[Cindy9]

Hi,

I have a question about traveling to the US with a conditional discharge. I was charged with criminal harassment in April, for sending annoying messages to someone through Facebook. I live in Ontario, Canada. My lawyer says that if we ask for a absolute or conditional discharge, I will be okay to travel to the USA, especially by plane. She says that she has never had a client unable to travel to the US with one. She says it is easier by plane than by car and that if they have any questions, just answer them, and I should be okay to go. Is this true? I fear that they will not let me through.

[Debbie Ward]

The United States treats conditional discharges as convictions, because according to the criminal code, a conditional discharge is given in situations in which there was an admission or finding of guilt, but it was determined to not be in society's best interest to convict. Therefore, the US has ALWAYS treated discharges as guilty.

The question you should be asking is "Does criminal harrassement make me inadmissible". Since there is no evidence of intent to cause injury or harm you should be OK. To take it once step further, even if it were an excludable offence, it is probably a summary offence. There is an exception rule that applies to most summary offences (but excluding summary offences involving drugs or sexual assault, and a few othes) that states if you have only one they'll make an exception. Since border guards have a hard time knowing all rules, if you get a court document showing it was summary... if they are confused about whether it is an excludable offence, then provding proof that it is summary will satisfy them that it meets the one offence exception rule.