Can I Lose My License for a Criminal Conviction?

Yes, nurses can lose their license due to a criminal conviction. Whether you actually lose your license depends on your state’s laws, nursing board policies and procedures, the details of the criminal conviction, how any disciplinary proceedings unfold, the effectiveness of your representation, and possibly several other factors.

Revocation of your license is just one of several types of discipline that may be on the table following a conviction. If you do not proactively fight such discipline, the damage to your professional reputation and career could be long-lasting—and possibly irreparable.

Before or after reading this article, call the LLF National Law Firm Professional License Defense Team today at 888-535-3686 or contact us online. We have a passion for helping nurses in their times of need, just as nurses take care of us when we are down.

What State Nursing Boards Say About Criminal Convictions and License Revocation

Each state has its own policies regarding how a criminal conviction can, or will, affect a nurse’s license. Here are a few state-by-state examples to give you a better idea of what these policies look like:

• Texas statutes cite “revocation” as one of the “consequences of criminal conviction,” even stating that a nurse’s license “shall be revoked” if they are imprisoned for certain felony offenses

• New York’s Office of the Professions cites “Being convicted of committing an act constituting a crime” as possible grounds for sanctions, including but not limited to license revocation

• Pennsylvania notes that the revocation and suspension of a nurse’s license are possible penalties that may be imposed on someone “who has been convicted of a felonious act”

• Ohio Law and Administrative Rules cite both misdemeanor and felony convictions as grounds for professional sanctions, including but not limited to revocation of a nurse’s license

Most, if not all, state nursing boards at least have the option to discipline a nurse for a criminal conviction. However, revocation and other sanctions must be supported by that state’s laws and professional procedures, and must not be disproportionate to the offense for which the nurse was convicted.

License Revocation Is Just One of Several Sanctions You Might Face Because of a Conviction

Nursing boards nationwide have a menu of sanctions they might choose from. In addition to the option of revoking the nurse’s license, a nursing board may:

• Take non-disciplinary action, which is essentially a formal warning

• File a formal reprimand of the nurse

• Restrict the nurse’s ability to practice, which can affect their earning capacity

• Place the nurse on probation

• Issue a fine

• Require the nurse to complete corrective education, which might be part of a diversion program

• Suspend the nurse’s license

If a nurse’s license is revoked, they may or may not be able to apply for reinstatement in the future. These are the kinds of pivotal details we consider when advocating for nurses who face professional discipline.

The professional effects of a criminal conviction are not always immediate. A nurse, for instance, might not have their license renewed after reporting a criminal conviction during the renewal process.

Our goal at the LLF National Law Firm is to minimize the professional harm that nurses face due to criminal convictions or other missteps.

Is There Any Chance That I Do Not Face Professional Sanctions After a Criminal Conviction?

It is possible that a nurse is convicted of a criminal offense but not sanctioned professionally. This is most common when:

• The criminal offense is a misdemeanor or a lesser category of offense

• The offense does not directly relate to the practice of nursing

• The nursing board remains unaware of the conviction (perhaps because reporting of that specific offense is not mandatory)

• The nursing board is aware of the conviction, but does not believe the conviction warrants formal discipline

A nurse may also avoid professional discipline if they demonstrate rehabilitation. They might undergo board-sanctioned education, a diversion program, or voluntary service to prove it.

When you engage the LLF National Law Firm, we may fight for you to avoid professional discipline—our goal will depend on your unique circumstances.

Are Specific Types of Offenses More Likely to Cost Me My Nursing License?

When you engage the LLF National Law Firm Professional License Defense Team, we will provide you with state-specific information. We just need to know which state you are in, then we can give you the most accurate, personalized guidance.

Until then, we can present some general truths that apply nationwide. One of those truths is that a few categories of criminal convictions are more likely to result in the revocation of a nurse’s license, or other serious discipline:

Offenses Related to the Practice of Nursing

Criminal convictions are generally taken more seriously by nursing boards if there is a direct or even indirect connection to the practice of nursing. This category of offenses might include those which:

• Occurred during the course of the nurse’s employment (such as an assault conviction that stemmed from a workplace altercation)

• Happened just before or after a nurse’s shift (like a nurse being arrested for driving under the influence on their way home from work)

• Involve possession or distribution of a controlled substance

• Misconduct directly involving a patient (including any sexual violations involving a patient)

• Insurance or Medicaid fraud

Any conviction that occurs in the workplace (or involves nursing-specific duties, such as handling controlled substances), calls into question the nurse’s judgment, signals that the nurse might be a physical threat to others, or suggests the nurse may be ethically compromised, and could be viewed as “related to the practice of nursing.”

California’s nursing guidelines, for example, cite revocation as the “recommended discipline” when a nurse is convicted of “any offense substantially related to the qualifications, functions, and duties of a registered nurse.”

Specifically Offenses That Caused, or Could Have Caused, Harm to Patients

It is worth emphasizing that any offense that caused harm to a patient, or could have conceivably caused a patient harm, may be more likely to result in the revocation of a nurse’s license. 

Impairment, threats to patients, physical contact with patients, and any other behavior that directly or indirectly compromises patient safety are considered extremely serious.

