ArtsAutosBooksBusinessEducationEntertainmentFamilyFashionFoodGamesGenderHealthHolidaysHomeHubPagesPersonal FinancePetsPoliticsReligionSportsTechnologyTravel

Deferred Adjudication

Updated on January 1, 2013
A trip to the courthouse for any offense is never fun.
A trip to the courthouse for any offense is never fun. | Source
Deferred adjudication is one sentencing option for many crimes or offenses.
Deferred adjudication is one sentencing option for many crimes or offenses. | Source

By Joan Whetzel

Deferred adjudication, one form of plea deal, occurs when a defendant either pleads "guilty" or "no contest" to criminal charges. In exchange for the plea, the defendant must meet a set of conditions (e.g. fines, probation, treatment program, community service, community supervision, a diversion program, anger management program) assigned by the court, within a specified amount of time (i.e. 6 months, 1 year). Once these conditions have been met, the defendant avoids having a formal conviction placed on his or her record, or the case may be dismissed altogether. The record is supposed to be expunged or placed under an order of "non-disclosure." Deferred adjudication may only be available for some offenses, though.


How Deferred Adjudication Works

Deferred adjudication is, technically, a form of probation which lasts a set amount of time, and when successfully completed, is supposed to be "dismissed" or disappear from the defendant's record. Basically, the judge is delaying the judgment, adjudication. What happens is that the defendant enters the "guilty" or "no contest" plea. The judge then defers the plea, sets up the conditions of the probationary period, and gives the defendant the opportunity to complete conditions of the probation. If the terms of the probation have been met, the guilty plea disappears and the defendant's record is supposed to be cleared.. Each State, though, has its own variation on how it actually goes down, as well as how it may - or may not - show up on one's record.

In Texas, pleading guilty or no contest under a deferred adjudication ruling is not considered a conviction, as long as the conditions of the deferred adjudication have been met. The arrest and adjudication will show up on the record, but it won't show up as a conviction.

The length of the probationary period depends on the crime, the judge, and the state in which it occurred. Minor misdemeanors (lesser crime, punishable by a fine and/or jail time up to 1 year), such as a traffic violation, carry a short probation period with fewer conditions that need to be met. More serious misdemeanors, along the lines of assault and battery, may carry probationary periods that can last up to a few years. Felonies (serious crimes that carry stiffer penalties) carry probationary periods that can last up to 10 years.

Ramifications of Deferred Adjudication

The best advice, if offered a Deferred Adjudication plea, is to talk to a lawyer as he or she can advise you about the exact consequences for accepting this plea agreement. Deferred Adjudication differs from a straight out probation in that the deferred adjudication is not considered a conviction whereas the straight probation is a conviction. Each state has its own laws about what happens once the terms of the plea agreement have been met. The deferred adjudication and arrest may well remain on your record, as in Texas, it may be expunged (erased permanently), or simply placed under a "no disclosure" order, meaning it's still there but the record has been sealed. Under certain circumstances, even a sealed record can be unsealed. The record will always be visible to law enforcement and can show up during high-level government background checks.

In the case of the State of Texas, the deferred adjudication judgment is not treated as a conviction, but there is no easy way to get it permanently removed from one's record. This could create problems when applying for jobs or trying to rent an apartment where background checks are routinely done. Many people have shocked to find that the State Legislature doesn't allow their record to be cleared and that, because there was no final conviction entered into the record, the Governor cannot grant a full pardon.

Another fact that some defendants are surprised to find out are the consequences for failing to complete the conditions of their probation. Failure to complete the conditions of the plea bargain / probation means that he or she returns to court, where a stiffer penalty is handed down. It generally means that the defendant is now open to the full range of punishment of the crime for which he or she was originally arrested. In addition, the defendant now faces the additional charge of probation violation, which brings additional fines and/or jail time.

Advantages of Deferred Adjudication

There are a few advantage to an accepting a deferred adjudication plea.

1. It can prevent some of the consequences that would normally come with certain convictions. If the conviction would normally cause the defendant's drivers license to be suspended, that consequence would be eliminated under the deferred adjudication.

