Question About Assault Arrest - Charges Dropped

[Jennifer0220 31]

I'm finishing up my K1 application and was re-reading all of the questions to make sure I didn't miss anything. Because I have a criminal record from 20+ years ago (I was 19), I paid special attention to the section that asks about arrests. It asks if I've ever been arrested for Domestic Violence. I have not, but I was arrested for 2nd degree assault after my boyfriend at the time hit me. After he was arrested and put into the police car he said that I hit him too. That's all it took. I was arrested too. This case was dropped of course because there was zero evidence I did this. I have the certified court record but now I'm really worried. Should I answer yes or no to this question? The charge was not domestic violence but I suppose it could be considered domestic violence.

[kris&me 572]

question is "have you ever been arrested? "   only thing you can answer is YES

provide the court records (keeping the original for your records)

[Jennifer0220 31]

45 minutes ago, kris&me said:

question is "have you ever been arrested? "   only thing you can answer is YES

provide the court records (keeping the original for your records)

I did answer "yes" to that question. I don't know if this would be considered domestic violence when the actual charge wasn't domestic violence

[Going through 5,669]

1 hour ago, Jennifer0220 said:

I did answer "yes" to that question. I don't know if this would be considered domestic violence when the actual charge wasn't domestic violence

Depends on what State the offense occurred in---different States have different legislature in terms of how they define domestic violence codes.

 

What's relevant for the purposes of the form is whether you have been arrested or not---you have.  However, equally relevant and in your favour is that the case was dropped and no actual conviction came from the arrest from what you've stated in this thread.

[Cyberfx1024 7,980]

1 hour ago, Jennifer0220 said:

I did answer "yes" to that question. I don't know if this would be considered domestic violence when the actual charge wasn't domestic violence

You need to get the disposition paperwork to show that it was dropped

[Jennifer0220 31]

1 hour ago, Going through said:

Depends on what State the offense occurred in---different States have different legislature in terms of how they define domestic violence codes.

 

What's relevant for the purposes of the form is whether you have been arrested or not---you have.  However, equally relevant and in your favour is that the case was dropped and no actual conviction came from the arrest from what you've stated in this thread.

Thank you! I will research a little more.

1 hour ago, Cyberfx1024 said:

You need to get the disposition paperwork to show that it was dropped

Thank you! I have the certified court records showing the case was dropped.

[JeanneAdil 6,402]

So you were able to get the court document that Maryland said was missing

you definitely need to say arrested and provide the court decision to drop the charge(s)

 

I would ask for a criminal report locally at this time to see what is or is not on it

i say this as you could face a K1 denial (many are in casa) 

and if you need to go there to marry,  the criminal report is needed

you need to check on all things ahead of time and beware of things that can happen

let's hope the embassy takes your relationship as real and an approval is in your future

 

[Jennifer0220 31]

13 minutes ago, JeanneAdil said:

So you were able to get the court document that Maryland said was missing

you definitely need to say arrested and provide the court decision to drop the charge(s)

 

I would ask for a criminal report locally at this time to see what is or is not on it

i say this as you could face a K1 denial (many are in casa) 

and if you need to go there to marry,  the criminal report is needed

you need to check on all things ahead of time and beware of things that can happen

let's hope the embassy takes your relationship as real and an approval is in your future

 

I do have the records for this case showing it was dropped. I was missing another record and I think I have enough evidence to show the records were lost by Maryland.  I just don't know what boxes I should check on the application.

 

I hope our relationship is seen as legitimate.  We're having a baby in May! 

 

[JeanneAdil 6,402]

you check yes as there was an arrest

otherwise u r guilty of lying to immigration

having a baby does not help to prove relationship to the Moroccan will be a long and lasting one

 

as a matter of fact,  he should not bring it up at the interview as it is illegal to have sex before marriage in Morocco and he could serve time in jail 

 

According to article 490 of the penal code, Moroccans can be jailed for having sexual relations outside marriage. This is based on Islamic law, which bans unmarried people from engaging in sexual activity.

