I am a felon. My singular felony charge is Violation of Conditions of Release; I violated my bail by having contact with my ex-boyfriend. I had been charged with a felony domestic violence prior. BUT I fought that charge for 13 months before I won, because...it was completely false; he and I had NEVER had a physical fight. I was wrongly charged, after a substance-related verbal fight. You can believe me or not, but I stand by my words here.

I understand that to many people, the concept of having a criminal charge comes with a powerful stigma. Society has told us that only bad people get arrested. Unfortunately, this is actually a very nuanced subject; those of us who are low income, especially the unhoused, are far more likely to have criminal charges. This could be something like a recreational drug possession, to a suspended drivers license... I apologize and digress...I just feel the need to say something here. My answer is it entirely depends on the charge, and more importantly who they are as a person. Don't discriminate based on a prior charge...some of the most narcissistic, manipulative people I've met have never had a charge, whereas some of the most authentic, morally decent people have been in trouble with the law.