| In today's world background checks on other people | | | | as opposed to slow and expensive, don't they? Can |
| have become a necessary part of our business and | | | | you imagine a website that advertises "Slow And |
| sometimes, personal life. What parent now days | | | | Expensive Limited Area Background Checks." But, in |
| would not first check a person's background before | | | | fact, some areas of the country, like the Carolinas |
| they hire a nanny for their children, for example? And | | | | and most of California require exactly that, records |
| what small business wouldn't check the background | | | | that must be searched in person at each local county |
| of a person hired to manage the bank accounts of | | | | courthouse. |
| that business? Large businesses issue Requests For | | | | These companies get records where they can get |
| Proposals to choose a background check company | | | | them for free; usually from a state's Department of |
| that best suits their needs in terms of the services | | | | Corrections, which means you are only getting info |
| offered, information management, price and reliability. | | | | on a person if he/she has been convicted of a felony |
| They then usually establish a long term relationship | | | | and sentenced to prison. When most people think of |
| with that selected company. But what about the rest | | | | a criminal history background check they think of all |
| of us? Are we even allowed to "check up" on | | | | arrests and convictions; both misdemeanors and |
| another person and how do we go about it? | | | | felonies and the court disposition, guilty or not guilty |
| SURPRISING TRUTH # 1: Anybody can do a | | | | and the sentence. As you can see, if you are getting |
| background check on anybody, any time they want | | | | only felony convictions, you are getting only a small |
| to. Now I know that I've lost some of you who now | | | | piece of the pie. For example; a person could be |
| think that I am off my rocker because you know | | | | arrested a couple of times for having drug |
| that there are all sorts of forms that you have to | | | | paraphernalia or a small amount of drugs in his or her |
| sign with all kinds of legal warnings with criminal | | | | possession. If the records you are getting only |
| penalties and such, but I'll say it again. "ANYBODY | | | | include felony convictions, you would have no record |
| CAN DO A BACKGROUND CHECK ON ANYONE, ANY | | | | of that person's drug abuse. |
| TIME THEY FEEL LIKE IT." Because I want you to | | | | The other problem that these Instant Nationwide |
| read this whole article, I am not going to explain | | | | background checks have is that in many areas of the |
| those statements until further into the article. | | | | country they get nothing at all because the states or |
| SURPRISING TRUTH # 2: There is no instant national | | | | the county superior courts or district courts don't |
| database of all criminal records that you can access. | | | | furnish them with free records. Here is another |
| Now I know that you are sure that I am crazy. | | | | example: Suppose you are a parent in San Francisco, |
| "Why just last night on Law & Order they got the | | | | Las Vegas, Salt Lake City, Boston, Atlanta or New |
| bad guy's record . . ." There, you are talking about | | | | Orleans (just to name a few) and you want to do a |
| NCIC, the National Crime Information Center or | | | | criminal background check. You go online and type in |
| otherwise known as the FBI files. While the FBI | | | | "background check" in Yahoo or Google and right |
| maintains the best and most accurate records, | | | | away you see the ads for the "Instant Nationwide" |
| unfortunately, you can't get them, unless of course | | | | background checks. You choose one of the websites |
| you are a federally insured bank, a defense | | | | that offers instant records, you pay your $19.95 or |
| department contractor, a nuclear power plant, a | | | | $49.95 and you put in the information on the person |
| branch of the government itself or some other such | | | | you want checked. Instantly the website tells you |
| entity. A surprising amount of otherwise intelligent | | | | that there is no record found based on the info that |
| people think that there are giant government | | | | you have provided. You feel great! You go ahead and |
| databases with information on everyone including | | | | tell the nanny that she can start tomorrow because |
| their criminal history, job history, credit files an even | | | | she has passed the background check. Here comes |
| what books they check out of the library and what | | | | the big kick in the gut. . . What the website didn't tell |
| videos they rent. If that were true, why does it take | | | | you is that their database records don't search any |
| the government itself four months and $2400 to | | | | of those areas at all. You just paid $19.95 or $49.95 |
| conduct its own background checks? Don't believe | | | | and got NOTHING, ZERO, ZIP, NADA. Disclosure: |
| me? Look here: | | | | Actually the proceeding sentence is not 100% true. In |
| SURPRISING TRUTH # 3: There is a big, big | | | | Nevada and Louisiana the databases do search |
| difference between everywhere and anywhere. | | | | currently incarcerated prisoners in their respective |
| These database companies advertise that they | | | | prison systems. So if your potential nanny is in prison |
| search everywhere, or at least that's what they | | | | right now then it would tell you that he/she is in |
| want you to believe. Using the word Nationwide is | | | | prison, but I guess you would already know that. |
| designed to make you think that they check | | | | Now to explain the # 1 Surprising Truth: I'll say it |
| everywhere. The question then becomes, "If you | | | | again: Anyone can check anyone, anytime. If you are |
| don't check everywhere, what do you check?" The | | | | so inclined, you can check the criminal or civil record |
| answer is that you should check anywhere a person | | | | (or lack thereof) of your daughter's boyfriend (I do |
| has lived or worked. Does it really help to check a | | | | that on a regular basis) your crazy neighbor next |
| database of Orange County, California if the person | | | | door, your business partner, your doctor, your |
| has always lived and worked in Orange County, | | | | ex-husband, your mayor or even any of the |
| Florida or vice versa? | | | | presidential candidates. In fact, you don't even have |
| So if there's no such thing as an instant nationwide | | | | to be a citizen of the USA to get these records. You |
| database what are these companies selling? First let | | | | can walk into the Superior Court (District Court in |
| me tell you what these databases are good for and | | | | some states) clerk's office, in the jurisdiction where |
| then I'll tell you why they are dangerous. In some | | | | that person lives/lived, go up to the counter, fill out a |
| states of the USA their REAL criminal records are | | | | slip of paper, hand it to the clerk and wait for the |
| available in some kind of publicly accessible form. It | | | | results. Remember that you will only get the records |
| may be on the internet and it may require a | | | | from that county, i.e., if a person lived in multiple |
| subscription or acknowledgement of permissible | | | | counties you would have to check each of them. |
| purpose for its use, but it is available. Texas is a good | | | | The subject of your search could be an axe |
| example of this. For a small fee you can go online | | | | murderer from the next county over, but your |
| and access the REAL criminal records of the state of | | | | county court clerk would not have a record of it. |
| Texas. Florida, Minnesota and Virginia are other | | | | OK, now you've got the information, what do you do |
| examples of where you can get via these database | | | | with it? This is the area where the law is concerned; |
| services what I call "REAL" records. The problem is | | | | what you do with the information! If you use this |
| that these database companies don't tell the | | | | information to discriminate against a person, deny |
| consumer (you) that is most cases and in most areas | | | | them employment, housing or entrance to a school, |
| of the country you are getting either nothing or | | | | etc. then you are violating the law and opening |
| marginal information at best. | | | | yourself to big time liabilities and possible lawsuits. |
| Here's why. The companies that collect and sell these | | | | This is what all of the consent forms with warnings |
| database records, and the hundreds of companies | | | | are all about. It's not the getting of the information |
| that re-sell this information do not emphasize the | | | | that the laws are concerned with but the use of it. |
| weakness of their systems. This is why they | | | | In summary, read the fine print and ask questions to |
| emphasize the words "instant" and "nationwide" in | | | | get the real records you want. |
| their promotions. Everyone wants cheap and instant | | | | |