2. It allows for a defendant to file a "non-disclosure" petition after successfully completing the terms of the probation, essentially sealing the record of the offense from private entities (employers, apartments).

3. It keeps the deferred adjudication off a person's record, so that it doesn't appear as a "criminal conviction."

References

Wikipedia. Deferred Adjudication.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deferred_Adjudication

AVVO. What Is Deferred Adjudication?

http://www.avvo.com/legal-guides/ugc/what-is-deferred-adjudication

DeferredAdjudication.org. Texas Deferred Adjudication.

http://www.deferredadjudication.org/teaser.htm

Legal Match. Deferred Adjudication.

http://www.legalmatch.com/law-library/article/deferred-adjudication.html

Office of the District Attorney, Harris County, Texas. Frequently Asked Questions - Deferred Adjudication.

http://app.dao.hctx.net/FAQs/4/Other_Divisions/7/Deferred_Adjudication.aspx

working

This website uses cookies

As a user in the EEA, your approval is needed on a few things. To provide a better website experience, hubpages.com uses cookies (and other similar technologies) and may collect, process, and share personal data. Please choose which areas of our service you consent to our doing so.

For more information on managing or withdrawing consents and how we handle data, visit our Privacy Policy at: https://corp.maven.io/privacy-policy

Show Details
Necessary
HubPages Device IDThis is used to identify particular browsers or devices when the access the service, and is used for security reasons.
LoginThis is necessary to sign in to the HubPages Service.
Google RecaptchaThis is used to prevent bots and spam. (Privacy Policy)
AkismetThis is used to detect comment spam. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide data on traffic to our website, all personally identifyable data is anonymized. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Traffic PixelThis is used to collect data on traffic to articles and other pages on our site. Unless you are signed in to a HubPages account, all personally identifiable information is anonymized.
Amazon Web ServicesThis is a cloud services platform that we used to host our service. (Privacy Policy)
CloudflareThis is a cloud CDN service that we use to efficiently deliver files required for our service to operate such as javascript, cascading style sheets, images, and videos. (Privacy Policy)
Google Hosted LibrariesJavascript software libraries such as jQuery are loaded at endpoints on the googleapis.com or gstatic.com domains, for performance and efficiency reasons. (Privacy Policy)
Features
Google Custom SearchThis is feature allows you to search the site. (Privacy Policy)
Google MapsSome articles have Google Maps embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
Google ChartsThis is used to display charts and graphs on articles and the author center. (Privacy Policy)
Google AdSense Host APIThis service allows you to sign up for or associate a Google AdSense account with HubPages, so that you can earn money from ads on your articles. No data is shared unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Google YouTubeSome articles have YouTube videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
VimeoSome articles have Vimeo videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
PaypalThis is used for a registered author who enrolls in the HubPages Earnings program and requests to be paid via PayPal. No data is shared with Paypal unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook LoginYou can use this to streamline signing up for, or signing in to your Hubpages account. No data is shared with Facebook unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
MavenThis supports the Maven widget and search functionality. (Privacy Policy)
Marketing
Google AdSenseThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Google DoubleClickGoogle provides ad serving technology and runs an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Index ExchangeThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
SovrnThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook AdsThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Unified Ad MarketplaceThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
AppNexusThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
OpenxThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Rubicon ProjectThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
TripleLiftThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Say MediaWe partner with Say Media to deliver ad campaigns on our sites. (Privacy Policy)
Remarketing PixelsWe may use remarketing pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to advertise the HubPages Service to people that have visited our sites.
Conversion Tracking PixelsWe may use conversion tracking pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to identify when an advertisement has successfully resulted in the desired action, such as signing up for the HubPages Service or publishing an article on the HubPages Service.
Statistics
Author Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide traffic data and reports to the authors of articles on the HubPages Service. (Privacy Policy)
ComscoreComScore is a media measurement and analytics company providing marketing data and analytics to enterprises, media and advertising agencies, and publishers. Non-consent will result in ComScore only processing obfuscated personal data. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Tracking PixelSome articles display amazon products as part of the Amazon Affiliate program, this pixel provides traffic statistics for those products (Privacy Policy)
ClickscoThis is a data management platform studying reader behavior (Privacy Policy)