Felony and Employment as EMT in NJ

[S_Stringer]

Hi, everyone. My name's Susan, and I've been an EMT in NJ and NY for some 19 years. For 16 of those years I was prescribed medication for pain management because of an injury to my cervical spine due to an ambulance accident that occured in 1993. Without the medication (narcotic pain medication) I would never have been able to continue being a productive member of, not only the EMS community, but of Society as well. I was wracked with almost daily blinding and nauseating migraines and neck pain that clustered, often for up to two weeks at a time without breaking. I had procedures done, nerves destroyed on purpose to ease the agony, but they were only temporary fixes. I wasn't able to take many medications due to adverse reactions and allergies ( would you believe Decadron and Prednisone cause me to break out in severe hives?) and the pain causes my blood pressure to skyrocket. I am already normally hypertensive and take a beta-blocker daily to keep it under control. I had also taken any new non-narcotic medication that became available, as well as anti-seizure meds and ergotomines mixed with caffeine to avoid taking narcotic meds, and nothing, absolutely NOTHING gave me any measure of relief.

Because one's tolerance to opiates increase over time, I began to take more and more of the narcotics prescribed to me in order to get relief from the pain, never to get high. I would do my best to abstain from using my medication when I was on duty, but there was never any guaratee that I would be able to get through a shift without the monster pain overcoming me. Finally I approached a physician in the field of Pain Management rather than Neurology because, when you go through 120 vicodin in less than a week, THAT is really alarming, and I admitted to myself that my body had a dependence on the drug. This doctor said that I had acquired a "quasi-addiction" to the vicodin, and I was prescribed fentanyl patches at 75 mcg per hour! I broke out in a rash from the patch, although I changed the site every time I changed the patch ( I also told him I could not work with the medication being titrated into my body through the skin because it made me extremely groggy), so he put me on a daily regimen of time-released morphine tablets and percocet for breakthrough pain. This worked well.

At the same time I was going through major problems in my home life. My marriage was failing and one of the things my husband delighted in doing was driving a wedge between my teenage daughter and myself by creating a situation, creating distance between my normally close relationship with her so she would side with him, and then he would tell me my daughter was disrespectful to him or was doing this or that in an attempt to get me to side with him against her. It was an impossible time and my daughter became anorexic and distant. I finally had reached a breaking point and told him I saw through him and it was over. Ashley and I moved out and into a small apartment. Eventually I became financially drained and we faced eviction. My daughter turned 20 and I told her it was best that we moved into separate residences. I was terribly stressed out and we were both very tense and I felt the only way she would grow was if I forced her to live on her own and become responsible. I was offered an opportunity to rent the back bedroom and adjoining full bathroom through the friend of a friend and I jumped on it. I had full use of the kitchen as well. The rent was extremely affordable. My daughter moved into a rooming house in Ocean Grove. I saw light at the end of a dark tunnel at last.

I came home one day and was told that my "landlord" came home to find a strange man in her house. He had wandered in to her Living Room from my apartment. I didn't know anyone and certainly didn't give anyone permission to enter my apartment ( I had a separate entrance which I kept locked at all times) so I thought this was odd. I had also just found out from the friend that told me about the place that my "landlord", who I'll refer to here on in as "HR", was a recovering addict, and had used heroin for some 25 years. I immediately went through my things, and found, lo and behold, that my medication was missing. Now....you know that morphine and percocet, as well as any opiate, when taken on a daily basis, will cause the body to have a physical dependence on it. Your body knows when it's not available anymore, and lack of it causes the body to go through withdrawal. In pain management you sign an agreement, a contract, with the treating physician stating that you will not abuse the medication, and the medication is prescribed on a monthly basis with no refills. I was 15 days shy of my next appointment. I panicked. I called the doctor and explained what had happened and he found me in violation of the agreement....and booted me from the program. He gave me a few fentanyl patches in decreasing doses ( a two-week supply)...I hid these. I said to myself....okay....I have to find another doctor and another plan of attack on my pain issue. Well, you guessed it. The patches ended up missing. I confronted HR and under pressure she admitted that she stole these from me. So, two days into the withdrawal process she approached me and said, " I'm going to call my connection and get some "D". I know you're feeling like crap...do you want me to get you some?" Now, when you go through withdrawal you feel like you want to crawl out of your skin. Your belly hurts, your intestines are in serious rebellion, and you can't stop vomitting. My brain said, "It's an opiate, just do tiny increments every so many hours, it's just a temporary thing, no problem." And there you go. I climbed aboard the Heroin express. Something which, in my right mind, I would NEVER have done. The temporary one or two day thing turned into a six-week nightmare, and I went from 1/4 of a crystaline bag a day to 6 bags a day. A week later I found myself acting as the runner between her and her connection. I got payment from her in the way of a given number of "bags" of heroin out of each bundle she purchased. I wound up stealing from HR, and went to jail for felony theft. If I didn't go to county jail I'd most likely be dead by now, either because of the "gangsta' types I hung with or because of the drug. I do not miss the drug or the lifestyle.

