MANDATORY REPORTING OF CRIMINAL CONVICTIONS

MANDATORY REPORTING OF

CRIMINAL CONVICTIONS & DISCIPLINARY ACTIONS

Reporting Requirement

Licensed/credentialed individuals must report criminal convictions to the

Kentucky Board of Nursing (KBN).

The Kentucky Nursing Laws require that all misdemeanor and felony

convictions in Kentucky courts or those of any other state, federal, military or

other U.S. jurisdiction, regardless of when they occurred, must be reported

to the KBN. Any person licensed/credentialed by the KBN shall, within ninety

(90) days of entry of the final judgment, notify the KBN in writing of any

misdemeanor or felony criminal conviction in this or any other jurisdiction.

See, Kentucky Revised Statutes (KRS) 314.109.

All disciplinary action taken by another state’s board of nursing or on other

professional or business license/certification or privilege to practice must be

reported to KBN within thirty (30) days of entry of the disciplinary order. See,

KRS 314.108.

Failing to report a conviction or disciplinary action taken on your application

or failing to report them once licensed within the mandated 90 days or 30

days of entry of the final judgment or disciplinary order, is a violation of the

law that could subject the license or credential issued to you by the KBN to

further disciplinary action.

Applicants must report criminal convictions and disciplinary action taken in

other jurisdictions. See, Kentucky Administrative Regulations (KAR), 201

KAR 20:370.

What is Considered a “Conviction”?

A conviction is defined as:

(a) An unvacated adjudication of guilt;

(b) Pleading no contest or nolo contendre or entering an Alford plea; or

of whether the penalty is rebated, suspended, or probated.

See, KRS Chapter 314.011(21).

You should contact the appropriate court to determine whether the above

definition of conviction applies to your record. However, a person has been

convicted if they pleaded guilty, entered an Alford plea or Nolo Contendre

plea, entered a pre-trial diversion program, or was found guilty of a criminal

offense in any court.

You should contact the appropriate court to determine whether the conviction

was a violation, misdemeanor, or felony offense.

Driving Under the Influence (DUI) convictions must be reported. Other traffic

related misdemeanor convictions do not have to be reported, unless they

involve drugs, alcohol, physical harm, or endangerment to others. Traffic

violations do not need to be reported.

Juvenile adjudications that occurred when you were under the age of 18 do

not need to be reported, unless the charges resulted in a conviction as an

adult.

You are not required to report charges that have been dismissed by the court.

But you may be required to provide records verifying the charges have been

dismissed, if KBN staff requests verification.

Review of Convictions or Disciplinary Actions

There are three methods of criminal conviction and disciplinary action

review:

 Staff Member

 Board Member

 Credentials Review Panel

The Panel meetings occur monthly. At any point during the review process,

the KBN can require additional information by requesting an investigative

interview with you; reference letters; or verification of compliance with

another jurisdiction’s disciplinary action or court’s order, including a diversion

program, probationary terms.

Depending upon the nature of the conviction or disciplinary action, the KBN

may order a Mental Health, Substance Use Disorder, Physical,

Neuropsychological, Psychosocial, or Psychosexual Evaluation.

The KBN may approve or deny your application for licensure or license

reinstatement. A denial of your application will prohibit you from being

allowed to take the NCLEX examination in Kentucky.

The KBN may act on criminal convictions or offensive actions that bear

directly on an individual’s qualifications or ability to practice, and those that

involve dishonesty, substance abuse, sexual offenses, breach of trust,

danger to the public safety, or physical harm or endangerment. An

investigation may take several months.

If the KBN denies your application, you may request a formal hearing before

a hearing panel. Your request must be in writing. You have a right to retain

legal counsel. You will be notified of the date, time, and location of the

hearing. The panel will make a recommendation regarding the approval or

denial of your application for licensure or license reinstatement. Denial of

licensure or license reinstatement is formal disciplinary action, which is

published in the KBN Connection and reported to the National Council of

State Boards of Nursing Disciplinary Data Bank.

The KBN may issue a single-state license restriction at any time, under the

Nurse Licensure Compact, KRS 314.475. Kentucky licensees and/or

applicants are restricted to a single state license if they have a record of one

or more of the following:

1. A felony conviction;

2. A practice-related misdemeanor conviction; or

3. An encumbered license or multistate privilege to practice in any

state/jurisdiction.

If KBN previously reviewed your conviction(s) or disciplinary action, upload

a letter of explanation to the application to inform the KBN about previous

conviction review.

