College Arrest 101 Blog | How to Prepare for a College Disciplinary Hearing
Whether it be an "informal" meeting with the Dean to "discuss" the incident, or a formal conference or disciplinary hearing before an administrator or a disciplinary panel, a college should student be prepared. Many times students don't know or understand the disciplinary process and think it's "no big deal" or they have been told by another student who has gone though the process "not worry about it." Nothing could be [...]
College Arrest 101 Blog | Even Harvard Students Get Suspended
This month Harvard finally resolved all the student disciplinary cases resulting from the infamous exam cheating scandal of the Spring 2012 semester which the university first announced in August 2012 here. Harvard announced that approximately 140 students were suspected of cheating. Half of this group were ultimately found in violation of the honor code and suspended (which Harvard calls "required to withdraw") for two to four semesters. One quarter of [...]
College Arrest 101 Blog | Legalized Marijuana Still Illegal on College Campuses
As of January 1st, two new States will be legalizing marijuana smoking. I'm sure many college students across Colorado and Washington are very happy about these newly enacted laws. However, just because marijuana possession may be "allowed" by a State (either legalized or decriminalized), colleges and universities are apparently still banning marijuana on campus. A recent article here discusses a number of Colorado colleges addressing the marijuana legalization issue on [...]
College Arrest 101 Blog | Arrests and Enlisting in the Military
In observance of Veteran's Day today we will discuss issues that college students who may want to enlist in the Military may face after an arrest. With Military enlistment for college students and recent college graduates on the rise, this topic is even more important to consider if you are a college student with an arrest in your background. Normally, after a college student is arrested the first issue on [...]
College Arrest Blog 101 | Mugshot Websites
Just when you college students thought that you cleaned up your online image by scrubbing your Facebook page of any inappropriate photos, etc., the Internet rears its ugly head again with Mugshot websites. Any college student who has been arrested in the past year or so will soon learn that their face, i.e. their mugshot (the photo taken at their arrest) along with the accompanying arrest charges are all over [...]
College Arrest 101 Blog | Legal Risks of College Students Abusing Prescription Drugs
Times certainly have changed. I was surprised to learn that these days college students are buying and selling drugs - not to get high but to study more and get better grades. There is an epidemic in college campuses across the country where students are illegally purchasing "study drugs" like Adderall and Ritalin which are normally prescribed for ADA or ADHD in order to achieve better grades. It may begin [...]
College Arrest 101 Blog | Parents’ Handbook to Navigate Your College Student’s Arrest | #4 Closing the Case
At some point after your college student's arrest and court litigation the case will finally be ready to close. In every state there are a multitude of different ways a criminal case can be disposed of. But generally a criminal case must either go to trial or settle - unless your lawyer is able to get the charges thrown out entirely. The vast majority of cases will be settled. In [...]
College Arrest 101 Blog | Parent’s Handbook to Navigate Your College Student’s Arrest | #3 Important Details of the Case
Being a parent with a college student who has an open criminal case can be challenging - even more difficult when you are thousands of miles or many states away. But, it can be easily managed and navigated as long as you know what is important to monitor and concentrate on. Probably one of the simplest and most important things to monitor is court dates. First, your college student should [...]
College Arrest 101 Blog | Parents’ Handbook to Navigate Your College Student’s Arrest | #2 Hiring An Attorney
As soon as a parent hears that their college student child has been arrested one of their first thoughts is about hiring an attorney. Many questions will surround this decision. Do I even need to hire an attorney for my child? How much will an attorney costs? How do I find an attorney for my college student? First, I always recommend that any college student who is arrested have [...]
College Arrest 101 Blog | Parents’ Handbook to Navigate Your College Student’s Arrest | #1 Bail
The next series of 4 posts will serve a guide to parents who have received the second most dreaded phone call from a child who is away at college - the phone call from the jail! The only phone call for a parent which is worse is a call from the hospital. Most likely a parent will receive this call late at night and be many miles away from where [...]
College Arrest 101 Blog | Back to School
Students have returned to Colleges and Universities all over the country for another academic year. This means a return to campus, friends and partying. Law enforcement is also out in force around campus knowing that students are returning. New Freshman and even returning students should be particularly aware during this time of typical police investigations of underage drinking of college students, including policing and ID checking in bars close to [...]
College Arrest 101 Blog | College Students and Drug Arrest
We posted here that statistics show that the majority of college student arrests relate to alcohol and drugs. Probably by far the most arrests for drugs by college students is for marijuana or pot possession. This is not surprising information to students or their parents. However, most student and parents have no idea what is involved in a drug arrest and criminal court case. First, depending on the charge the [...]
