You have questions? We have answers. Second in a multi-part series.
How many parts? We aren’t sure yet. There’s a lot of ground to cover.
Why can criminal searches take so long? (Part II)
A lot of things can impact how fast or slow a criminal search takes. Let’s focus on the things within the court’s scope and focus how that impacts turnaround time.
- Clerk Assisted. We are seeing more of these—and I think particularly of California. Many jurisdictions in California had redacted birthdates (remember, birth dates are key to confirming identities most of the time). Which leaves criminal record searchers at the public access terminals (PATs) doing name-only searches.
Sometimes we can work with an unusual name and clear them of any records. If there is a match here is where clerk assisted comes in. We then must go to the clerk’s window at the courthouse and ask them to confirm or deny if this is the same individual, because clerks still have access to the birth dates, when we at the PATs don’t.
Clerk assisted can take time. Lots of time. Think LOS ANGELES and all the John Smiths and Mary Joneses there. And they limit searchers to five records, then it’s to the back of the line you go.
- Clerk searched. This is where there is no PAT either remotely or at the courthouse. All searches are conducted at the clerk’s window. Again, time consuming. And once in a while you’ll find a clerk who feels that looking up records isn’t their job. Things get interesting.
- Rural locations: This is not going to surprise anyone, but searches in rural jurisdiction have a combination of issues. If you need a searcher in Harding County, New Mexico (last I checked more cattle than people there), searchers will wait until they have enough searches to make the trip worthwhile. Also, rural courts are less likely to have any remote access to their records.
- Backlogs. Along with clerk-assisted and clerk-searched issues, comes backlogs. When Los Angeles redacted birthdates, the backlog (and is) huge. Courts are generally understaffed, and the clerks get to this work when the get to it. But it results in backlogs.
- Offsite Storage. Sometimes we know there’s a record but because of limited information available we don’t know everything we should—positive identity, charges, disposition, etc. If those records are stored off-site, it will take time to get them retrieved. That’s all there is to that.
What sets Cutting Edge apart?
- We do as much work as we can in-house, dispatching searches only when necessary.
- When we do dispatch a criminal record search, we have partnered with the absolute best in the industry. The owner has decades of experience in this field an absolutely crackerjack staff.
- We care—I care. If your work isn’t done in a timely manner, that impacts me. I don’t want any of my clients losing an applicant because the background check takes longer than they are willing to wait.
While we can run into any of the above issues, Cutting Edge Background has done our utmost to mitigate those circumstances to get our clients the information they need when they need it.
Want to know if we can help you? Call (612) 743-0240 or email Ann@CEBackgroundchecks.com.
