New Guidelines Can Hurt Rather Than Help

  I'm still hemming and hawing about my recent experience with the NAPBS guidleline exam for USA domestic court record retrievers.
  Not about the exam, itself.
  Now it's comparing the USA domestic guidelines with the 'proposed' international guidelines.
  The international guidelines proposed by NAPBS are ambiguous at best and leave pre-employment screening comapnies at a loss.
  NAPBS is on the right track asking for feed-back from members about the international 'guidelines.'
  How I was included in the discussion of the guidelines or asked to contribute my thoughts about the proposal - I am not sure I was on 'their' list at all - I still do not know.
  I think there are many ways to do a criminal search. International AND domestic.
  NAPBS needs to be careful.
  The guidelines they put forth today might lead to employers doing their own 'nationwide' FBI searches tomorrow.
  Where will that leave us?

Macau Office Expands To Hong Kong

  Steven Brownstein and Faheem Ebrahim, annouce the opening of a new Hong Kong office for Straightline International and The Background Investigator.
  Initially, a staff of two researchers will be added enabling a more prompt return of Northern and South- Eastern Asia reports.
  Straightline's fine researchers in Tokyo, Osaka, Seoul, Busan, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, and Jakarta will continue as usual.
  The Hong Kong office will also provide sales support for Asian based companies plus after hour customer service work for U.S. and UK based pre-employment screening companies.
  Contact Steven Brownstein at steveb@search4crime.com and Faheem Ebrahin at faheem@search4crime.com

Background Checking's Centrally Located Criminal Search Flawed

When you check central courts, and central courts only, the habit (and now NAPBS guideline) of omitting background checks at outlying courts can look pretty irrersponsible.

Especially if the subject applicant has a misdemeanor record at one the outlying courts.  Or how about multiple misdemeanor records at an outlying court?

Take Arizona, for instance. 

Many incorporated cities or towns have a municipal court, also known as a city court or magistrate court.
Municipal courts have criminal jurisdiction over misdemeanor crimes and petty offenses committed in their city or town.

They share jurisdiction with justice courts over violations of state law committed within their city or town limits.

Also,  each county  has precincts, containing that county's justice of the peace courts.

Generally, these precincts are larger than city or town limits and typically incorporate an entire city or town, and pieces of other communities as well.

Although these geographical boundaries can be changed.

Justice of the peace courts hear traffic cases and certain criminal and civil cases, including domestic violence and harassment cases.

So you want to miss Domestic Violence cases? DUI's? Assaults? Petty Theft?

I'd think not.

So where Arizona is not online, say Maricopa County, here is a brief 'what you're missing' summary:

There are 25 justice courts in Maricopa County that hear a combined caseload of approximately 400,000 cases each year.  (That's over 1,000 cases per day, if they worked every day!)

These include the full range of civil and criminal traffic offenses, including DUIs, and  other types of misdemeanor allegations (e.g. shoplifting, writing bad checks, violating restraining orders) and, like other trial judges, also handle requests for orders of protection and injunctions against harassment.

Sure you want to miss these, they all require a seperate search, Tempe, Paradise Valley, Gilbert, Chandler, Mesa?

You can use Arizona's online system or Maricopa County's site. 

Either way you are missing over 1 million (1,000,000+) residents of these cities and towns that might have committed a misdemeanor crime closest to where they live.

Increase the E&O insurance, mate, it's getting warm in here!

I applaud the NAPBS for their guideline. It took a lot of hard work by many to even agree what to agree on. So hat off for their hard work.

And this is not NAPBS' fault.  The record search at only the central court location was alive and well way before their creation.

Mainly because researchers in Ohio did not want to drive to the outlying courts and (and this is a big AND) screening companies did not want to pay extra for the search.

Competition was tough. It still is.

Maybe someone will come up with a better way.

But, the consumer (i.e., the employer) meanwhile will pay.

In fact. so will you and I.

Visa Hassles

If you read my China visa posting, this should come as no surprise.

I finally got my Chinese visa (an all day affair).

Next came the India visa.

India has outsourced their Visa application procesing to a company called Travisa Outsourcing.

I applied online at Travisa's Website for same day processing.

They gave me a date and appointment time to be in their office.

After waiting in line at the appointed time, a security/application processing officer announces that if it was anyone's concern, same day visa service was actually taking 2-3 days!

No exceptions.

I had to return to Saipan without an India visa.

So much for outsourcing.

I'm sure the India embassy has no knowledge of travisa's poor service; that is, Travisa Outsourcing getting people to their office with the promise of same day processing - then surprising the applicant with, already known to Travisa, bad news that they could not process same day visas.