 

[kris&me 572]

15 hours ago, Jennifer0220 said:

Thank you! I will research a little more.

Thank you! I have the certified court records showing the case was dropped.

you state Maryland lost the documents but I found this definition of domestic violence for that state

Introduction

Domestic violence happens when one person abuses another person (usually an intimate partner) physically, psychologically, emotionally, verbally, sexually, or economically

[Jennifer0220 31]

8 hours ago, JeanneAdil said:

you check yes as there was an arrest

otherwise u r guilty of lying to immigration

having a baby does not help to prove relationship to the Moroccan will be a long and lasting one

 

as a matter of fact,  he should not bring it up at the interview as it is illegal to have sex before marriage in Morocco and he could serve time in jail 

 

According to article 490 of the penal code, Moroccans can be jailed for having sexual relations outside marriage. This is based on Islamic law, which bans unmarried people from engaging in sexual activity.

 

Oh no...

[Jennifer0220 31]

6 hours ago, kris&me said:

you state Maryland lost the documents but I found this definition of domestic violence for that state

Introduction

Domestic violence happens when one person abuses another person (usually an intimate partner) physically, psychologically, emotionally, verbally, sexually, or economically

Thank you! I did speak to a lawyer and I was told I should answer "yes" to the question

[Rob Beri 68]

On 1/12/2020 at 6:05 PM, Jennifer0220 said:

Thank you! I did speak to a lawyer and I was told I should answer "yes" to the question

I would do the following: 

Answer 'yes' to have you even been arrested. Answer 'yes' to have you even been arrested for any of the following charges...'domestic violence, dating violence, etc.' because if it was not domestic, then it would still be considered dating violence, as it was a boyfriend/girlfriend arrest. That is what I did in my petition. Then, attach any of the supporting documentation from the relevant court and/ or police station. 

[Jennifer0220 31]

11 minutes ago, Rob Beri said:

I would do the following: 

Answer 'yes' to have you even been arrested. Answer 'yes' to have you even been arrested for any of the following charges...'domestic violence, dating violence, etc.' because if it was not domestic, then it would still be considered dating violence, as it was a boyfriend/girlfriend arrest. That is what I did in my petition. Then, attach any of the supporting documentation from the relevant court and/ or police station. 

Thank you. I did check the box and i have the certified court records showing it was Nolle Prosequi. 

 

I am extremely nervous about this. I had 3 other charges that year. Only one was a conviction. Although it was 20 years ago and i was 19, it may not matter. 

 

The application asks for an explanation. Is it best to tell the complete story or stick to the facts?

[Rob Beri 68]

26 minutes ago, Jennifer0220 said:

Thank you. I did check the box and i have the certified court records showing it was Nolle Prosequi. 

 

I am extremely nervous about this. I had 3 other charges that year. Only one was a conviction. Although it was 20 years ago and i was 19, it may not matter. 

 

The application asks for an explanation. Is it best to tell the complete story or stick to the facts?

Please, do not take what I say for granted as I am no expert on this subject. However, I can talk from my experience, and how I handled my case. I am still waiting on my NOA2, and I still have a long way to go before I get either approved/ denied. 

 

The petition does not require for you to write/ add an explanation. This part is optional. However, if you feel that the court and/or police documents do not explain the totality of your circumstances then you can provide an explanation. I would NOT suggest doing that because then you are going against what the court and/ or police have on your record. Your side of the story is irrelevant to immigration purposes. What I did, however, is in the supplemental section state that I was arrested for X on Z, that the outcome of my charge was Y, and that I have provided all of the supporting documentation from the court, and police department to support this statement. Basically, just briefly summarizing to the person reviewing my petition what they are going to look at. 

 

I would not be as nervous if I was you. I have seen a ton of people, petitioners, with a sea of arrests having their petitions approved. Just be honest about it from the get-go.

 

Best of luck. 

 

 

 

Edited January 15, 2020 by Rob Beri