George, I was arrested in 2005 for felony poss of marijuana and poss of a firearm whie in c

ommission of a felony. I used my first offenders for this and completed the terms of probation. Actually, last year, i went before the judge and had the probation terminated early. I went to the clerk's office and filled the paperwork to have the record expunged. The solicitor sent my paperwork back with a denial. She stated that just because it was a first offender's, she did not have to expunge the record. I was recently denied a job because of this charge. I did not know this, but when they run a background check, it shows arrests, and not the disposal of the cases. How can i get this blackeye removed? This was in Forsyth County

You have a couple of options. First, you could talk to the D.A.’s office to see if they would be agreeable (now) to re-submitting the expungment request. Georgia has tough guidelines for expungment, so it’s not always an easy process. Second option would be to ask the Governor’s office for a pardon. This is an expensive and timely process that could take a couple of years. If you don’t wish to pursue that option, then your last choice would be to get a copy of a Georgia case named, Priest v. State. The holding in the case states that a plea under the first offender act that is successfully completed, IS NOT A CONVICTION. You could take that to a potential employer and show it to them. Perhaps it would be persuasive and could help you get the job??