I've been getting positive opinions from people I know who currently teach/are enrolled at law schools about my chances, but I wanted some unbiased advice.
I went to a good state university. I was a terrible college student, no way around it. I had severe, untreated mental health issues and an absence of work ethic.
Since college, my work history includes two years of Americorps working with underprivileged youth and five years of wildland firefighting for the federal government. Two (three, if I stay for one more season) of these years of firefighting were on a hotshot crew, which are considered an "elite" resource (it makes me want to gag typing this as it sounds so absurdly self-aggrandizing, but I am trying to paint an accurate picture of the motivation and work ethic one needs to have to be a hotshot for those who are unfamiliar).
This is all just to say that I demonstrably got my shit together and have quite a bit of experience working in a high-stress, demanding, unforgiving environment. I took the LSAT this April for the first time and scored a 167, which I was thrilled about. Some candor regarding the possibility of my work history mitigating the damage my GPA will have on my applications would be greatly appreciated. I know I will have stellar references, and I'm pretty confident in my ability to write a decent personal statement. Thanks all.