I'm still in undergrad. I take it that there's no point in applying to law school anymore. What are some feasible careers for convicted felons? From what I understand, pretty much anything involving professional licensing is difficult, if not, impossible for me now. I really don't know what to do at this point. I'm okay with not being an attorney...but I don't want to wait tables for the rest of my life, either.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=1234468&forum_id=2#14234766)

i only ask bc the brother of a friend of mine went to prison for several years for cocaine and some other charges. while he was in prison he taught himself quite a bit about computers. when he got out, he worked as a contractor with his father and eventually got a job as a programmer with a company his dad worked for. At the last job he had he was making about 70k

i dont know if this anecdote is useful or not, but I'm just saying it can be done. However, you will obviously have a much, much harder time getting hired than the average person, but if you work hard and/or have connections you might be ok.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=1234468&forum_id=2#14234821)

It seems like this idea has a lot of problems with it; maybe I should find another one, hmm.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=1234468&forum_id=2#14263439)

work your way up to sales manager and make 150-200k

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=1234468&forum_id=2#14234788)

2)Plea bargaining to a misdemeanor is not possible in my situation. My charges are Possession of a Controlled Substance with Intent to Distribute (VCSGA Schedule IV and Schedule III). The statutes only allow for misdemeanor offenses when it comes to marijuana.

3)Perhaps my record won't keep me from being admitted to school, but what about the bar? I understand that C & F can be forgiving of past mistakes, but I'd really hate to find out that they didn't in my case.

4)It's doubtful that I'll have to serve time. Most likely it'll just be 3-5 years of intensive probation (random drug screens and 4th Amendment waivers are common around here).

5)Entrepreneurship is probably the best path to mass riches, albeit fraught with risk. In any event, I don't really want to be the next Bill Gates or Larry Page. I just want to make a comfortable living doing something besides menial labor.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=1234468&forum_id=2#14235065)

as for your question, this guy seems to be doing pretty well for himself: http://www.americanprisonconsultants.com/

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=1234468&forum_id=2#14246180)

i would get involved in SALES. a lot of entrepreneurial spirit without the financial risks and it helps a lot to have someone else teach you who has already done so. if you were good at hustling pills you'd probably do alright with yourself hustling something else.

And most of these jobs never check records or really fucking care as long as you are making them money.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=1234468&forum_id=2#14247318)

"Drug dealers don't sell drugs. Drugs sell themselves. It's crack. It's not an encyclopedia. It's not a f**king vacuum cleaner. You don't really gotta try to sell crack. Ok?

I've never heard a crack dealer going "Man, how am I gonna get rid of all this crack?!"

(Except thank goodness I didn't have to deal with crackheads.)

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=1234468&forum_id=2#14250330)

2) Move to a state like New York or Wisconsin where it's illegal to discriminate on the basis of criminal conviction. I'm sure people there do it anyway, but it's probably not as bad as in other places.

3) Stop doing stupid shit that will fuck up your life forever.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=1234468&forum_id=2#14259122)

Get some shitty-ass job. Save as much money as you can. Sell all your shit. After a year buy a plane ticket to somewhere you've never heard of. Live in hostels. Learn the language. Trek across the country. Work some menial jobs to stay afloat. Fly somewhere else. You'll live a more interesting and fulfilling life than 99% of the people on this board.

You have nothing to lose. Congrats.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=1234468&forum_id=2#14259242)

Tell polite society to kiss your ass and seize what you want.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=1234468&forum_id=2#14259259)

If this happened to my child, I'd do anything I could to help him.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=1234468&forum_id=2#14259359)

Asking my parents for money is a no-go. They wouldn't have much money to give me in the first place, and especially not now, considering the several thousand they had to shell out for a lawyer and for bail. Add to that the fine and probation fees that I'm going to have to shell out...

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=1234468&forum_id=2#14259856)

Granted, Georgia doesn't sound like a liberal or forgiving place, so you might be screwed, but no harm in making sure other defense attorneys don't immediately indicate they could likely get a plea to something else.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=1234468&forum_id=2#14259777)

Also, from what I can tell, there simply isn't anything in the statute to allow for a misdemeanor charge for any controlled substances other than marijuana. Simple possession is just as much a felony as possession with intent. What I'd like to know is whether I could still qualify for conditional discharge, i.e. O.C.G.A. § 16-13-2:

http://web.lexis-nexis.com/research/retrieve?_m=b362745c5ac6b653333da59c09035dcc&csvc=toc2doc&cform=&_fmtstr=FULL&docnum=1&_startdoc=1&wchp=dGLbVtb-zSkAB&_md5=25dd0e52ddd8a655384fba97e2f1d1f9

There isn't anything in the statute that specifies which drug offenses it applies to, only "Whenever any person who has not previously been convicted of any offense under Article 2 or Article 3 of this chapter or of any statute of the United States or of any state relating to narcotic drugs, marijuana, or stimulant, depressant, or hallucinogenic drugs." I'm waiting to hear back from my lawyer about this, but I think the odds are slim, considering that he's never mentioned it to me as an option.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=1234468&forum_id=2#14260301)

"A pardon which does not imply innocence may be granted to an applicant convicted under Georgia law who has completed his full sentence obligation, including serving any probated sentence and paying any court-ordered payment, and who has thereafter completed five years without any criminal involvement. The five-year waiting period after sentence completion may be waived if the waiting period is shown to be detrimental to the applicant's livelihood by delaying his qualifying for employment in his chosen profession. Application must be made by the ex-offender on a form available from the Board on request.

No pardon is automatic; the Board judges the merits of each individual case."

So if I have 5 years of probation (that's what I'm guessing will be offered in the plea bargain), and I'm able to convince the board, I may be able to get the pardon as soon as 2015. So that wouldn't be too bad at all. Anyone know how difficult this would be, or how difficult it is to get a pardon in the first place?

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=1234468&forum_id=2#14267925)