College Arrest 101 Blog | Pretrial Diversion Programs Are Perfect for College Students
The legal term "Pretrial Diversion" is something every college student (or parent of a college student) who has been arrested for the first time should be made aware of. Pretrial Diversion has been around in the United States court system since the 1970's and approximately 45 states currently have legislation enabling these programs. Click here for a detailed report about the Pretrial Diversion practices across the country. What is Pretrial [...]
College Arrest 101 Blog | College Students and DUI Arrest
When statistics show that over 3 million students ages 18-24 have driven drunk, it is not surprising that many college students across the country are arrested every year for DUI. In many states there is a zero tolerance policy for underage drinking and driving. This means that even if your state law has a breath alcohol limit of .10 or .08 this does not apply to those under 21. In [...]
College Arrest 101 Blog | College Students, Careers and Criminal Records
Juvenile and Adult criminal records will haunt college students when applying for a job or a professional license - perhaps forever. See a more recent post here about mugshot websites. Therefore, the main goal should be to avoid leaving a criminal conviction on a student's record and also properly seal or expunge arrest records whenever possible. But, many times a criminal record exists and must be dealt with when thinking [...]
College Arrest 101 Blog | College Arrest Statistics
College students can be arrested for anything, but probably the most likely crimes and arrests for college students are alcohol and drug related violations. Every year across the county thousands of students move into university dorms and residents halls. These residential colleges see the most of substance related arrests. For example, at the University of Miami (statistics here) and Florida International University (statistics here) these alcohol and drug arrests are [...]
College Arrest 101 Blog | Twitter May Lead to Suspension
Colleges and Universities, like the rest of the world, are dealing with the rapid rise of social media like Twitter and Facebook. In many cases a college student's post on Facebook or tweet on Twitter may get them in hot water and result in university discipline and sometimes even suspension. A number of these cases have been popping up in the news recently. See here and here. We have [...]
College Arrest 101 Blog | DREAM Act and Immigrant College Students
Today President Obama announced that U.S. Immigration would halt deportation of young illegal immigrant students (under 30 years old) who were brought to the US before age 16. Instead, they can remain in the United States and apply for a work permit. You can read the about the announcement here. This is the first step toward the Dream Act, immigration reform legislation which is currently pending that would give relief [...]
College Arrest Blog 101 | Notification of Parents in Student Discipline Cases
Dear Parent, Your child has been charged by this University with violating the disciplinary code . . . Depending on the nature of the disciplinary violation and the age of the college student, the school may legally notify the parents of a pending disciplinary violation. The disclosure of these disciplinary records is governed by FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act). This Federal Statute states that the parents of children [...]
College Arrest 101 Blog | Important Decisions to Make in a Student Disciplinary Proceeding
Within hours of first receiving notice that the student is being charged with a college or university disciplinary violation, he will be faced with serious decisions that will effect the outcome of the process. The first step in any disciplinary process requires the college or university to provide the student with formal, written notice of the charges against him. Within a few days of receiving notice of the charges, the [...]
College Arrest 101 Blog | Dorm Room Search
Knock, knock, knock . . .on the other side of the door is your RA and the Police. Unfortunately, this happens everyday at Colleges and Universities across the country. What are a college students rights when facing a search of his dorm room? First, college staff normally has the right to enter and search a student's dorm room. Every student should be familiar with his Student Handbook and Residency Regulations. [...]
College Arrest 101 Blog | Miami College Student Pleads Guilty in Federal Court to Threatening President Obama on Facebook
A Miami-Dade College Student plead guilty last week in Federal Court to One Count of Threatening to Kill the President. In February, the student posted comments on his Facebook page with threats to President Obama at an upcoming campaign stop at the local University of Miami Campus in Coral Gables, Florida. Full Article is Here. This college student could face a sentence anywhere from probation up to 5 years in [...]
College Arrest 101 Blog | Appeal of University Suspension or Expulsion
Student discipline is normally handled at most colleges and universities by the Dean's Office or the Office of Student Affairs. Students who are facing university discipline can normally request a full hearing (including calling witnesses and presenting evidence) before a school administrator or a student and faculty panel who acts as a "jury" and decides the guilt or innocence of the student. If found guilty or "responsible" for the violation [...]
College Arrest 101 Blog | Arrest or Suspension Affects Both Financial Aid and Scholarships
A college student who was arrested has more to worry about than just going to criminal court and the direct consequences of a criminal charge. A student who is arrested may also face discipline at the university level which could result in suspension or expulsion. Both an arrest and a disciplinary suspension can have serious consequences on a student's financial aid or scholarships. First, if a student receives a conviction [...]
College Arrest 101 Blog | University Disciplinary Records
As soon as a college or university student is charged within the school's disciplinary system records are being generated. These include records of the incident (criminal or otherwise), reports of university officials, statements, complaints, charging documents and then the ultimate sanction - be it probation or suspension or expulsion. Fortunately, these records are considered "educational records" and are NOT public. They are kept confidential by the university pursuant Federal Law. [...]