Felony-Level Offenses

Felony-level offenses are singled out in most Nurse Practice Acts (NPAs) as uniquely serious. Just as the criminal justice system imposes more severe penalties for felony convictions (as opposed to misdemeanor convictions or infractions), nursing boards tend to impose more severe discipline for nurses’ felony convictions—sometimes including license revocation.

Crimes of Moral Turpitude

Many nurse-specific statutes identify “crimes of moral turpitude” as grounds for discipline, with Florida’s statutes being one example. One accepted definition of “moral turpitude” is conduct that is “inherently base, vile, or depraved, and contrary to the accepted rules of morality and the duties owed between persons or to society in general.

Offenses commonly categorized as “crimes of moral turpitude” include:

• Fraud

• Those that involve physical violence

• Sexual offenses

• Perjury and other offenses involving willful dishonesty

• Certain drug-related offenses

Revocation of a nurse’s license is a realistic response when the nurse is convicted of an offense of moral turpitude. That being said, there is some subjectivity when evaluating “moral turpitude,” and having an effective defense could determine whether your conviction is categorized as such.

Do Nurses Have to Report Criminal Convictions to Their Nursing Board?

It might occur to you that, if the nursing board is unaware of a criminal conviction, it cannot sanction you based on that conviction. This thought naturally leads to a question: Do I have to report a criminal conviction to my state nursing board?

Reporting rules vary from state to state. That said, your state’s nursing board will likely find out about a criminal conviction one way or another, possibly including through:

• Your mandatory reporting (either when the conviction occurs or when you seek to renew your license or pursue a new nursing credential)

• Your voluntary reporting (which you may choose to do because you know you will have to report the conviction in the future anyway)

• It’s monitoring of court records

• Reporting from the court to the nursing board (some courts mandatorily or voluntarily report criminal matters involving nurses to the licensing board)

• Reporting from a third party, such as a fellow nurse or an employer

As your advisors, we will explain mandatory reporting rules to you. If reporting your conviction is a voluntary matter, we will help you decide whether self-reporting is a wise decision or whether it is better to let a sleeping dog lie.

Should I Fight the Possible Revocation of My License?

Every nurse should fight the revocation of their license. For that matter, you should typically fight any sanction that could negatively affect your career. Should you simply accept any sanction the nursing board chooses to impose, you may:

Accept More Severe Discipline Than Necessary

Nurses sometimes feel that they have to grit their teeth and bear professional sanctions. Many even beat themselves up in the process, thinking that because they have made a mistake that led to the conviction, they “deserve” any resulting professional sanctions too.

The truth is that nurses owe it to themselves to protect their careers. You have invested years of your life into building your reputation in the medical community—the least you can do is fight to keep that reputation intact. Even if fighting results in slightly less severe sanctions, it is worth the effort.

Suffer a Nationwide Reputational Hit

Nationwide nursing databases like Nursys provide much-needed transparency, but they also mean that discipline can cause a nationwide reputational hit.

As you consider the importance of fighting potential sanctions, recognize that the result of your disciplinary issue will reverberate nationwide.

Immediately Lose Your Earning Power

If your license is revoked, you are suspended, or your ability to practice is restricted, you may lose some or all of your earning power. In the case of suspension or revocation, the loss of earning power may be indefinite or even permanent.

Lose Future Professional Opportunities

Thanks in part to those national nursing databases, discipline on your nursing record can:

• Be readily visible to any prospective employer

• Be an issue you’re forced to address during the interview process

• Prompt prospective employers to pass you over during hiring searches

• Prevent you from renewing your current nursing license

• Prevent you from receiving certain nursing credentials

A nursing career can be stunted by discipline, especially if the discipline is severe.

Face Psychological and Emotional Hardship That May Have Been Avoided (or at Least Mitigated)

The cumulative effects of professional discipline (lost earning power, uncertainty about the future of your career, reputational harm) can take a toll. Sparing nurses from emotional and psychological hardship is one of the most rewarding features of our job as advocates for nurses facing possible professional sanctions.

Astute nurses recognize that sanctions are sometimes inevitable. Rather than taking an all-or-nothing defense approach that might result in the revocation of their license, some nurses choose instead to accept a disciplinary agreement that preserves their right to continue practicing.

Is It Smart to Accept a Consent Agreement Related to a Criminal Conviction?

There are circumstances in which nurses are well served by negotiating a disciplinary agreement rather than leaving the disciplinary matter to chance. This is often the case when a nurse feels that some form of discipline is inevitable and wants to avoid license revocation by accepting a lesser sanction.

Some nurses even voluntarily surrender their licenses. While we rarely advise such a measure, we can discuss the rationale behind such a decision if you are interested.

Engage the LLF National Law Firm Professional License Defense Team as Soon as Possible After a Conviction (and Even an Arrest)

A criminal conviction is damaging enough on its own. The conviction should not be a fatal blow to your nursing career, too. Our Professional License Defense Team will fight to ensure it is not, and we will fight with the same tenacity with which we would fight for our own careers and licenses.

Call the LLF National Law Firm Professional License Defense Team today at 888-535-3686 or contact us online about getting your defense underway.