1.Q: I am an LVN who just got arrested for a DUI, what should I do to best protect my CA RN license?
A: You should hire an attorney to represent you at the criminal level for the DUI. The attorney needs to understand how this DUI is going to impact your vocational nursing license. There are literally thousands of DUI lawyers in CA… you can pick one off of any freeway billboard, in any California city, and he/she may be great for defending the average Joe’s DUI. However, you are not average. Licensed vocational nurses with a recent DUI arrest have a lot more at stake than Joe does. Choose a lawyer who will know how a DUI arrest affects your LVN License. This will give you the best possible chance of success in keeping your LVN license following a DUI and mitigating the discipline you will face.
2.Q: I am an LVN who just got arrested for a DUI, when do I need to tell the BVNPT? When do I need to tell my employer?
A: For a DUI, you ARE required to tell the Board of Vocational Nursing & Psychiatric Technicians (BVNPT) about the arrest. Let me say that one more time… You ARE required to tell the BVNPT about the arrest. However, it is very important NOT to disclose anything about the arrest. Wait until you consult with your attorney before you disclose any arrest information to anyone. In addition, you must tell the BVNPT about the conviction and you have a very slim time frame in which to do so, or you can face an unprofessional conduct charge. Also, you should not tell your employer about the arrest, or anyone else for that matter. An arrest is an arrest, meaning anything you say following the arrest is admissible against you as evidence. Please do not make it harder on your attorney by talking about it and making unwitting statements. You will eventually have to disclose this to your employer if a.) it is part of their own policy, b.) it is going to become public anyway…. But that decision is best made by you and your lawyer down the road.
3.Q: How should I tell the BVNPT about the DUI?
A: Like I said in the previous question, you should only disclose the conviction, NOT information about the arrest. It is by far better to disclose when required and give the right information without disclosing too much. This means that you should have an attorney assist you in the disclosure. Done properly, even a DUI conviction can result in a Cite and Fine from the BVNPT, in lieu of a formal accusation. This service is very inexpensive in comparison to legal retainers for Hearings and Settlement Negotiations.
4.Q: I am a LVN who just got arrested for a DUI, when does the BVNPT contact me?
A: Your first contact from the BVNPT will be within a few weeks of the arrest itself and will come in the form of a Diversion Letter. I won’t get into the pitfalls of the Diversion program here, you can read about the BVNPT’s Diversion program elsewhere on this blog. I will say that you should not respond to this letter unless you are 100% positive you are joining the diversion program. If you never receive an offer from Diversion (lucky you, by the way), then you may receive a citation and fine, or an accusation. You may also be contacted by an investigator in rare cases. This will all occur 3-9 months following the conviction. The Diversion letter is the only communication you will receive from the BVNPT following the arrest, but prior to disclosure.
5.Q: I am an LVN who just got arrested for a DUI, when does the BVNPT find out about it? Does the BVNPT notify my employer about the DUI?
A: The BVNPT can know about the arrest within hours or days. Remember those Livescan fingerprints you had to have done? This is why. As soon as your little fingers get printed at the jail, the Department of Justice (DOJ) notifies the BVNPT. That is why it is so important to properly disclose the conviction to the BVNPT, because there is a 99.8% chance that they know about it anyway. That 0.2% chance that they don’t know about the arrest, is precisely the reason you don’t disclose the arrest itself.
The BVNPT does not tattle on you to your employer. Your employer will only find out if the BVNPT makes the DUI public in the form of an Accusation and if they have signed up for notifications through the Breeze system or do a random licensing audit.
6.Q: I am an LVN who just got arrested for a DUI and I received a letter from the BVNPT Diversion Program, do I have to reply? What should I do?
A: No, you do not have to reply. Yes, I know it says that if you do not reply they will investigate or turn the matter over to enforcement for action against your license. This is a scare tactic as they won’t do anything until your criminal case is wrapped up. I assure you, you do not have to reply, nor should you if you’ve decided that Diversion is not right for you. Diversion is voluntary to join and a veritable prison sentence once you’re in. Please do your research. Call me and I will be happy to explain, but do not call them to explain. LVN’s get “accidentally” enrolled and their LVN license will be immediately inactivated, so it is best to just ignore them.
7.Q: I am an LVN who just got arrested for a DUI, what are the time frames that I can expect moving forward?
A: Let your DUI attorney (again, someone who also understands the LVN licenses and the BVNPT) direct the criminal case. Lawyers often request continuances, delay appearances, etc. and they have their reasons. Let them employ their best strategies. 9 times out of 10 it is best to drag the process out anyway, especially for nurses, so that you can begin building your BVNPT case from the get go.
Upon conviction, and depending on the type of conviction, you will have to disclose to the BVNPT. This must occur within 30 days. Please do not do this on your own. Should you hire an attorney to assist you later, no amount of brilliant lawyering is going to fix the mistakes you made by doing the disclosure yourself.
Once the conviction has been disclosed it will take approximately 4-6 months to receive a citation and fine, if that is the discipline the BVNPT has imposed.
If the BVNPT is going to file an Accusation this will take 6-12 months, and sometimes longer.
DUI Arrest Affects Your LVN License
If you are a nurse who has been recently arrested for a DUI, and are now concerned with how the DUI arrest affects your LVN license, please give me a call. We can help you protect your LVN license from revocation or severe disciplines like license suspension or all 19 Probation Requirements. I know how much your LVN career means to you and I will do everything I can to help you keep it. We have helped thousands of California LVN’s defend their LVN licenses following a DUI arrest. To date, we have a 98% success rate in saving LVN licenses of nurses with a recent, first time DUI from revocation or suspension.