Comments on: Is a Summary Offense a Crime?

By: Brian Zeiger

Brian Zeiger — Mon, 06 Sep 2010 12:54:26 +0000

@AMC: you can order a copy of your NCIC from the PA state police for a very cheap price. It will show you exactly what is reported. You can also use intellius, though I am in no way adverting, endorsing, etc., but sometimes, I use intellius to compare it to what I get from the PA state police.

If you want me to guess, I would say, yes it is reported. Depending on your age, we can most likely get it expunged regardless of how it is reported.

By: AMC

AMC — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 01:32:54 +0000

Hello M:

Do you know if a juvenile summary offense for retail theft is reported to the NCIC? I am currently about to take my series 6 and 63 license and must have a clean background. I plead guilty to retail theft when I was 16. Do you know if this will affect me trying to obtain my licenses?

By: Brian Zeiger

Brian Zeiger — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 23:56:22 +0000

I often wonder if the issue is just about the internet catching up to the reporting. I would still recommend getting rid of all summaries. Perception is reality.

By: m

Tue, 03 Aug 2010 18:02:08 +0000

In my experience, summary offenses often do NOT appear on Pennsylvania background checks. With a few exceptions (summary retail theft being a main one), summary offenses issued as non-traffic citations rarely appear on PA RAP Sheets. However, the NT summary docket will show up on the UJS Portal.

On the other hand, if the case is originally charged as a court case (misdemeanors or felony), and later reduced to a summary case, the summary conviction is likely to appear on the background check. This is especially true if the summary plea was arranged at the Court of Common Pleas.

Bottom line: Find out what is on your official criminal history. You can order your complete PA criminal history via form SP4-164 (epatch.state.pa.us/help/sp4164.doc).
Choose “Individual Access and Review” as the reason for the request.

If a summary conviction does appear, and five arrest free years have elapsed since the date of conviction, contact a lawyer about expungement. The applicable expungement statute is 18 Pa. C.S. 9122(b).

It should be noted that it may be improper for employers or licensing agencies to deny applicants on the basis of summary offense convictions. See 18 Pa. C.S. 9124 and 9125.

By: Kerri Deibel

Kerri Deibel — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 18:30:12 +0000

I would like to know who comes up with the laws in Pennsylvania. Honestly they are nothing like the laws in the rest of the country. What happened to freedom of speech? Well I will tell you if you live in Franklin county PA, you have no right to freedom of speech. The people in this wonderful town that we moved to make there own laws up as they go. Who cares what the rest of the United States has for laws when you live in Franklin county. They charge a 13 year old with disorderly conduct, for swearing at an adult who swore at him first. However you can tamper with mail here and have no problems with the law. You can even hand out bibles at the public schools. Makes sense right? How about when you go to the volunteer fire station to face summary offense charges. The states witness get’s up on the stand and lie’s completely. But because the law judge knows the mother and dated the cousin and married into the uncles family of the witness that is lying on the stand your evidence to prove that they fabricated everything that is coming out of there mouth’s is not admissable. As a reasult of being wrongfully convicted in this state, someone that was convicted 19 years ago of rape, got a new trial all because the judge wanted to help out there friends. Nice! What a joke this place is!

By: Brian Zeiger

Brian Zeiger — Sat, 12 Jun 2010 13:51:10 +0000

A guilty for a summary offense for a for a non traffic disorderly conduct will show up on a criminal background check. After five years pass, you may be able to get it removed from your record through an expungement.

Whether that conviction is criminal or not is irrelevant because the conviction is reported on your criminal background history from the Pennsylvania State Police. If you have already been convicted of Disorderly Conduct, an example of Disorderly Conduct is irrelevant because even if you were falsely convicted, based on your question, you are outside the window of appeal. I have no idea how this can effect child custody.

By: amanda ritchie

amanda ritchie — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 20:41:43 +0000

if you have a non traffic disorderly conduct hazardous physical offense-summary and are found guilty by a summary hearing, what does that mean? And what is an example of a non traffic diorderly conduct hazardus physical offense? If you are found guilty and pay a fine does this show on a criminal background check, and could it affect custody of a child?

By: Brian Zeiger

Brian Zeiger — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 13:19:22 +0000

@Kenia, in the last year or so, we have heard some bizarre ICE issues dealing with deportation. It seems like folks can get deported or get denied entry into the United States for just about anything.

If the summary is older then 5 years, we can most likely get it expunged. I am not certain how ICE would view the expungement, but my guess is that they would honor the expungement.

I am surprised to hear that a summary is cause all of these immigration issues.

By: Brian Zeiger

Brian Zeiger — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 12:48:04 +0000

@Jon, I agree with everything you are saying. My point to the original lawyer that I spoke with is exactly your point that all of this is semantics. We get many phone calls from people telling us they have paid an internet company to run a criminal record check for them and it comes back showing the summary offense.

If you run a background check and the summary offense shows up, to me it is semantics whether you think it is a crime or not. To me the answer is, GET RID OF IT, because if I can find it, a future employer or graduate school can find it too.

By: Jon

Jon — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 09:34:58 +0000

I understand your point but I think the two issues in your last sentence go hand in hand. How it’s reported has everything to do with whether it’s considered a crime or not. Apparently a conviction of a summary offense is not considered a “conviction of a crime” unless jail time was served. If you are issued a summary citation and pay your fine without ever being booked or printed, I believe the story ends at your local magistrate. Obviously anything and everything can now be found on the UJS site but that is not an official criminal record.

If you’re not booked for a crime, I highly doubt it shows up on NCIC. I really don’t think the FBI cares about your public urination charge but I do not know for sure.

Interestingly enough, some job applications now specifically address PA residents and state to not list summary offenses unless it involved certain circumstances, like theft.

Our summary offense system is odd but sometimes good in a way. Doing things that net you a citation in PA will get you booked and held on bond in other states (and definitely reported to NCIC).