Need advice on my situation. LPR about to file early for Naturalization

[johndoe89]

I entered the country on a family sponsored Green Card on 08/15/2008. I will be early filing an N-400 along with a fee waiver form on 05/17/2013 which is the earliest filing date. I am extremely nervous about my stupid indiscretions as a dumb college kid that have led to three run-ins with the law.

1. In 2011 I was in a car with an opened bottle of Vodka in the back seat. My friend was driving the car recklessly and we got pulled over and all 4 occupants ended up getting City tickets for "Illegal transportation of Alcohol". None of us contested and as a court appearance was not required, we simply paid a fine and moved on.

2. In early 2012 I had a party at my house and discovered that a guy one of my friends had brought was the largest Marijuana supplier in the University of Illinois area and being under the influence he proceeded to calmly smoke a joint in my room with the smoke detector uncovered. The entire party rushed out as soon as the alarms went off leaving me to explain why the house smelled of weed. They also discovered a pipe and told me to simply admit it was mine or that they would take me to county jail till Monday to be processed. Being a complete idiot I agreed and the Campus Cops said that they would charge me with a Misdemeanor Class A for possession of Drug Paraphernalia. I was later pleasantly shocked when the Cops said that my case was dismissed and I was not required to appear in court. I was assured that the matter had ended and that the paperwork that they had would be purged and that was the last I thought about that. No arrest was ever made and when I followed up recently the campus PD says they have no record of the incident.

3. In late 2012 as I was leaving an Unofficial St Patty's party with a Gatorade bottle with the slightest trace of Vodka, the local Police stopped me and questioned me about the contents of the bottle to which I was truthful and co-operative. The next thing I know I was given a citation for "Transportation of open container of Alcohol in public"
No court appearance was required and because it was finals week I decided it wasn't worth the time or effort to contest the ticket in court and I ended up paying the fine.

Summary :

I have 1 dismissed Class A Misdemeanor of which no records exist (At least with Campus PD) and 2 City tickets/citations which have been paid and uncontested with no court appearance being required.

Other than this I have been a stellar student with a 3.7 GPA, 2 Degrees, Student Body Vice President, Budget Committee member, Student Ambassador and an honors society member. I checked my Lexis Nexis and other background check services and nothing came up. I did a public records search and nothing came up.

Questions :

1. Should I be concerned ?
2. Should I mention any or all of these incidents either on the N-400 form or during the interview or both ?
3. Should I attempt to get paperwork of said events ?
4. Should I consult a Lawyer ( I am unemployed and have no funds currently )
5. Should I give an accurate account of what happened or should I go along with the confession I was tricked into making ?

 

[johndoe89]

Please offer inputs. I am at my wits end

I understand that the best answer would be from a lawyer but any inputs at all would be appreciated. I already consulted with a lawyer who advised me to come clean on everything and hope for the best.

 

[Maxie1]

I understand that the best answer would be from a lawyer but any inputs at all would be appreciated. I already consulted with a lawyer who advised me to come clean on everything and hope for the best.

I'm not much of an expert on this, but part of what the officer will be judging you on is good moral character. although having these in your past is not the best thing, but hiding it might be even worse. Remember they are going to do a full background check on you. I would confess on the form and explain during the interview that you were young and it was college.. Hopefully the officer will be understanding. I would also collect all the available paperwork and bring it to the interview, as they might ask for it.
Another option is to wait a little (if you're not in a rush to become a US citizen) and apply in a few years when these are not so recent (assuming no additional citations).
My officer is so terrible that she even counted ONE speeding ticket as something that should be on the form and that I should confess... you never know what officer you will get.

 

[Eidolons03]

I have heard stories of the USCIS dinging up supposedly expunged offenses so I would definitely come clean. I think the N400 is not so much about your information, as the government can pretty much answer all the questions as long as they have your SSN and Green Card, but rather about your honesty and willingness to be thorough.

One of my major concerns on my application was that I no longer had my passport so I couldn't be sure about the dates I traveled outside the country. I estimated o the best of knowledge and I attached a sheet to the application explaining that I no longer had the passport and that I was estimating the dates. The USCIS was ok with the way I handled the situation cuz it never came back to bite me in the behind.

 

[Eidolons03]

I'm not much of an expert on this, but part of what the officer will be judging you on is good moral character. although having these in your past is not the best thing, but hiding it might be even worse. Remember they are going to do a full background check on you. I would confess on the form and explain during the interview that you were young and it was college.. Hopefully the officer will be understanding. I would also collect all the available paperwork and bring it to the interview, as they might ask for it.
Another option is to wait a little (if you're not in a rush to become a US citizen) and apply in a few years when these are not so recent (assuming no additional citations).
My officer is so terrible that she even counted ONE speeding ticket as something that should be on the form and that I should confess... you never know what officer you will get.

I agree. This kind of thing really depends on who the IO is and the IO's mood. I got a really sweet female IO. Things went so smoothly that I even cracked a few jokes. When she asked if I had ever hired a prostitute I said "as if I had the money..." (I don't recommend making jokes because that can spectacularly backfire). The point is that some IOs may see your incidents as normal behavior for a college kid, on the other hand, the IO can surmise you are a sociopathic individual who shouldn't even be out on the streets...

Maybe you can wait a little and try your best not to get in trouble again and then apply.

