Background Checks – Things You Need To Know About Criminal Records in United States

In the United States, a person’s criminal record is public information and anybody who wants to know whether a person has been convicted of a crime can do so by running a background check on the person. Carrying out a background check is absolutely worth your while, especially when it concerns the safety of your loved ones.

In case you consider running a background check on someone, you need to be aware that at this point in time there is no centralized nationwide database of criminal records in United States. This is largely due to the nuances of each States’ statute on how a citizen can access another person’s public records which have made the task to create a nationwide database managed by a Federal Government Agency very difficult. So if you are looking for prisons, court, or police records on somebody, these information are currently confined to the respective States.

Nevertheless, with hard work and perseverance you can still unravel a person’s background for any criminal conviction by visiting your Local County or city’s public registry departments. For a small fee, you can do a background check for a person’s criminal record or courts records. The other alternative is to check out whether the individual has a police record or arrest record which you can find out by visiting your police department. After paying a nominal fee, you are required to fill up a request for information form to obtain the person's record, if any.

However, you need to be aware that in most States you need to have at least the person’s social security number and birth date before you can conduct a background check on a person’s criminal record from the agencies mentioned above. In most circumstances, this is one of the main obstacles which prevent people from conducting a background check on someone, since access to this information has proven to be very difficult. Moreover, in situations where you are vetting potential employees, you can request for the said details from the person but it is mandatory in most jurisdictions in the United States that you obtain written consent from them and any information gathered about the background must be revealed to them as well.

The other means available to you to run background checks on a person’s criminal record is by surfing the internet of the various Federal and States Penitentiary website for prison records. For a person that had been imprisoned in the federal prison system, their prison records are available from the United States Federal Prisons Bureau website. The service is offered for free and the database contains information of inmates who have been jailed and released from the federal prison since 1981. To use the online database for background checks purpose, you need to have either the exact name of the person or the inmate’s identification number in order to look up their information. Whereas for information on prisoners who have been released prior to 1982, you may need to write in to the Bureau and it may take some time to obtain the report due to the fact that the research is done manually. Likewise, for a person incarcerated in the local or state prison, you can also surf online and check the various State correctional facilities websites. It should be noted that not every State correctional facilities have an online database, in which case you have to obtain the criminal records at the prison facility.

For background checks on person particularly on sexual offences, nearly all States have an online sex registry database which you can scrutinize; otherwise you can check out such information by venturing to your neighborhood’s sex registry division. There are number of web sites run by special interest groups that provide free information about a sex abuser’s current address in a particular neighborhood.

However, conducting your own inquiry on a person’s criminal record is extremely time consuming. What makes it more difficult is the fact that in the United States, criminal records are not centralized at the federal level.

Indeed there is a simpler way to conduct a nationwide criminal records check on a person using online background checks companies. These companies compile public records throughout the United States and put them together in a centralized database. Fees are charged either on a per search basis or by subscription. In case you are considering of using any of these companies, be sure that you subscribed only from reliable on-line background checks companies. These companies update their database on a regular basis and it is critical you have the most current info on a person so that you can make the best conclusion. If you are suspicious about a person’s background, don’t hesitate and run a background check on the person.

Use the Search Box above to instantly search on someone for criminal records and background information.