A Felon No More
Our society stigmatizes criminals. I know, this isn’t news, right? But what is noteworthy is the fact that you don’t necessarily have to bear the lifetime burden of being labeled a “felon”. California law allows certain felony offenses to be reduced to misdemeanors.
Reducing a felony conviction to a misdemeanor has a number of benefits.
First and foremost, reducing a felony conviction to a misdemeanor allows you to say truthfully that you have never been convicted of a felony. This is important because virtually all applications ask whether or not you’ve ever been convicted of a felony (employment applications, loan applications, housing applications, etc.). Once the person reviewing the application sees that you have, they almost immediately dismiss you as a candidate.
Professional licenses and firearm rights are also intertwined with felony convictions. Certain professions will suspend or revoke a professional license upon learning about a felony conviction. And, in California, felons lose the right to own or acquire firearms for life.
The bad news is that not all felony convictions are eligible for reduction. There are certain requirements that must be satisfied. To find out if you can reduce your felony conviction to a misdemeanor, we advise consulting with a qualified California expungement attorney.
