OLATHE, Kan.- Anthony Taylor had been in and out of jail until the age of 35 on a variety of charges including drug use, stolen cars, and bad checks.
"I've been shot four different times if that gives you any indication of what my life used to be like," said Taylor.
He finally decided to turn his life around and got a job at Royal Metal Industries.
He decided that he was going to work hard to keep that job.
It's advice he gives to anyone seeking work.
"Once you get that first job, stick it out and don't quit until you find another job because they're hard to find now days," said Taylor.
He admitted it would be difficult to find work in today's economy. Even Royal Metal Industries has made cutbacks.
Taylor says it is easier to survive a background check in the manufacturing industry than other types of work.
"Usually in construction, plumbers, electricians, plumbers, carpenters, metal business, manufacturing companies," said Taylor.
Many job seekers are looking for help in getting those old convictions taken off their records.
That is nearly impossible in Missouri.
"Most convictions of any kind in Missouri even a speeding ticket that you're found guilty of is typically not expungable in Missouri," said attorney Michael Joyce of Van Odsel and Magruder.
In Kansas , you can expunge most first-offense convictions, like petty theft. You can't expunge a DUI or sex offense. But just because you get them expunged doesn't mean they go away for good.
"Even expunged offenses can count as a prior offense if you get into trouble in the future. It's not completely wiped off the face of the earth," said Joyce.
You must wait at least five years from the end of probation or supervised period before expunging any record in Kansas. In, Missouri, DUI's take a ten-year waiting period for a first-offense.
