As far as the Marine Corps is concerned, an arrest is an arrest, and a conviction is a conviction. Once your file is closed by the judge, you will still need a waiver to enlist in the Corps, which you may or may NOT get. That is above our pay grade.

[Phantom Blooper]

No judicial or LEO background...


http://www.texasdefenselaw.com/recen...-deferred.html

Some Warnings About Deferred Adjudication

Many people have misconceptions about deferred adjudication probation in Texas. The most common misconception is that the offense is erased from your record if you successfully complete the deferred probation period. This belief is incorrect.

A deferred sentence will still be on your criminal history after you complete the probation period. To erase the record and be able to deny the arrest, you must file a petition for non-disclosure.

Furthermore, some deferred sentences are ineligible for non-disclosure. For example, any crime involving family violence is ineligible for non-disclosure. So, if you take deferred adjudication for a Class A assault that involves family violence, that sentence will stay on your criminal history forever.

Finally, some deferred sentences require a waiting period before the petition for non-disclosure can be filed. For example, some misdemeanors like assault or unlawfully carrying a weapon require a two year waiting period before the petition can be filed. That is, you must wait two years after completing your deferred probation before attempting to clear your record. For felonies, the waiting period is five years (as of 9-1-2005).

Many lawyers convince clients to take deferred sentences by arguing that the record will eventually be sealed. Remember that some offenses can never be sealed, and some offenses require the waiting period. So while deferred adjudication is often a good deal, sometimes you might be better off fighting the charge and proving your innocence.




Then after this procedure you need to still go through a USMC RSS recruiter to apply for a waiver.

Your recruiter can not give you a waiver....he/she can apply for a waiver and put it up through the command...in some cases....or MEPS approval.


I do not question your charges....however if you are concerned now with random UA's.... the Marine Corps nor the military services in general are right for you....unless you are clean...and REMAIN clean throughout your term of enlistment.

There is zero tolerance for this and in some cases can be worse than civilian law....there is no adjucation....maybe a plea....for leniency... but not deferred.

You get busted....your busted

[clovis]

No judicial or LEO background...

Your recruiter can not give you a waiver....he/she can apply for a waiver and put it up through the command...in some cases....or MEPS approval.


I do not question your charges....however if you are concerned now with random UA's.... the Marine Corps nor the military services in general are right for you....unless you are clean...and REMAIN clean throughout your term of enlistment.

There is zero tolerance for this and in some cases can be worse than civilian law....there is no adjucation....maybe a plea....for leniency... but not deferred.

You get busted....your busted

Alright...so there's a 50/50 chance of it being waived IF my recruiter applies.

And naw, the UA thing isn't an issue I just was wondering if its like...how inactive people don't report in or get UA's, is it like that during school or am I ONLY focusing on school and the military portion comes after.


Thanks to all ya'll who gave SERIOUS answers I appreciate the help!

[Phantom Blooper]

Alright...so there's a 50/50 chance of it being waived IF my recruiter applies.

Monday....NO.

Next week....NO.

Next 5 month's 28 days...NO.

Next year...??????

The Marine Corps is looking for potential recruits that have NO dirty laundry to bring with them.

The questions that you ask are recruiter questions.....but unless Hades freezes over and the flood gates open again....you are low priority.

Get a serious synopsis of questions together and ask a recruiter!

[Lisa 23]

Thanks to all ya'll who gave SERIOUS answers I appreciate the help!

Yes, this does bother me. How about saying thanks Marines instead.

[Quinbo]

You seem to have some strange misconception of military service and college mixture. If you join active duty it is a 4X4 or 5X3 contract. That is 4 active and 4 inactive ready reserve. If you are some how mixing the idea of being in the reserves and going to college .... you still have to do the 1 weekend a month plus two weeks a year of training.

There is no way to just pick how long you are gonna serve. You do the whole contract. You don't just go to boot camp and then off to college. It doesn't work that way.

The Army has a fairly new program called try it for a year. Maybe you should try that route. A teenager that went from living in Texas to living in Hawaii suggests that you are probably a military brat... especially living in Ewa Beach. Maybe your parents can explain how it works.