While I sympathize with you about the wasted money and time. I think the person you should be upset with is yourself for not doing some research before trying to cross an international border.

You really can't have it both ways; tightened border security for some since September 11th, and lax security for others. I think a shared database with U.S is a great idea. Recently, Canada have taken a lot of heat for our less than stringent security at the border.

If you have been out of trouble with the law as you stated for that 30 years and have paid your debt to society, does not the U.S. have some kind of "Pardon" program to essential set aside your criminal record that you can apply for? This will make traveling and finding a job easier.

I read that it depends on the crime if it can be "expunged"..I have a feeling that arson and conspiracy might be too serious crimes to Pardon.
And there were two crimes a year apart.
If I knew that I had a prison record, I would definitely know about travel out of the US. I think you cannot vote either, can you?

In most states a felons right to vote is restored upon completion of their sentence.

Scarlett, I just read about a week or so ago that in California people that have had felony charges can vote.
Years ago that was not true.
Evidently the law here changed some time ago.
Judges were interviewed that were not aware of this new law, which passed something like 20 years ago.

If you had looked at the Immigration web site or any Canadian Embassy or Consulate site before travelling you would have realized that you would have a problem entering Canada. Americans, as well as other foreigners, need to remember you are asking for permission to enter a foreign country you have no right to enter. Before you travel to any foreign country you should read their immigration and customs sites and be aware of what the rules and regulations are so you don't have problems. Americans are turned away at the border frequently for old convictions - especially DUIs. You may apply for permission to enter but it used to be a long process...not sure how long it takes now.

you can vote as an ex offender , you can hold a government job with any local state or federal government, and you can even run for political office, i have been to most european countries, every carribean island,russia i have drawer full of visa's...a lot of you are really uniformed about our rights,and are living in the past, everyday in my buisness i give people a chance that have made a mistake,personally,(divorce)finacially,(bankrupt) and criminally,history is history, all these personal attacks are unnessasery, it just would have been nice to be prewarned, i'd been to canada several times in the last few years and presently am working on the design of a power plant to light parts of buffalo(oh yes you can be a sucess even if you've made a mistakes)the crime i pled to is not expungeable in either country, but com'on 30 years ago ......and i've never heard of the us refusing entry for a visit on these grounds and have called our us senator(oh yeah he was allowed to talk to me )and he was as unaware of this as i....this will be my last post and my only purpose was to let other people in this position what is going on , leaving in the morning for england, then moscow and then a short carribean vacation, but i couldn't shop in montreal.........

I guess I am uninformed of my rights as a felon or convict.. If I were ever to become a felon, or ex-convict, I would probably find out everything there is to know about being one.
Good luck, did you check to be sure that those countries will still let you in?

"...a lot of you are really uniformed about our rights,and are living in the past,"

I'm sorry, thecarriagehouse, but it seems that to the rest of us, it is you who is uninformed. To think that you would not have problems crossing the border is almost unbelieveable in this day in age.

Your original post asks "what's up with this" and many peopple here have tried to help you figure that out but you don't seem to want to accept the fact that being an ex-felon still may have consequences for you.

Again, I am not saying that you are a bad person or a threat to anyone, simply that the consequences of some actions that you chose 30 years ago may still follow you today.

It is certainly not the Canadian, nor the American government's fault that you are now having trouble crossing the border, the policies they have put in place are for very good reasons and some research on your part will help you out temendously I am sure.

Good luck with your future travels.

By the way the rules are NOT post 9/11. It has been this way for a long time. I would still recommend that anyone with ANY criminal conviction log onto the immigration site of the country you are trying to visit and make sure that you will be able to enter. You were lucky to have been allowed to enter prior to this time. By the way what do you think the US government is going to do to force the Canadian government to let you in? All you need to do is to go to your local Canadian Consulate or call and they will mail you the paperwork that you need to complete in order to be "possibly" granted entry. Without that you'll never get in. By the way one of the things that an officer has at the border sometimes is discretion but if you keep up this kind of attitude no immigration officer will let you in!

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/applications/rehabil.html

The above link is for anyone with a similar problem (past conviction) who would like to get permission to enter Canada.

Yes, it was foolish for the original poster not to get the proper information before going to Canada.

The funny thing is (well, not really funny) is that George W. Bush has been arrested three times! He has a government job, and he visits a lot of countries! Hmmmm...........

Carriage,
The reason for your difficulty entering either country legally, as a convicted felon, is due to the common border. The same holds true for Mexico.

President Bush was arrested for drunk driving, right?
the OP says he was arrested for conspiracy and arson.
I think if everyone who was arrested for a driving offense had a record, no one would travel anymore

The first arrest of George W. Bush was for theft at a hotel.

The second arrest was for disorderly conduct at a football game.

The third arrest, we've now learned, is for a very serious crime -- drunk driving.

We have known for some time , that the President was arrested for disorderly conduct in 1966 for drinking and taking a Christmas wreath off of a hotel door, then his DUI in 1976. He paid his fine and did not go to jail, it was a misdemeanor. He is said to have quit drinking after that.

IMHO- Michael Moore is not exactly the best source for unbiased and honest information.

"at Her Majesty's Pleasure" is a quaint term used to specify an undefined release date from prison or asylum. Be thankful that you did not end up in the Malton Detention Centre begging for Her Majesty's Pleasure.

Scarlett: Several people on these boards mentioned that you can't get into Canada or some other countries with a DUI or have a government job with an arrest record (perhaps the job thing only applies to felonies).

I brought up the name of someone who works for the government and has a DUI record who is able to go just about anywhere he wants.

There are many more sources out there than Michael Moore. I'm smart enough to do my homework.

Have a nice evening!

Buffalo girl, please don't be offended! I googled President Bush and his arrest record and Michael Moores site is word for word what you posted..leading me to think you took that as fact. I googled because I had not heard about a third arrest, so I wanted to know what I had missed.
Friends, even strangers should not discuss politics, this is always my motto and when I do, someone gets annoyed.
I knew you were using the President as an example, but it was a tiny bit unfair considering the truth vs Michael Moores version.
Peace? Scarlett

Does arrested development count?