Thursday, June 13, 2013

Florida Public Criminal Records Database

By Claire Dowell


Accessing someone's criminal history these days is no longer a difficult task. At least not as difficult as it was prior to the advent of the Internet. Nowadays, you can practically perform a criminal background check with nothing but a computer and a decent online resource. However, it is always a good idea to know the legal procedures in acquiring public police reports and criminal profiles. In the state of Florida, for instance, Florida arrest records are the responsibility of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, otherwise known as the FDLE.

The FDLE is a law enforcement agency that is responsible for a total of five programs administered by the Sunshine State. This includes the Criminal Justice Information, the Florida Capitol Police, and the Criminal Investigations and Forensic Science. The state's database of criminal history profiles are stored, maintained, and disseminated by the state's Division of Criminal Justice Information Services, known for short as the CJIS. This is the office that you should contact or visit for inquiries about criminal histories or arrest reports.

Individuals who wish to run a search at the abovementioned office will be charged $24 for each name, regardless of the search results. To ensure that your request will yield positive results, you can conduct an online search beforehand, by utilizing the agency's Computerized Criminal History System. Additionally, the process can also help you determine how many arrest reports you might want to obtain. Alternatively, you may also mail in your request, although it could take a few working days before you will hear from the agency. Just make sure that you fill out the correct mail request form and use a self-addressed stamped envelope to mail your application.

A name-based search of criminal records is another one of the department's services that is mainly available to the general public. The name search system is accessible through the Internet, by way of the Division of Criminal Justice Information Services' official online page. The division's database of criminal reports contains all major arrests that were made in the state. Fingerprint-based searches, on the other hand, are only available to qualified employers, employment agencies, law enforcement, and authorized personnel. However, with the proper credentials, a civilian may request a fingerprint-based criminal record search at the CJIS office.

Apart from disseminating copies of arrest reports to the general public, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement also accepts criminal background check requests from any citizen of the state. The FDLE maintains a sex offender registry along with a computerized database that houses all criminal histories of known criminal offenders in the state. Both databases are easily accessible through online means, from virtually anywhere there is an Internet connection.

As a suitable alternative to the government information services, there are a variety of online record providers that are commercially available to everyone. Many reputable criminal record search websites offer unlimited access to arrest records free of all the time consuming procedures and requirements. In exchange for a one-time fee, you will be able to access anyone's criminal history profile in a more practical and convenient manner.




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