Everyone commits youthful transgressions. Maybe you switched around your neighbor’s lawn ornaments. Or toilet papered a few trees. Innocent fun. But there was that one thing your parents always warned you about – mailboxes. Don’t mess with a mailbox, it’s a federal offense. The thought of committing a federal crime scared every teenager but how many actually knew what a federal crime was?
About a month ago I wrote a series of posts on the different types of criminal record searches, specifically: county, state and national. We often focus on these three because they are the most popular but did you know that there is a fourth criminal record search available?
You guessed it, the Federal Criminal Background Search – you don’t see these used often but they are out there. If you are thinking to yourself wait, isn’t that the same as a national search? The answer is no, don’t worry you’re not the only one who has this misconception. This is the reason for my post today.
What is a Federal Crime?
Before we get ahead of ourselves let’s start with the basics: we’ve all heard that’s a federal offense but what does that mean? It means the crimes committed will be prosecuted at a federal level not a state level. Anything committed across state lines is considered to be a federal crime. These crimes are generally referred to as white collar crimes and can include: kidnapping, tax evasion, fraud, bank robbery and embezzlement. These are just a few examples. Federal crimes are held at different standards. They are prosecuted at federal district courts (the highest level one can be prosecuted at) and this is where the crimes and outcomes are recorded.
What does this mean?
Federal crimes won’t be found at a county or statewide level. Say you have had trouble with employees stealing in the past and white collar crimes are something that specifically interest you – county, state and even a national search are not going to help you. Because federal crimes are prosecuted a federal level the records stay a federal level.
So what is a federal criminal background search? This specific kind of search pulls information from federal district courts. It will only reveal high-end, white collar or federally prosecuted crimes.
When should I use a federal search?
Many employers skip this search- partially because they don’t know the difference between it and a national search and partially because they don’t know when to use it. Here are a few positions where it is smart to be on the safe side and run a federal search.
- Financial roles:
- CPA
- Banking
- Head of Finances
- C-Level Executives
- Employees who will access any secure or sensitive information (especially financial)
Now that you know about the federal criminal record search you can start hiring safer and smarter. If you are hiring one of these roles or white collar crimes are of interest to you, speak to your CRA and see if a federal criminal search is the right choice for you.