Can I join the Army with prior misdemeanor charges?

Brandon Wilson — Wed, 04 Jul 2018 11:44:08 -0400

Ok so i have 2 misdemeanor charges is it any way i could possibly join the army im willing to work as hard as i have to so im just looking for advice

Response by SSgt Private RallyPoint Member made Jul 4 at 2018 12:01 PM

SSgt Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 04 Jul 2018 12:01:34 -0400

Depends on what the charges are for. The best thing to do is just sit down with a recruiter, get some information and explain the situation.

Response by PV2 Robert H. made Jul 6 at 2018 3:03 AM

PV2 Robert H. — Fri, 06 Jul 2018 03:03:58 -0400

"The military requires applicants to be of good moral standing. This means a recruit must not have committed any serious crimes. ... Any applicant for enlistment in the United States Army who has received two, three, or four civil convictions or other adverse dispositions for a misdemeanor offense.requires a waiver."
-Quick Google search of "army enlistment regulations misdemeanor"

Response by Byron Heapes made Aug 7 at 2018 1:33 PM

Byron Heapes — Tue, 07 Aug 2018 13:33:51 -0400

Most likely. I had an assault charge and a couple of rather expensive traffic stops and a waiver wasn’t hard to get for it, just took time. Assuming you’ve been on good behavior for a time you should be fine as long as it isn’t domestic violence or something.
Recruiter will tell you up front what your chances are once you explain the situation accurately and honestly. That last part is important because they’ll bring up your records for your packet early on. I hit a bump after a miscommunication occurred and my recruiter was unaware of how my traffic stops were laid out, but all that did was delay me a couple weeks.

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 21 at 2021 9:14 AM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Sun, 21 Feb 2021 09:14:00 -0500

I had a DUI 9 months before joining in 1977. Didn’t need a waiver back then. Unfortunately, that mark on my record followed me all the way from start to retirement. Never had another DUI.

Response by SSG Ronald Ralph made Apr 15 at 2021 11:58 AM

SSG Ronald Ralph — Thu, 15 Apr 2021 11:58:23 -0400

Are your misdemeanor offenses completed, or still open? You can’t enlist with any type of open charges. How many misdemeanor or felony offenses have you had? What are they for?

Go talk to a current local Army Recruiter, and he/she can better answer that today. I am a former Army Recruiter from 1989-1992. At the timeframe I a Recruiter, we weren’t accepting any waivers. Things may be slightly different now. What I do know is that it takes extra paperwork and legwork for your local Army Recruiter to do, and he/she may not devote that time for a 50/50 shot of having it approved/disapproved. What I do know is that you will be offered less jobs than if you had a clean slate. There are certain intelligence jobs that you will be automatically disqualified for, plus other high security clearance jobs.