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Have you ever wondered if
someone was a criminal, arrested for violating the law? Generally,
police reports are a matter of public record and can contain a wealth of
information. A public record is simply information maintained by a
government agency that can be linked to a specific person. You can
complete a thorough background check of someone just by researching
these records.
What type of information is in a police record?
Examples of police reports
may include but are not limited to: domestic disputes, traffic
accidents, thefts, fraud, assault, burglaries, and stalking incidents.
Other information that may be available includes crime surveys, crime
statistics, calls for service, and traffic accident surveys.
Information that can be
obtained from police reports includes identifying information of all
involved parties and witnesses, such as full name, address, phone
number, date of birth, social security number, driver’s license number,
and any other identifying information. The report can also contain motor
vehicle information, as well as specific details of the incident being
documented, including any evidence recovered.
Where can I find a police record?
Access to these records
varies greatly from one jurisdiction to another. In some areas, the
information may be freely available, while in other areas the
information may only be accessible to the parties involved in the
incident or their agent (such as a lawyer). It is also possible that the
record of a specific incident is readily available, but the identifying
information of involved parties has been removed.
All requests for copies of
police reports are made through the records division of the reporting
agency. Some have online services, and you can receive the information
directly over the Internet or through your personal e-mail. Other
agencies require you to appear in person to request the information.
They will normally charge a nominal processing fee to provide you with a
copy of the report. The originating agency may also require a form of
written disclaimer stating the information contained in the report will
not be used for solicitation purposes.
If you wish to request a
copy of a police report, you will normally be required to provide the
first and last name of at least one of the involved parties, the
location, date, and time of the incident, and in some cases, the
incident or case number.
Some jurisdictions have
regionalized their crime information into a joint database. Such
information systems allow citizens to research crime statistics, view
crime maps, see who is currently in jail, search for arrest warrants,
and retrieve information about sex offenders living or working in a
given area. Much of this information is readily available via the
Internet.
Whatever your reasons for
requesting police records, begin by researching the requirements of the
police agency responsible for the jurisdiction in which the incident
occurred, then follow their exact protocol for requesting and receiving
those records.
Finding police
records across multiple jurisdictions
Conducting your
investigation can become complicated if you need to do a background
search on someone who has lived in multiple jurisdictions. To simplify
things, an internet-based specialized investigation company, such as Net
Detective, can provide a comprehensive, multi-state search in one easy
step. This allows you to search multiple records from all over the
country quickly and easily, without the hassle of tracking down
individual records from various government entities.
Whether you want to find
out what someone’s criminal past contains, or you are trying to locate
someone who was involved in an accident with you, a background check
using police records will likely give you the results you seek. |