NAPBS Provider Exam

I recently had the 'pleasure' of taking and passing the NAPBS Provider Exam.

The only passing score is 100%.  I was penalized  for answering that a provider should give more service than NAPBS the test requires as correct. The question answered, and actually answered not incorrect was "what is the standard for record retrieval when there is a computerized index of several years, a microfiche of several years more, and finally, an index card system further back in time?"

I answered it should be all three. But, the NAPBS giudelines test will accept only the first two as correct. That is, even though, most index card systems are easier to browse than microfiche record systems, and you, the customer will get even more years searched - NAPBS penalizes you on the exam for answering that you would do the work.

Sorry NAPBS members. It's hard to understand penalizing retrievers that offer a 'better' service.

Also, not to rant, but the idea that using only the central court location (where or when there are multiple court locations that have separate records within a county)  for retrieving records is acceptable for NAPBS guidelines seems a bit short-sighted.

I suppose that is why the 'Guidelines' insists upon all record retrievers obtain E&O insurance.

Lost In Traffic

Traffic can drive me nuts.  Not that I am always in a hurry. You know, time is money. It's hard to have both at the same time.
I'm in Chicago and I grab my applications to extend my Chineses Visa.  The Chinese have a consulate in Chicago.  So does India, but that 's a story for another time.
I stay about 15 miles from the "Loop," Chicago's famed center. It takes me about 45 minutes to drive there.
I get lucky when I finally get there finding a parking space on the street no more than 2 blocks away.
I grab the applications and walk up to the consulate, open the door to the entrance, and stop dead in my tracks.
I really should have started pounding my head against the wall right then and there, except that I'm with someone and did not want to cause a scene.
I broke out laughing out loud. I had the applicatiobs, the preciuos applicationx that I determindly made certain I did not forget.
Sure as the sun wil rise though, I left the passports at home!  No passport no visa.
Yikes, what a dum-dum!
Like I said, you either have time or money, but I now realized I can sometimes have little of either!

CPIC Searches Cause Grief for NAPBS Pre-employment Screening Companies

Background Checks run through the CPIC (without fingerprints) will only return name matches.

Many NAPBS member companies have written and talked about the ineffectiveness of FBI, or state-wide searches, and CPIC.

Background Checks run through the CPIC (without fingerprints) will only return name matches.

You will then have to submit fingerprints and wait - sometimes weeks or months!

CPIC searches can cause more than grief for pre-employment screening companies.

Say good bye to the job candidate.

He's been hired by someone other than your client who has the knowledge to check the Provincial Court Systems for date of birth matches.

On the other hand, CPIC, and other national searches, are good sources for pointers.

Search first, but not last. Mixed or unclear results, now that's bad.

Obviously then, if you want to get fast results with date of birth identifiers, Canadian Provincial searches are your best bet.

A Joke for Every Boss

A lawyer, his secretary, and one of the office paralegals are walking through the park during lunch.  
They see and old bottle in the bushes, and when one of them picks it up and brushes the dirt off of it a genie appears.

The genie says "Usually I grant three wishes when I'm released.
 
Since there are three of you, I'll grant one wish each."
 
He asks the secretary what she wants.
 
She says "I want to be married to a super rich sugar daddy in Hawaii."
 
POOF! She disappears.

The genie asks the paralegal what he wants.
 
The paralegal says "I want to own my own tropical island populated by beautiful women."
 
POOF! He, too, disappears.
 
Then the genie asks the lawyer what he wants.
 
The lawyer says "I want those two back in the office ready to work right after lunch!"

Lifetime Likelihood of Going To State Or Federal Prison

If recent incarceration rates remain unchanged, an estimated 1 of every 20 persons (5.1%) will serve time in a prison during their lifetime.
Lifetime chances of a person going to prison are higher for

  -- men (9%) than for women (1.1%)
  -- blacks (16.2%) and Hispanics (9.4%) than for whites (2.5%)

Based on current rates of first incarceration, an estimated 28% of black males will enter State or Federal prison during their lifetime, compared to 16% of Hispanic males and 4.4% of white males.

Canadian Bankruptcies Online

This information is  provided free of charge from The Background Investigator

This bankruptcy database contains a record of all bankruptcies and proposals filed in Canada from 1978 to date.

It also contains a record of all private and court appointed receiverships filed in Canada from 1993 to date.
All petitions that have been registered in our offices are also available in the database.

There is a minimum $8.00 charge for each search, including those which result in "no record".

In the case of multiple hits, the charge is $8.00 for each group of ten matches or less, utilizing the same search criteria.

