Maybe so:

Misdemeanors account for three-quarters of criminal cases filed annually in the United States, yet causal evidence on the impacts of misdemeanor conviction is scarce. We combine administrative and survey data to provide novel evidence of how misdemeanor conviction affects the socioeconomic outcomes of defendants and their families. Using data on nearly seven million defendants from 11 states, we characterize the types of people involved with the misdemeanor system. We estimate causal impacts of a conviction relative to a charge using seven county reforms that sharply reduced conviction rates. Regression discontinuity design estimates yield precise null average effects of the reforms on criminal and labor market outcomes. Defendants dismissed by the reform are unlikely to re-offend if dismissed, but also unlikely to be harmed by conviction—marginal defendants are older and more likely to have been charged with minor crimes than the average defendant. Heterogeneity analyses suggest that conviction harms young and first-time defendants, implying that interventions targeting dismissal toward these groups would be beneficial. Finally, our causal estimates imply a negative Marginal Value of Public Funds of misdemeanor conviction, even under plausible estimates of general deterrence effects.

That is from recent research by Nikhil Rao and James Reeves, note that Rao is this year on the job market from University of Michigan.

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