Why Keeping a TX Drug Conviction Off Your Child’s Record is Vital

We all know how quickly a teen can make a mistake and get into trouble. As the parent of a teenager, you know how easily they can be influenced by their peers, celebrities, and various media sources. They don’t have the capacity or maturity to recognize when they need to avoid certain people, say no to certain suggestions, or avoid making mistakes that could affect them for a lifetime.

Adolescents’ brains aren’t fully developed, and they don’t yet have years of experience under their belts to recognize how a juvenile drug conviction could impact their future. But you do. You recognize that a TX drug conviction in their adolescence could affect getting into a good college, obtaining a good job, and much more, which is why it is essential you do everything you can to keep such a conviction off your child’s record.

If your son or daughter has been arrested for a drug crime in Houston, contact The Law Offices of Ned Barnett immediately. To schedule a free consultation with an experienced drug lawyer, call us today at (713) 222-6767, or reach out via our online form.

A Juvenile Drug Conviction Can Devastate Your Child’s Opportunities

As a parent, you know how much potential your child has, and to reach their full potential, they need opportunities. They need access to good schools, internships, volunteer positions, jobs, scholarships, and more. A drug conviction could limit or close access to those opportunities.

What happens when your son or daughter applies to college? Admissions officers collect criminal information on applicants, which means they will see an arrest and conviction if one exists on your child’s record. While colleges may not say they will hold a juvenile conviction against applicants, it happens. Both intentionally and through unconscious bias, a drug conviction on a teen’s record will shut many college and universities’ doors.

Your teen will be greatly limited in the higher education institutions that will accept them, which then affects their internship prospects. One way to gain real-world experience and college credit is to have one or more internships. These can look very impressive on future job and grad school applications. But your child will be competing for these internships with students at more impressive colleges.

Also, for any internships or jobs your child applies to, the potential employer will run their criminal record. They will see the TX drug conviction on their record, and again, an employer may knowingly or subconsciously hold this against your child, decreasing their likelihood of getting that position.

Even if your child does well throughout college, the missed opportunities can impact their prospects after graduation. They will have to go up for the same jobs against graduates who do not have convictions, went to better colleges, and worked at better internships and jobs prior to graduation.

Contact us Today for Help with Your Child’s TX Drug Conviction

When your teen is arrested and charged with a drug offense, you may consider going through the process without an attorney. We do not recommend this. You cannot help your child win their case when you are learning as you go. The prosecutors will have the upper hand, and they will use it.

Instead, the best way to avoid a juvenile drug conviction is to hire a highly experienced criminal defense lawyer. Attorney Ned Barnett has decades of experience defending both adults and adolescents against drug and alcohol offenses. He knows the ins and outs of juvenile law and the court system, which he can use to your child’s advantage.

To schedule a free, initial evaluation of your case, contact us today at (713) 222-6767.