Users are able to redefine their search criteria to limit costs.

https://strategis.ic.gc.ca/sc_mrksv/bankruptcy/bankruptcySearch/engdoc/

Straightline Unsurpassed When Searching For Puerto Rico Criminal Records

Everyone in the pre-employment screening business has their favorite method or favorite researcher who performs background checks.

In the case of Puerto Rico, many companies use the courts and others use the police.

Unfortunately in today’s litigation happy world that might not be enough.

That’s why Straightline International has begun offering an enhanced search they call the XR2.

Basically, what the XR2 does is consolidate the police and court searches, with a proprietary third and fourth search method using other identifiers you provide.

Listening to Dennis Brownstein, who developed this search, you’ll understand its significance:

“After careful measurement of hundreds of test results comparing common search methods versus my new XR2 search, I can increase your hit ratio on a regular basis just by using the basic information that you are already sending.”

And NAPBS members should particularly take note:

“In some cases, the differences are almost 60%.”

Dennis Brownstein’s experience comes from his engineering background and years in the pre-employment screening industry..

He can patiently sort out and arrange things as attested to by the standard he set for measuring turnaround time.

To get on the ground floor of this exciting new product call Dennis Brownstein at 1-866-909-6678.

Pre-Employment Screening Companies Say My Criminal Record Search Is Better Than Your Search, Part I

I hardly ever hear about the quality of the type of criminal history search performed by hands-on researchers for pre-employment screening companies for background checks.
It is a fact that pre-employment screening companies believe the criminal record search is what differentiates them from each other.
There are a few that "sell" a platform or delivery methods of their background search but the bottom line, even for them, always stops at criminal records.
At the NAPBS and The Background Investigator's pre-employment screening conferences, at both,  an inordinate amount of time is spent of criminal records and the laws surrounding the use of them.
Not much else to talk about there.
But criminal records are what we sell, first and foremost.
And the quality of the searches?
Is this how we differentiate ourselves to our customers?
Many companies (not yours) prefer to commoditize the criminal record.
To them the time and speed of returning the result to the customer is paramount.
There is perhaps a measure of quality control whereby a 'known' record is sent to the researcher in a particular area.
The result is then compared by what the pre-employment screening company has on hand.
I have never been privy to a 100% correct sample of results from the sending of multiple county known criminal  records and I have worked for the largest background check companies in the world.

Knock Knock

"Knock knock."

"Who's there?"

"Bet Her Dan"

"Bet Her Dan Who?"

"Bet Her Dan The Competition!"

Brought to you by Straightline International and Steven Brownstein

For pre-employment screening and international criminal background checks call Straightline International

The Resilience Of The Japanese Is Amazing

Just a little more than a week ago, a giant earthquake and ensuing tsunami devasted the NE coast of Japan pretty much shutting down the whole country's infrastructure.

At that point background checks and pre-employment screening were put on hold; the japanese had more than their share of things to worry about.

Rescue efforts are still ongoing in Miyagi Prefecture. The loss of life is incredibly disheartening. Most private and public services have been extinguished in its aftermath.

Our hearts go out to the survivors and mourning families of those lost in the tragedy.

Straightline International and The Background investigator have done a lot to help alleviate the pressure caused by the earthquake and tsunami.  We have all stood by and even cancelled our trips to the USA for the NAPBS Conference.

Now, though, it is time to praise the Japanese. They have arisen, gotten to their feet, and resumed their lives.

It is with this that I can say that most pre-employment backing screening has resumed in Japan, save for Miyagi Prefecture.

Steven Brownstein Speaks To NAPBS Members About International Background Checks

It began as a side business for Steven Brownstein, who was in the 1990's the USA's largest provider of criminal background searches. With over 60 employees, Steven provided records  24 hours a day, 5 days a week, plus a half-day on Saturdays.

DAC Services, the Tulsa - based sister company had expanded service to Canada and Puerto Rico.  Also, the World Gaming Network, another sister company, based in Las Vegas, was receiving requests for criminal record searches on foreign soil.

That's where Brownstein came in.  He had already built a giant network of record retrievers throughout the US.  He was processing more than 6,000 request per day and turnaround time was excellent.

So that's how it began.

Brownstein flew to Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver, Canada to visit the courts.

He knew about the RCMP's CPIC search but found too may flaws in their record keeping , plus a long turnaround time, and actually, too much paperwork had to be collected, submitted, and tracked per request. Not particularly cost effective for pre-employment screening. The contacts he did make at the Canadian courts proved to be invaluable. Good, quality searches with little or no paperwork to handle.

