Various licensing boards and agencies in Texas view criminal misdemeanor convictions differently. Although felony convictions often will result in discipline against your professional license. Generally, only some misdemeanor convictions will result in disciplinary action, depending on your profession.
The impact of a misdemeanor criminal conviction on your professional license varies significantly according to the type of offense involved. In addition, your type of profession or occupation also affects whether certain misdemeanor convictions affect your license. Generally, misdemeanor convictions involving drug sales or distribution, sex offenses, violence, or moral turpitude are more likely to lead to disciplinary proceedings. Therefore, these convictions typically will harm your professional license.
Tex. Occ. Code §53.021 generally provides that a Texas licensing authority can suspend or revoke a professional or occupational license on the basis that a person has been convicted of one or more of the following criminal offenses:
However, subject to a few exceptions, an individual is not considered to have been convicted of an offense if they entered a plea of guilty or nolo contendere. Likewise, there is no conviction if the judge deferred further proceedings without entering an adjudication of guilt and placed the individual under supervision. At the end of the period of supervision, the judge dismissed the proceedings and the individual. The exceptions to this general rule apply primarily to individuals who hold licenses in law enforcement, public health, education, safety services, or financial services in specific industries or who have committed certain offenses.
Under Tex. Occ. Code §53.022 , a licensing authority must consider the following factors in determining whether a crime directly relates to the duties and responsibilities of a licensed occupation:
Some licensing statutes for certain professions define what types of criminal offenses “directly relate” to those professions, for instance, under 19 Tex. Admin. Code §249.16(a) , SBEC can suspend or revoke a Texas teaching certificate or take other disciplinary action against a teacher convicted of a felony or misdemeanor. This section outlines several different criminal offenses that directly relate to the duties and responsibilities of the education profession, including offenses involving:
Based on these directives, several misdemeanor offenses could lead to disciplinary action concerning a teaching or other educator’s certificate.
Unlike some professionals, law enforcement officers are subject to automatic license suspensions for being convicted of or placed on community supervision for any Class A or B misdemeanor offense. Under 37 Tex. Admin. Code §223.15, a person convicted of or placed on community supervision for a Class A or B misdemeanor can face a license suspension for up to ten years. However, at a minimum, the commission of a Class A misdemeanor offense will result in a 120-day suspension, and a Class B misdemeanor offense will result in a 60-day suspension.
In determining the length of the suspension, the Commission will consider the following factors:
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An arrest and conviction for a criminal misdemeanor may threaten the professional license and career that you have worked so hard to obtain. As a result, you must take specific actions to put yourself in the best position possible to defend yourself in any disciplinary proceedings you find yourself facing. Disciplinary proceedings can result in a permanent mark on your records that negatively affects your career and future. As a result, you should not hesitate to get the legal assistance you need in this situation. Contact a Texas license defense attorney immediately when you receive notice of a complaint against your license.
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