 

[johndoe89]

I'm not much of an expert on this, but part of what the officer will be judging you on is good moral character. although having these in your past is not the best thing, but hiding it might be even worse. Remember they are going to do a full background check on you. I would confess on the form and explain during the interview that you were young and it was college.. Hopefully the officer will be understanding. I would also collect all the available paperwork and bring it to the interview, as they might ask for it.
Another option is to wait a little (if you're not in a rush to become a US citizen) and apply in a few years when these are not so recent (assuming no additional citations).
My officer is so terrible that she even counted ONE speeding ticket as something that should be on the form and that I should confess... you never know what officer you will get.

The reason I am rushing to get my citizenship is because I have had this lifelong ambition of serving in the Peace Corps and seeing the world. They only take in Citizens and not LPRs. I even gave up a shot at immigrating to the U.K at 19 for the sole purpose of doing the Peace Corp. I know it sounds corny and over the top idealistic but having spoken to so many RPCVs, I know it is what I want to do.

 

[johndoe89]

I'm not much of an expert on this, but part of what the officer will be judging you on is good moral character. although having these in your past is not the best thing, but hiding it might be even worse. Remember they are going to do a full background check on you. I would confess on the form and explain during the interview that you were young and it was college.. Hopefully the officer will be understanding. I would also collect all the available paperwork and bring it to the interview, as they might ask for it.
Another option is to wait a little (if you're not in a rush to become a US citizen) and apply in a few years when these are not so recent (assuming no additional citations).
My officer is so terrible that she even counted ONE speeding ticket as something that should be on the form and that I should confess... you never know what officer you will get.

*Update* : I called the Illinois State Police and sure enough they have a file with my Marijuana incident as well as the 'two minor infractions'. They say that the records of my Marijuana incident can be expunged. You say that they can even go through expunged or sealed records, if that is indeed the case then can I simply fess up without going through the expunging ?

 

[Jackolantern]

I was later pleasantly shocked when the Cops said that my case was dismissed and I was not required to appear in court. I was assured that the matter had ended and that the paperwork that they had would be purged and that was the last I thought about that. No arrest was ever made and when I followed up recently the campus PD says they have no record of the incident.

They dropped the case because they knew it would get thrown out of court. They had no evidence that the drug pipe was yours, and what you admitted after being threatened with "admit it or we're taking you to jail" would likely get thrown out by the judge. USCIS can see expunged records, so expunging it won't help with your citizenship application. Bring records of the dismissal to the interview, but don't admit to doing anything wrong.

You have to mention the other two incidents, as you were fined for them and they involved alcohol. You'll need to get proof that they were paid or otherwise resolved.

If I were you I wouldn't apply for citizenship in 2013. With 3 incidents in a short time span, the interviewer may get the impression that you're a bit of a troublemaker and you could get denied on a discretionary basis. You'll be in better shape if you have at least a full year of being 100% clean before you apply.

 

[Eidolons03]

The reason I am rushing to get my citizenship is because I have had this lifelong ambition of serving in the Peace Corps and seeing the world. They only take in Citizens and not LPRs. I even gave up a shot at immigrating to the U.K at 19 for the sole purpose of doing the Peace Corp. I know it sounds corny and over the top idealistic but having spoken to so many RPCVs, I know it is what I want to do.

Don't sell yourself short for being idealistic. After my oath ceremony I am planning on registering to vote as Green Party member. I could have voted in the last election cycle I would have voted for Jill Stein. The world needs idealistic people who are willing to get their hands dirty to help solve the gargantuan problems humanity is facing right now.

 

[Maxie1]

If I were you I wouldn't apply for citizenship in 2013. With 3 incidents in a short time span, the interviewer may get the impression that you're a bit of a troublemaker and you could get denied on a discretionary basis. You'll be in better shape if you have at least a full year of being 100% clean before you apply.

Agreed.

 

[johndoe89]

Agreed.

I plan on applying for the fee waiver that is granted to people making less than 120 % of the National Poverty line which I am well below. Therefore the 680 dollars is not an issue for me. However I am concerned that if I do get rejected, there would be a minimum wait period. If this is the case is it a standard 5 year wait period or would he say " Well in your case I would wait for a couple years to stay out of trouble and then try"

 

[Jackolantern]

What you've done isn't bad enough to cause an obligatory denial; the denial (if you're denied) would be based on a discretionary finding of failing to maintain good moral character.

So subjective impressions are important, particularly with the incidents still being within the 5-year statutory period. If you apply in the near future and get denied for lacking good moral character as a result of those incidents, and then you reapply before 2017, the next interviewer will see that those incidents are still within the 5 year window, and they'll also see that your previous denial was for bad moral character. That creates a bad subjective impression against you, with the interviewer wondering why he/she should approve you when nothing has really changed since the denial (i.e. the incidents are still within the 5 year window). So the eventual result of denial now could be having to wait until 2017 for a successful application.

However, the courts seem to be a bit more tolerant of minor offenses like this, so if you apply now and get denied, get a lawyer and appeal. Otherwise, try to prevent the denial by showing that you can stay out of trouble for 1 or 2 years.

 

[Jackolantern]

There is another route to citizenship (if you qualify through your parent(s)), and your eligibility would not be affected by these incidents -- did you get your green card before age 18? If yes, did either parent become a US citizen before you turned 18?

 

[johndoe89]

There is another route to citizenship (if you qualify through your parent(s)), and your eligibility would not be affected by these incidents -- did you get your green card before age 18? If yes, did either parent become a US citizen before you turned 18?

Unfortunately I got it at 19 and my parents have relinquished their Green Cards. :/