Then he also flew to San Juan, Puerto Rico, met with their staff, and was assigned a public access computer whereby he could come weekly to the court and do searches

This was the beginning of international searches in the USA and he was at the forefront.

His techniques were simple - just continue applying the methods that I used providing USA domestic background checks.

And the techniques were successful. He expanded international search offerings to the total USA pre-emplyment screening industry.

Even though, initially, the quantity of requests was small, Steven Brownstein did see that the end result for foreign searches would be high volume. And as you know, today it is.

Remember, no one was doing international searches. He was the first.

His business expanded and England was the next on the list. He flew to London to run the first ever searches at Horseferry Magistrate Court and the Middlesex Guildhall Crown Court. He ran them successfully, adding he obtained copies of a case from the Crown Court.

That was the beginning. India came next, and so on and so forth.

Quoting Brownstein, "It is my pleasure to continue this dynamic, exponentially growing business opportunity to the pre-employment screening industry. And as one of the first to foresee the beginnings of NAPBS, and having stuck around to see its growth, I say thank you."

Steven Brownstein Provides Guam and Saipan Driver License Record Checks

Motor Vehicle records are available from Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands.

Please include Social Security and drivers license with your order.

For more information call Straightline at 1-866-909-6678 or by E-mail at info@straightlineinternationl.com

Or contact me directly at findcrime@thebackgroundinvestigator.com

You Can Get Free Background Checks Press Releases

Do you have something to say? A new product? A great idea? Send your press release to findcrime@thebackgroundinvestigator.com

The Background Investigator reaches thousands of readers each month through its print edition and countless others through its Web presence.

Many of The Background Investigator's links reach top listing on the Internet.

Press Releases are subject to the editing or refusal by the editorial staff.

So go ahead and get started now. New press releases are being added monthly.

Patience Prevails While Awaiting Japanese Public Record Searches

Luckily, I left Tokyo with my wife, Rhoda, on Thursday, the day before the horrible earthquake and tsunami.
And our island, Saipan, 1500 miles south of Japan, was spared the wrath of a major tsunami, too, barely breaching the 4 foot mark at its peak.

Our homes were spared and no lives were lost.

Now the citizens of Japan face severe hardships.

Court services in most of Japan are slowed or non-existent.

There is no need for me to explain the fact that our searches, then, are also delayed.

Please be patient.

And do what you can to help.

Puerto Rico Mother's Maiden Names

 Make note of this when doing background checks:

 You can have a  problem if you lack providing the mother's maiden name with your Puerto Rico search. 

  Provide the maiden name and your hit ratio climbs dramatically. 

  An example would be Carlos Torres for a search in San Juan.  No record found. 

  Include the mother’s maiden name and voila!

  Or should I say Caramba!

  Carlos Torres Rodriguez, Carlos Torres Ramirez, Carlos Torres diaz… you get the picture. 

  Get the mother's maiden name.

A Letter About Conferences from 2004

Look What I Found —

Read Below

reprinted from March 2004 Edition

The Background Investigator

A Note From The Editor

  The Background Investigator has received many calls asking about our Spring Conference traditionally held in Long Beach. 

  This year (2004) in light of the fact that the NAPBS is holding their first Membership meeting at approximately the same time, and since we support the NAPBS and its goals, The Background Investigator has graciously opted out from hosting our normal Spring Conference.

  This does not mean we will not continue sponsoring conferences.  In fact, our annual November conference, being held at the Sheraton Sand Key Hotel in Tampa, will be bigger and better than ever!

  We would like to see the NAPBS succeed. 

  So support the NAPBS and see you in Tampa this November.

Special Note:

  The NAPBS has positioned its 2011 Fall Conference uncomfortably close date–wise and by location to our Annual Conference in Clearwater so stay tuned for update on when and where our next conference will be held.

Also, Why Join NAPBS?

  Education - The Association provides relevant programs and training to empower its members to better serve clients and set standards within the background screening industry. Training seminars are planned for the Annual Conference and Mid-Year Meeting. Monthly Webinars are offered to members free of charge. The Webinars cover a variety of topics in the pre-employment screening industry.

  Networking - The Annual Conference, scheduled in March or April, provides a forum for members to jointly discuss relevant industry issues and develop mutually-beneficial solutions. Vendor exhibits and educational programs will highlight these events. The Mid-Year Meeting, scheduled in September or October, also provides networking and educational opportunities, as well as a vendor exhibits. NAPBS also has a member ListServ provides an opportunity for subscribers to post questions and get feedback from their industry colleagues.

   Standing Committees - Membership in NAPBS gives you a voice and active involvement when you participate as a committee member on one of NAPBS standing committees.