The Danger of a Class C in County Court

This year, I've had several phone calls from people who were charged with Class A or Class B misdemeanors, accepted a Class C misdemeanor as their punishment, and then find out that the Class C affects their chances at employment.

Here's what happens: someone is charged with Class A assault family violence. They plea bargain and accept a reduction to Class C assault. They pay a fine and court costs and are finished with their case. Their lawyer tells them that the Class C is the equivalent of a "traffic ticket" and will not affect their record.

Here's the problem: that Class C offense is a conviction. It cannot be sealed or expunged from a criminal history. Furthermore, private background companies will often misreport the Class C as the original Class A charge. So the person applies for employment and the offense is reported as the original Class A charge; the background check company fails to report that the charge was reduced.

In fact, in Harris County, the fact that the original charge was a Class A misdemeanor will remain a public record forever.

Thus, what looks like a great deal at the time might not be in the long term.