The best legal defense to California methamphetamine possession will depend on the facts of your case. However, common defenses to HS 11377 California methamphetamine. California Criminal Convictions & Social Worker Discipline / Licenses. You have devoted your career to assisting others. You help people dealing with difficult circumstances and difficult relationships. You might be reading this because you find yourself in just such a circumstance, for sustaining a criminal conviction. If you're a social worker or marriage therapist in California, you can have your license suspended or revoked because of a criminal conviction. Just as you've said to others, we say to you: . Conducting legal research, using FindLaw resources, the court system and judges, legal procedure. Canada Temporary Resident Permit. Any person wishing to visit Canada needs to meet all the requirements of Canadian Immigration Law before he or she will be permitted. Martinsburg Callahan Counseling Services Phone: 304-886-4118 Fax: 304-579-8606 1020 Winchester Avenue PO BOX 1074 Martinsburg, WV 25401 Callahan@. Arrested in Sonoma County for a DUI? Here's why you should get help from a DUI lawyer to deal with the Sonoma County Courts & DMV: You're about to face the District. If you have questions after reading it, we invite you to contact us for a consultation. This article covers: (Click on a title to proceed directly to that section)1. Who regulates social workers and marriage therapists? California has an extensive regulatory structure. A myriad of agencies regulate professions ranging from dentists (Dental Board of California) to harbor pilots (Board of Pilot Commissioners) to guide dog instructors (Board of Guide Dogs for the Blind), to name just a few. Clinical social workers and family therapists are licensed and regulated by the Board of Behavioral Sciences, an agency within the consumer protection- oriented California Department of Consumer Affairs. These professionals play an important role in society. Take a look at what the law says about marriage and family therapists: Many California families and many individual Californians are experiencing difficulty and distress, and are in need of wise, competent, caring, compassionate, and effective counseling in order to enable them to improve and maintain healthy family relationships. Healthy individuals and healthy families and healthy relationships are inherently beneficial and crucial to a healthy society, and are our most precious and valuable natural resource. Marriage and family therapists provide a crucial support for the well- being of the people and the State of California. The California Board of Behavioral Sciences regulates marriage therapists and social workers to help ensure vulnerable people are not jeopardized or exploited in their time of need. The Board can discipline a licensee for suffering a criminal conviction. To this end, the Board requires applicants to disclose criminal convictions and submit fingerprint data for criminal background checks. What does the Board mean by . It must be a conviction that is . Will I have any defenses? Here are some defenses you might have in your discipline case: conviction is not substantially relatedthe Board took too long to actyou have been rehabilitated. Not substantially related. We've already discussed how convictions must be . So one defense you might have is that the conviction at issue isn't related to being a social worker of family therapist. Statute of limitations. You might also have a statute of limitations defense. For certain kinds of cases, the Board can't just wait forever to file its charges against you. There are exceptions, of course, but generally speaking the Board must take action within three years of the date the Board discovers the conviction, or, if sooner, within seven years from the date on which the conviction occurred. Rehabilitation. You wouldn't have chosen to be a social worker or family therapist if you didn't believe that people can change. Well, the law has the same point of view when it comes to professional discipline. When evaluating whether and how to discipline a licensee based on a criminal conviction, the California Board of Behavioral Sciences is required to look at evidence of rehabilitation. If you have an unfortunate spot on your record but have conscientiously worked to overcome the underlying problem the conviction represents, the Board should take notice. You will help your case if you comply with the terms of your probation, get your conviction expunged and attempt to correct false statements. Let's look at an example involving a marriage and family therapist intern (IMF). Example: A woman licensed as a family therapist intern had an altercation with the police at her home in a high- crime, gang- entrenched California neighborhood. The cops came to her home in search of her son, who was wanted on a weapons- related charge. The woman felt the police were using excessive force on her son and she attempted to stop them. She was arrested and convicted of Penal Code 1. The IMF had a few other alcohol- related convictions in her past but to her credit she was . The Board initiated disciplinary proceedings based on the convictions. But - within the bounds of the law - this single mother of three decided to fight for her license. She represented herself at a hearing before an administrative law