Police Record

A police record contains a plethora of information, not all of which is available for public viewing. In order to protect the safety and security of others, some of that information is disclosed to the public or easily accessible through your local county courthouse. Employees, real estate owners and dating services use this information to help paint a clear picture of a candidate.

Included in Your Police Record

Criminal convictions, bankruptcy filings, sex offenses and drug test results are considered a matter of public record. These instances are not protected by privacy laws and are therefore used to recommend or deny people for certain positions. On the other hand, there are some pieces of information which can not be accessed by the public and do not appear on the portion of a police record that is viewable to the public.

Included in this section of non-viewable data: arrests that did not lead to convictions, bankruptcy filings after the ten year statute of limitations, military records, medical information and information regarding education. Your employer or landlord does not have the right to access any of the aforementioned information. Furthermore, the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) says that denying an applicant based on those criteria is illegal.

Internet Provides Additional Information

If you would like to learn more about the FCRA visit their website directly. It is essential that you understand that while the FCRA prohibits this information from being disclosed to the public, internet background searches often times reveal portions of this information. While it cannot be used against you, the depth of the internet has made it nearly impossible to protect some of these details.