By James D. Phillips,
Recently we received a question on the website asking, “if a 2007 drug charge would keep the questioner from getting a CWFL?” There are various types of drug charge one can be arrested for. Drug charges can range from a first degree misdemeanor punishable by up to 1 year in the county jail all the way to a first degree felony which is punishable up to 30 years in prison. Whether or not you are eligible for a CWFL will depend on which drug charge you are prosecuted for and the outcome of that prosecution. In the criminal judicial system, people who are either found guilty at trial or enter a plea to a crime may be adjudicated guilty or receive a withhold of adjudication. If you are adjudicated guilty of a crime, then you are convicted of that crime and have a criminal record. If the crime you were adjudicated guilty for was a felony charge, then you will be a convicted felon and not eligible for a CWFL. If you are adjudicated guilty of a misdemeanor drug charge, such as possession of cannabis under 20 grams, you will have to wait 3 years from date of completion of probation or any other court ordered sanctioned before you may apply for your CWFL. If you received a withhold adjudication then you are not adjudicated guilty of the crime and are not a convicted felon, even if you were charged with a felony. If you receive a withhold of adjudication on a drug charge regardless of it being a misdemeanor or felony, you must wait 3 years from the time you completed probation, or any other sanctions ordered by the court. However, this 3-year waiting period maybe shortened if you have your record sealed.