I no longer use. I am now in Recovery. I am searching for a job. Yes, I still have my certification and a valid CPR card, but with a felony on my record I doubt I'll get hired as an EMT. I need to show that I'm the responsible person I used to be.

What I want to ask is: Do all private ambulance companies in Northern and Southern NJ do backround checks? I have no problem with random drug testing, I do that now on a weekly basis. I am searching for gainful employment doing what I did best....or even, just doing ANYTHING right now would be great, because my lease is up on June 15th, and I have to find a place to live in or someone willing to have a room-mate like me. I am currently on Unemployment.

[JTpaintball70]

From what I've heard, most BLS in NJ is volunteer, but not sure of that. And any respectable service would do background checks. Around here and in NM (where I'm from) any past drug conviction or conviction related to a drug charge is an automatic barring from being hired, if the state will even certify you.

[Flasurfbum]

How are you able to retain your certification in the State of NJ?

Does NJ OEMS know of your conviction?

[snoopy911]

Not all BLS in NJ is volunteer.

As far as backround checks, you normally can't even join a fire company without a backround check. Not sure that you can even keep your certifications with a felony on your record. Most likely you would not be able to keep it, if NJ OEMS finds out. So i don't have any suggestions. With a misdemeanor, sometimes there are loopholes, but with a felony, you are most likely stuck; specially since it is a drug conviction.

[S_Stringer]

How are you able to retain your certification in the State of NJ?

Does NJ OEMS know of your conviction?

I would imagine so. I wasn't convicted on a drug charge. I was convicted on a felony theft. I am in Recovery, as I said, and do not have any desire whatsoever to go back to that lifestyle.

I made a bad mistake and allowed myself to be influenced and follow others down a dark path. We don't all repeat our mistakes. I was an excellent EMT and loved what I did.

Is it right to be condemned for the rest of my existence because I did something wrong, or is that the way it is in a democratic society? I have learned in the county jail that there is no such thing as being innocent until proven guilty.....and you are treated like an animal rather than a human being. I have fallen from grace. Is there no chance to redeem myself and climb back up?

Not all BLS in NJ is volunteer.

As far as backround checks, you normally can't even join a fire company without a backround check. Not sure that you can even keep your certifications with a felony on your record. Most likely you would not be able to keep it, if NJ OEMS finds out. So i don't have any suggestions. With a misdemeanor, sometimes there are loopholes, but with a felony, you are most likely stuck; specially since it is a drug conviction.

I was not convicted on a drug conviction. I was convicted on the charge of a felony theft. That was last year. I do not wish to join a fire company. I have been an EMT in good standing and never did anything against the law in my 52 years of existence until that happened last year. As I said, I fell from grace. I am no longer using. I am clean. I do not wish to be condemned by my peers the rest of my life....I did wrong and I realize it. But the sad state of addiction is that, when you are in the midst of it, you are not who you used to be. I am not that person any longer.

[HERBIE1]

I would imagine so. I wasn't convicted on a drug charge. I was convicted on a felony theft. I am in Recovery, as I said, and do not have any desire whatsoever to go back to that lifestyle.

I made a bad mistake and allowed myself to be influenced and follow others down a dark path. We don't all repeat our mistakes. I was an excellent EMT and loved what I did.

Is it right to be condemned for the rest of my existence because I did something wrong, or is that the way it is in a democratic society? I have learned in the county jail that there is no such thing as being innocent until proven guilty.....and you are treated like an animal rather than a human being. I have fallen from grace. Is there no chance to redeem myself and climb back up?

I was not convicted on a drug conviction. I was convicted on the charge of a felony theft. That was last year. I do not wish to join a fire company. I have been an EMT in good standing and never did anything against the law in my 52 years of existence until that happened last year. As I said, I fell from grace. I am no longer using. I am clean. I do not wish to be condemned by my peers the rest of my life....I did wrong and I realize it. But the sad state of addiction is that, when you are in the midst of it, you are not who you used to be. I am not that person any longer.

