Because there is no single comprehensive nationwide criminal record database, a background check that does not include every possible jurisdiction at every level will be incomplete. Those levels are county, state, and federal. The databases do not overlap. A search of county records will only reveal arrests and convictions in that county; a search of Nebraska records will not show criminal records from Kansas. Furthermore, federal offenses, such as money laundering and drug trafficking, are kept in a separate database.
Government institutions very often do not employ a comprehensive criminal database search for background screening, preferring instead to use only the databases associated with the jurisdiction in which the institution resides. For instance, a government (federal, state, or county) agency in Chicago may only search Cook County court records, and possibly do a state-level record search as well. In most cases, only a federal agency will do a federal search. In none of the above cases would the results of the search be reliable, because the search was not comprehensive. Yet, possibly because of overlapping jurisdictions, government background checks can be almost cursory compared to the most diligent privately-sourced background checks. There have been numerous instances of federal government employees passing high-level federal checks but never having been screened at the local level.
A truly comprehensive background check includes a county-level, a state-level, and a federal record search. Private background checks are often considerably more thorough than government checks because government agencies are often under funding constraints and consequently settle for what is deemed “good enough.” Also, state agencies tend to discount data from other states, and county agencies tend to discount state data. The separation of databases and jurisdictions, as well as a bit of “myopia” on the part of government agencies at the local and state level, tends to discourage the sharing of information; this is self-evident in the fact that there is still no national criminal record database, despite its obvious utility.
A private company providing background check services though, not being localized in any one jurisdiction, can provide the thorough multi-jurisdiction background check that is needed to present an accurate picture of a subject’s history. A combined and consolidated multi-county and multi-state database is the best tool for this. Government agencies, by their very nature, can only access their own databases and must request access to others’ (or, more likely, do not gain access per se but forward a request for information, which is handled only after considerable delay). The private database is not only much more comprehensive, but more accurate and efficient as a consequence. If you’re in Chicago and want to know a potential employee’s criminal history (if any), would you rather know what he’s done in Cook County, or what he’s done in the entire U.S.?
Ordering Your First Employee Background Check 