One of them did, I know, unsure on the other. I'll inquire to see if they're interested in providing that information or joining this discussion.

I heard back -- the incident in question for the other person occurred as a minor, so they could have it removed from their record, but had not yet done so. They explained this to the recruiter (a Google employee), who told them it would not be a problem, and so they didn't get it removed. Then they lost their job. Grotesque.

I asked the HR Manager point blank if Google made a mistake here, waiting two months to act upon information available to them before they extended me an offer. She countered that I was the one who had made the mistake in 2007.

I served my probation sentence and am beyond tired of being punished for the same thing. If hiring people are reading this and understanding just that last sentence that I typed, then I'm happy.

Sue them on grounds that their negligence caused irreparable damage to your future earning prospects. Settle for a hundreds of K's. Use the money to launch a contracting career. Incorporate, do C2C contracts. Background checks are uncommon. Been at it for 2 years now and love it.

I suspect that having sued a previous employer might block off more future employment opportunities than a conviction record.

This. It's crazy, but criminal record can make or break us white collar workers. It's sad that people and corporations don't have a forgive and forget mentality towards convicts. I think that the only way out is to be your own boss. When people buy a product (software or better yet hardware) they are much more removed from the people producing it. I'd be interested in how you are handling all this. And how common you think this situation is among white collars. Good luck in your future.