In some situations, the Board may issue a consent decree. A consent decree

is not “formal” disciplinary action taken by the Board. The consent decree will

consist of the applicant/licensee/credential holder paying a civil penalty to

the Board before the license/credential is issued and/or the investigation is

lifted. It may involve obtaining additional continuing education hours if

ordered by the Board.

DocumentsRequiredwhenReporngConvicon(s)orDiscipline



FelonyConvicon(s): Misdemeanor

Convicon(s)

IncludingDriving

Underthe

Inﬂuence

Convicon(s)Five

(5)YearsOldor

Less:

Misdemeanor

Convicon(s)

IncludingDriving

Underthe

Inﬂuence

Convicon(s)Over

Five(5)YearsOld:

DisciplinaryAcon(s):

Cerﬁed/Aested Copy of

Court’s Disposion Records

Cerﬁed/Aested Copy

of Court’s Disposion

Records

No Documentaon

Required Unless

Requested by Board

Staﬀ

Cerﬁed Copy of the

Disciplinary Order.

Leer of Explanaon

(Leer is a personally

wrien summary of the

events that led to your

convicon. It gives you the

opportunity to tell what

happened and to explain

the circumstances that led

to your convicon.)

Leer of Explanaon

(Leer is a personally

wrien summary of the

events that led to your

convicon. It gives you

the opportunity to tell

what happened and to

explain the

circumstances that led

to your convicon.)

Leer of Explanaon

(Leer is a personally

wrien summary of the

events that led to the

disciplinary order. It gives

you the opportunity to tell

what happened and to

explain the circumstances

that led to your disciplinary

order.)

The Board may request addional informaon at any me during the process.

A Letter of Explanation is a personally written summary of the events that

led to your conviction or disciplinary order. It gives you the opportunity to tell

what happened and to explain the circumstances that led to your conviction

or disciplinary order.



Certified/Attested Copy of Court’s Case Disposition Records. You

should contact the court clerk in the jurisdiction where the conviction

occurred to obtain a certified/attested copy of the court record. The

certification/attestation verifies the conviction, date of the conviction, and the

judgment entered against you.

If the court is unable to locate a record of your conviction, for example, a

court record has been “purged” or expunged, you may submit a statement

from the court to affirm that the physical record no longer exists. This

statement will be accepted in lieu of the court record.

A Certified Copy of the Disciplinary Order. You should contact the

professional regulatory agency that issued the disciplinary action to obtain a

certified copy of the order. If the action has been cleared or satisfactorily

completed, you should submit a copy of the professional regulatory agency’s

notification letter to the Board along with the disciplinary order.

The most frequently requested information in situations involving prior

convictions or disciplinary actions is proof of compliance with a court or

regulatory agency’s ordered alcohol education, treatment program, or of

successful completion of a court ordered probation.

You should report appealed conviction(s) or disciplinary action to the KBN,

unless the conviction or disciplinary action has been reversed and vacated

by the appellate court.

KBN requires a state and federal criminal history search and disciplinary

action screening on initial applicants for licensure or credentialing. The

record search is NOT the official record. Discrepancies related to criminal

convictions or disciplinary action(s) or failure to report them will delay the

processing of an application.



Application

Submitted

With

Reported

Conviction(s) or

Discipline

KBN Receives

Criminal Records

Screenings

Application

Sent/Received

Investigation

Branch

KBN Receives

Certified or

Attested

Criminal

Records or

Disciplinary

Order and

Letter of

Explanation

Application

With

Conviction or

Discipline

Reviewed by

KBN

Application

Returned to

Credentials Branch

for licensure

Applicant

Licensed and/or

Credentialed



Reported Convicon or Disciplinary Acon

Application

Submitted

KBN Receives Criminal

and Background

Screening Reports

Application Sent/Received

Investigation Branch

KBN Receives Certified or

Attested Criminal Records or

Disciplinary Order

KBN Enters an

Administrative

Complaint

KBN

requests/receive

s notarized Letter

Response/Letter

of Explanation

from Applicant

Application With

Conviction

Reviewed by KBN

KBN Issues Consent

Decree/Civil Penalty for Failure

to Report Conviction

Consent Decree received by KBN signed

and notarized

10.

Application Returned to

Credentials Branch

for licensure

11.

Applicant Licensed

and/or Credentialed



Mission Statement:

The Kentucky Board of Nursing protects the public by development

and enforcement of state laws governing the safe practice of nurses,

dialysis technicians, and licensed certified professional midwives.

Failed to Report Convicon or Discipline