§ 4-1-141. General policy.

(a)

If a prospective employee has not more than two convictions for offenses tried in magistrate's or municipal court and if the employee was not incarcerated as a result of either conviction, the employee may be hired by a department head with the written consent of the county manager, unless otherwise prohibited in this article.

(b)

If a prospective employee has one misdemeanor conviction for an offense tried in general sessions court and if the employee was not incarcerated as a result of the conviction, the employee may be hired by a department head with the consent of the county manager if the date of the conviction is more than five years prior to the date of the employee's application and the prospective employee has no other record of criminal activity since the date of the conviction, unless otherwise prohibited in this article.

(c)

No employee may be hired without the approval of the governing body of the county whose criminal record includes:

(1)

A felony conviction.

(2)

A conviction for any offense if the prospective employee was actually incarcerated as a result of the conviction.

(3)

A conviction for a crime involving dishonesty or deceit.

(4)

Multiple convictions except as allowed in subsection (a) of this section.

(d)

In any situation where a prospective employee is hired with a criminal record, the department head or the county manager shall include in the employee's personnel file a description of the offense and the sentence which was imposed, along with the reasons why the department head or county manager feels the employee should be hired in spite of his criminal record. In all cases, the county manager shall have the discretion to extend the employee's period of probation for up to one year.

(e)

Any employee who, after being hired, is arrested for any offense, may be suspended at the discretion of the county manager, with or without pay, pending a disposition of the charges made against that employee. Any employee who is convicted for any criminal offense may be terminated immediately as a result of the conviction.

(f)

As used in this section, the term "offense" means any crime other than a minor traffic violation, but specifically includes driving under the influence and driving under suspension.

(Ord. No. 8-92, § I, 4-7-92)