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False Background Information Reported

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Darus99

Junior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Washington

I will keep this brief.

May 1, 2008: A judge signed the order to vacate a charge from my record.

September 4, 2008: Choicepoint, a consumer information company, reported to a potential employer of this charge. The charge should have no longer been publicly disclosed. As a result I was not offered employment due to this.

I understand there is a time period for various agency's databases to become updated. However, I have contacted all of the local courts in addition to the State Patrol and found that each one has been updated to show a vacated charge.
It is my understanding that once a charge is vacated, in about 6-8 weeks one is able to legally answer that the charge never occured.

I am planning to apply to Pharmacy School next year and must have this resolved.
I would sincerely appreciate all advice. Thanks in forward!
:)
 
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quincy

Senior Member
Now that you are aware that your records have not been updated and the original charge is still appearing in background checks, you should have a copy of the order to vacate to present to prospective employers, or note that errors appear on your report and additional checking may be required for an accurate check.

First, no single background search source will provide complete and up-to-date information. Problems have occurred in background checks as a result of improper identification, improper dates, and completeness of data.

Many commercial vendors use name-based searches which often result in false positive matches. They often collect data from state criminal records, courts and other public records and mistakes happen when the person being checked shares a name with someone who has a criminal background.

But even FBI searches based on fingerprints and with the cross-checking of social security numbers, birthdates, addresses, etc. have errors, since these searches rely on some information that is provided by state and local law enforcement agencies and county courts.

In addition, how offenses are reported can vary significantly from state-to-state. Missing from many state reports are the outcomes of cases. In fact, an Attorney General's report noted that approximately half of all public record arrest records are missing dispositions.

Correcting errors is not always easy, so be prepared for a lot of headaches and frustration.

To start, I recommend you visit the following websites, to educate yourself on the various organizations that feed your report. Most will have information on how to appeal information appearing on your background report and how to correct it.

Background check guidelines are found at Appendix B: Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) Information Letter 95-3.

You can check your own criminal records to see if there are errors by searching the FBI's Triple 1 data files. For information go to www.fbi.gov/hq/cjsd/fprequest.htm.

State records may be available, for a fee, through your state Attorney General or through your state police. Contact your Attorney General's Office for information.

The Fair Credit Reporting Act, 15 USC 1681, can be accessed through US CODE: Title 15,1681. Congressional findings and statement of purpose and a review of fair information practices can be found at A Review of the Fair Information Principles: The Foundation of Privacy Public Policy.

The FTC enforces the FCRA and for information on that you can go to Federal Trade Commission - Home.

Then, for information on identity theft (and resolving your issue follows the guidelines for correcting the errors on your report) you can visit Criminal Identity Theft.

Again, there is no easy fix to background check errors. That is why it is important you let prospective employers know in advance of the errors they will find. In your case it may defeat the purpose of having the charge vacated, as you will have to reveal the existence of the charge appearing, however it is better to explain it in advance and note the error of its appearance than having prospective employers accept it as is.

Good luck.
 
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