judge and luckily, the judge listened. The judge acknowledged her efforts to craft a worthy career helping others in the face of significant adversity, limited finances and family responsibilities. Instead of getting her license revoked, she received probation and the chance to continue her valuable counseling work. How can I fight for my license? It's not all over and done with just because you receive an accusation or statement of issues from the Board. You can fight for your license. Things might not turn out perfectly, but they might end up better than expected. While we recommend that you consult an attorney, you do not need a lawyer to contest disciplinary charges. But we stress that you must act very quickly to preserve your right to a hearing. If you opt for a hearing, you (or you and your attorney) will make your case before an administrative law judge. A lawyer from the California Attorney General's Office will represent the Board. The judge will evaluate the evidence and testimony and issue a proposed decision to the Board, which can either accept or reject the administrative law judge's decision. If things don't go your way in the hearing, you can file an appeal to the state trial court in the form of a writ of administrative mandamus. You can read more about the hearing process in our related article Administrative Hearings. We also have a wide array of articles on common California crimes (from . We can provide a free consultation in office or by phone. We have local offices in Los Angeles, the San Fernando Valley, Pasadena, Long Beach, Orange County, Ventura, San Bernardino, Rancho Cucamonga, Riverside, San Diego, Sacramento, Oakland, San Francisco, San Jose and throughout California. You might also be interested in reading our related articles on Nurse License Revocation, Dentist License Revocation and Pharmacist License Revocation. Helpful links: Board of Behavioral Sciences. California Office of Administrative hearings. References: 1. Our California Criminal Defense Lawyers have local offices in Beverly Hills, Burbank, Glendale, Lancaster, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Pasadena, Pomona, San Diego, San Francisco, Torrance, Van Nuys, West Covina, and Whittier. The Board also licenses educational psychologists and regulates marriage and family therapist interns, associate clinical social workers, and continuing education providers. See California Business and Professions Code Section 4. California Code of Regulations Title 1. Division 1. 8 (Board of Behavioral Sciences). As to DENIALS, California Business and Professions Code Section 4. A conviction within the meaning of this section means a plea or verdict of guilty or a conviction following a plea of nolo contendere. Any action that a board is permitted to take following the establishment of a conviction may be taken when the time for appeal has elapsed, or the judgment of conviction has been affirmed on appeal, or when an order granting probation is made suspending the imposition of sentence, irrespective of a subsequent order under the provisions of Section 1. Penal Code. As to SUSPENSIONS AND REVOCATIONS, California Business and Professions Code Section 4. Any action that a board is permitted to take following the establishment of a conviction may be taken when the time for appeal has elapsed, or the judgment of conviction has been affirmed on appeal, or when an order granting probation is made suspending the imposition of sentence, irrespective of a subsequent order under the provisions of Section 1. Penal Code. Department of Real Estate (2. Cal. App. 4th 5. 54, and that the holding in that case has placed a significant number of statutes and regulations in question, resulting in potential harm to the consumers of California from licensees who have been convicted of crimes. Therefore, the Legislature finds and declares that this section establishes an independent basis for a board to impose discipline upon a licensee, and that the amendments to this section made by Senate Bill 7. Regular Session do not constitute a change to, but rather are declaratory of, existing law. Unprofessional conduct includes, but is not limited to, the following: (a) The conviction of a crime substantially related to the qualifications, functions, or duties of a licensee or registrant under this chapter. The record of conviction shall be conclusive evidence only of the fact that the conviction occurred. The board may inquire into the circumstances surrounding the commission of the crime in order to fix the degree of discipline or to determine if the conviction is substantially related to the qualifications, functions, or duties of a licensee or registrant under this chapter. A plea or verdict of guilty or a conviction following a plea of nolo contendere made to a charge substantially related to the qualifications, functions, or duties of a licensee or registrant under this chapter shall be deemed to be a conviction within the meaning of this section. The board may order any license or registration suspended or revoked, or may decline to issue a license or registration when the time for appeal has elapsed, or the judgment of conviction has been affirmed on appeal, or, when an order granting probation is made suspending the imposition of sentence, irrespective of a subsequent order under Section 1.
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