I told this story before but it bears repeating. Obviously laws vary from state to state, so you need to do your homework.

Years ago I was a manager for a private provider. I had approximately 35 year old guy submit an application for an EMTB position, and he clearly stated that he had served time for theft as a younger guy. His application was well written, had good references(which I checked) and he seemed like a pretty good candidate. A day after I received the application, he called to ask if I received it, and if I had any questions. He also made sure to point out that he had indeed served prison time. I said we were reviewing his application and I would get back to him either way. Very impressed at his honesty and the fact that he followed up his application with a call.

I checked the references, they spoke glowingly of the guy. There was no legal reason not to hire him. I went to the boss(the owner) and fought for the guy. It took a lot of convincing, I said I would bring him in for an interview, and we could put him on an extended probation period to cover our asses. The boss finally relented and agreed to let me interview the guy. I was impressed as hell- personable, very honest and contrite- he said he did something stupid as a kid and he was tired of the dead end jobs he had since then. He really wanted to make a difference and help folks and was frustrated that nobody would even give him an interview. I explained I would go to the boss and recommend he be hired, under certain conditions. He completely understood. Well, after a lot of begging(and putting my ass and reputation on the line), we hired him. I explained to him how hard I fought for him, that I was going out on a major limb, and that he had better not make me look foolish or regret my decision.

Turned out he was the best employee I ever dealt with. Conscientious, hard worker, great attitude, and patients, contracts, and partners loved him, and I could always count on him. Never late- despite the fact he took 3 buses and a train to get to work(a 2 hour commute). He was so appreciative of the fact that we gave him a chance, he never let me down. He left after a couple years when he finally found a better paying job, closer to home, in part because of the glowing recommendation I gave his new boss and the opportunity we gave him to establish a work history in the field. I couldn't have been happier for the guy, but was really sorry to see him go. I also scored some major points with the boss- after that, he really trusted my instincts and I was given more responsibilities- and a nice raise. LOL

Moral of the story- find someone who will give you a chance. It may be tough, don't get discouraged, but there are people out there willing to offer you a job. Be up front and HONEST about your past, answer questions directly and without evasion, accept any reasonable conditions an employer asks of you. Remember, to them, you are a potential liability and this is a business. Explain what happened to you, WHY it happened, WHY it won't happen again, and what steps you have taken to ensure you never go down that road again. Every job interview is about selling yourself, and the only difference here is that you have even more to sell and explain.

Good luck. I wish you the best.

Edited May 9, 2010 by HERBIE1

[funkytomtom]

I would imagine so. I wasn't convicted on a drug charge. I was convicted on a felony theft. I am in Recovery, as I said, and do not have any desire whatsoever to go back to that lifestyle.

I made a bad mistake and allowed myself to be influenced and follow others down a dark path. We don't all repeat our mistakes. I was an excellent EMT and loved what I did.

Is it right to be condemned for the rest of my existence because I did something wrong, or is that the way it is in a democratic society? I have learned in the county jail that there is no such thing as being innocent until proven guilty.....and you are treated like an animal rather than a human being. I have fallen from grace. Is there no chance to redeem myself and climb back up?

I was not convicted on a drug conviction. I was convicted on the charge of a felony theft. That was last year. I do not wish to join a fire company. I have been an EMT in good standing and never did anything against the law in my 52 years of existence until that happened last year. As I said, I fell from grace. I am no longer using. I am clean. I do not wish to be condemned by my peers the rest of my life....I did wrong and I realize it. But the sad state of addiction is that, when you are in the midst of it, you are not who you used to be. I am not that person any longer.

I feel for you; your story is compelling. A felony, however, is going to really hold you back. No one cares what your words say, they mostly care about your actions and what's on paper. If you really want help with this, confide in someone you know and start talking to people on the ground. This forum can be very helpful...or...very quick to judge. Good luck.

[JTpaintball70]

One reason we can be quick to judge is when it seems like someone is trying to hide their background in a situation like this. Asking if we know of any service that don't do background checks just seems like you are trying to hide your past.

[funkytomtom]

One reason we can be quick to judge is when it seems like someone is trying to hide their background in a situation like this. Asking if we know of any service that don't do background checks just seems like you are trying to hide your past.

I didn't think about it like that. That is very true. I think herbie is correct in being totally up front. If it works, it works. If not, it doesn't.

[Dustdevil]

Now....you know that morphine and percocet, as well as any opiate, when taken on a daily basis, will cause the body to have a physical dependence on it.

Nonsense. I been taking them every day for nearly three years now, and I'm not dependent.