Dismissed Charges and filling for N-400 question.


raj26091972

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Background:

in 2006 I was issued summons to appear in District Court regarding a larceny charge and shoplifting charge, The charges were dismissed upon my paying $100 in court cost and $200 in civil relief to the store. In summary I was neither arrested nor convicted of any offence and all the charges were dismissed.


In 2007, On my I-485, this above incident was mentioned with yes to the question “have you ever been arrested , cited, charged, indicted, fined or imprisoned for breaking law and all the proof were provided

and Green Card was issued without any issues.

Questions now that I need your advise.


Q1. on Form N-400 part 12 , questions 22 to 28 which questions should I be marking yes to reflect the charges that were dismissed in 2006 ?


Q2 . should I be saying yes to only the following questions and mark No to the other questions like 22, 25 , 26, 27 , 28.

 

23. Have you ever been arrested, cited or detained by any law enforcement officer for any reason ?


 

24. Have you ever been charged with committing, attempting to commit, or assisting in committing a crime or offence ?




Q3. What information I need fill in section 29 where I need to provide details if I said yes to any from 22 to 28.



Q4 do I need to send the same proof that I had provided when i-485 was filled along with n-400 application as well ?


Q5. Will this pose any issues to obtain citizenship ? there are no other office since than except this.


Q 6 Do I need a lawyer to file n-400 and represent me ? or can I file this application on my own keeping in mind the charges that were dismissed ?

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Since the charges are 11 years old, they should not matter. Paying a fine is a conviction. It may not matter now as they look for problems in the last 5 years before naturalization. If your case was dismissed with prejudice that is another matter. Since naturalization is important to you , You need to consult a lawyer before filing and take his advise. Most likely you will be fine.

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