Facing DUI/OWI charges always represents a serious situation in Wisconsin. If convicted, you could spend a considerable amount of time in prison, plus have to pay a large fine. But have you ever considered how a DUI/OWI conviction could negatively impact your career?
Unfortunately, a DUI/OWI conviction could stop your career in its tracks, especially if you are a young person attending graduate school so you can obtain the necessary license to practice your chosen profession. Why? Because once your licensing board discovers your conviction, it may refuse to issue the license you need.
Background checks
Not only can a DUI/OWI conviction prevent you from working in the field of your choice, it can also inhibit your ability to obtain any kind of well-paying employment. When your prospective employer runs a criminal background check on you, your conviction and its consequences will show up in the following ways:
- Your court record from the court that tried and convicted you
- Your incarceration records from the jail or prison in which you served time
- Your driving record from the state in which you received your conviction noting not only your conviction, but also any consequent driver’s license suspension or revocation
- Your driving record from any other state that suspended or revoked your driver’s license as a result of your conviction
Negative employment consequences
Any prospective employer may be less than thrilled when all this negative information about you comes to light as the result of a criminal background check. You may well find yourself on the receiving end of numerous employment rejections as the jobs for which you applied go to people with your same qualifications but a clean criminal record.
In addition, a DWI/OWI conviction precludes your chance of getting a Commercial Driver’s License for a minimum of five to seven years in most states. Any job requiring you to have a CDL will, therefore, be unavailable to you.
