Convictions and Social Worker Discipline in California

The California Board of Behavioral Sciences (BBS) can discipline licensed social workers and marriage therapists if they get convicted of certain criminal offenses.

Convictions that may trigger disciplinary action include either misdemeanor or felony convictions that are “substantially related” to the professional’s work (examples include convictions for crimes involving fraud, theft, or violence).

Disciplinary action can include license

• suspension or
• revocation.

The BBS may also deny licenses to aspiring social workers if they were convicted on criminal charges within seven years of their license application. This is true provided the conviction was substantially related to social work. Further, applicants will not qualify for a license if they were convicted, at any time, for either:

• a serious offense (such as first-degree murder, rape, or grand theft), or
• a sex offense that requires Tier II or Tier III sex offender registration.

Professionals under investigation by the BBS should contact an experienced criminal defense attorney for help. Note that social workers have the right to attend an administrative hearing before the Board can impose any type of disciplinary sanctions. An attorney can represent social workers at this hearing.

Administrative hearings are held before an administrative law judge. The BBS only prevails at the hearing if it proves to the judge, by clear and convincing evidence, that discipline is warranted. A skilled lawyer may be able to help a social worker or therapist to prevent this from happening.

Further, if the Board suspends or revokes a social worker’s license, an attorney can help the professional appeal that decision with a California Superior Court.

Our California criminal defense attorneys will highlight the following in this article:

• 1. Who regulates social workers and marriage therapists in California?
• 2. What criminal convictions trigger Board discipline?
• 3. Does evidence of rehabilitation help?
• 4. What is an administrative hearing?
• 5. Can I become a social worker or therapist if I have a criminal history?
• 6. How can an attorney help?

1. Who regulates social workers and marriage therapists in California?

Clinical social workers and family therapists are licensed and regulated by the Board of Behavioral Sciences, an agency within the California Department of Consumer Affairs.¹

The BBS conducts its regulatory duties to help enforce standards for safe and competent mental health practice.²

The Board is authorized to discipline licensees who get convicted of a criminal offense.³ Convictions include

• guilty pleas,
• guilty verdicts, and
• “no contest” pleas

once the judgment has been entered. So pleas as part of a deferred entry of judgment do not count.⁴

To help carry out its disciplinary function, the BBS requires license applicants and licensees applying for license renewal to submit fingerprint data for criminal background checks.⁵

2. What criminal convictions trigger Board discipline?

The Board does not initiate disciplinary proceedings for every type of criminal conviction. It will only begin investigating a social worker if he/she

1. is convicted of a crime and
2. the conviction is “substantially related” to the qualifications, functions, or duties of social work.⁶

The Board evaluates every conviction on a case-by-case basis. This means it can label almost any conviction as “substantially related,” depending on the special circumstances and facts surrounding the conviction.

With that said, the BBS will usually discipline a social worker for a conviction involving theft, fraud, or violence.

Further, in the past, the Board has held that a conviction was “substantially related” to social work when it was for:

• driving under the influence (DUI),⁷
• brandishing a deadly weapon,⁸
• possession of a controlled substance and public intoxication,⁹
• battery and theft,¹⁰
• child abuse and molesting a child under 18,¹¹ and
• sex with an inmate.¹²

If a conviction is substantially related to social work, the Disciplinary Guidelines for California social workers recommend a minimum discipline of probation and a maximum discipline of license revocation.¹³

The Guidelines also recommend the following actions:

• in cases of crimes against people, additional probation conditions of psychological/psychiatric evaluation and psychotherapy,
• in cases of crimes involving drugs and alcohol, terms that include biological fluid testing, and
• for fiscal and property crimes, an additional probation term involving restitution.¹⁴

3. Does evidence of rehabilitation help?

Yes. The BBS is required to consider whether a convicted social worker or therapist has been rehabilitated when ruling on an appropriate form of discipline.

Consider the following real-life example.¹⁵

Example: A woman licensed as a family therapist intern had an altercation with the police at her home in a high-crime, gang-entrenched California neighborhood.

The cops came to her home in search of her son, who was wanted on a weapons-related charge. The woman felt the police were using excessive force on her son and she attempted to stop them. She was arrested and convicted of Penal Code 148 resisting arrest and accessory after the fact.

The convicted intern had a few other alcohol-related convictions in her past, but to her credit, she was “totally candid and cooperative” with the Board and had positive reference letters.

The Board initiated disciplinary proceedings based on the convictions involving the intern’s son. But the woman decided to fight for her license, and she represented herself at a hearing before an administrative law judge.

The judge acknowledged the intern’s efforts to craft a worthy career in helping others in the face of significant adversity, limited finances, and family responsibilities. “The law looks favorably on one who has reformed,” the judge wrote in his opinion.

Instead of getting her license revoked, the intern received probation and the chance to continue her valuable counseling work.

4. What is an administrative hearing?

Before the BBS can discipline a social worker or therapist, the convicted party can request an administrative hearing.

Hearings are conducted before an administrative law judge (ALJ) and are held at the Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH).

A hearing is similar to a California civil or criminal trial. A lawyer from the California Attorney General’s Office represents the Board. The convicted social worker either represents him/herself or is represented by a criminal defense attorney (at his/her own expense).

Both sides present evidence to the ALJ. Evidence may include:

• facts of the underlying crime that the social worker was convicted of,
• facts on a conviction’s sentence,
• the social worker’s criminal history,
• testimony from witnesses, and
• evidence regarding rehabilitation.

The judge will evaluate the evidence and issue a proposed decision to the Board, which can either accept or reject the administrative law judge’s decision.¹⁶

Note that social workers and therapists have the right to appeal the Board’s decision by filing a writ with the Superior Court.

If the Board decides to suspend or revoke a professional’s license, the party can try to petition the Board for license reinstatement.

5. Can I become a social worker or therapist if I have a criminal history?

The BBS may deny licenses to aspiring social workers if they were convicted of a crime within seven years of their license application. This is only true, though, provided the conviction was substantially related to social work.

Further, applicants will not qualify for a license if they were convicted, at any time, for either:

• a sex offense that requires Tier II or Tier III sex offender registration, or
• a serious felony, as defined in Penal Code 1192.7.

Examples of serious felonies under PC 1192.7 include:

• murder,
• rape,
• kidnapping,
• mayhem,
• forced sodomy, and
• assault with a deadly weapon.¹⁷

6. How can an attorney help?

Criminal defense attorneys play an invaluable role in helping social workers and therapists challenge disciplinary actions.

Lawyers can often try and negotiate with the Board to settle a case prior to it going to an administrative hearing.

If no settlement, attorneys can represent social workers before an ALJ. They can present evidence on the professional’s behalf and elicit testimony from applicable witnesses.

Criminal defense lawyers also know what evidence matters when it comes to showing proof of rehabilitation.

Note, too, that the BBS can only initiate an investigation in cases where there is a conviction. If a social worker is charged with a crime, he/she should contact a criminal defense attorney immediately after the state files the charge.

A lawyer can help the professional contest or defend against the charge so that it gets dismissed. A dismissal means that there is no conviction for the Board to act upon.

For additional help…

If you are a social worker or marriage therapist and are under investigation by the Board of Behavioral Sciences, we invite you to contact our criminal defense firm at the Shouse Law Group. Our attorneys provide both free consultations and legal advice you can trust.

Our lawyers also represent clients throughout the State of California, including those in Los Angeles County, Sacramento, San Diego, San Francisco, and Southern California.

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