quockieo
May 7, 2008, 07:39 PM
Hi I am a male and was born in Japan. I did a very stupid thing by shoplifting at a mall in Texas when I've just barely turned 21. I was caught by a police officer through a videotape of the cameras in Dillard's and was charged with a 50-500 theft prop offense. This whole situation also includes spending a night in jail before getting bailed, getting fingerprinted, and a mug shot taken. At that time, I'd just got out of a really bad car-accident with a month of coma in Baylor Hospital of Texas. I hired an attorney who told me that he would try to get my case dismissed so he helped me get a 30 hr community service and my case dismissed . I didn't plead to anything. So now I'm wondering if my offense or criminal record still lingering somewhere before applying for U.S. citizenship. Does a dismissed case means that I don't have a criminal conviction record? Would I need another attorney to get an expunction as soon as possible? And then how can I answer to the question on the Citizenship test interview where is goes something like "Have you ever been convicted or arrested before and for what? I just need some legal or good advices before applying for citizenship.