Job Discussion Forums

DirtGuy · Joined: 28 Dec 2004 Posts: 529

I am currently interviewing and just got my first job offer - 11,000 which is too low. My question concerns the severity of a background check, if any. Here is what would show:

Felony assault charge in 1979. 6 months of probation. Stupid college incident and did not prevent me from getting a CA teacher's license. It still shows after all this time.

Disorderly conduct (misdemeanor) in 2010. $150 fine. I own a trailer park (all stories you have ever heard about these places are totally true) and some residents cooked up a hell of scheme to get me into trouble. Multiple felony charges that were all dismissed in court.

Do all employers run background checks or only some? I've seen this on the ads for the really high paying jobs but not on other ads.

Are the above charges something about which I should be worried?

Thanks.

DirtGuy

Badar Bin Bada Boom · Posted: Tue Nov 15, 2011 4:08 pm Post subject:

Yes, I think all employers demand a background check. And yes--let others weigh in, but I think this will present you with a major problem. This is the sense I get having worked in the Kingdom and the UAE over a 16-year period up to now.

nomad soul · Joined: 31 Jan 2010 Posts: 11454 Location: The real world

Based on the Saudi Embassy's U.S. website, a criminal background check is required for an employment (work) visa but not for a business visit visa.

johnslat · Posted: Tue Nov 15, 2011 6:05 pm Post subject:

Dear DirtGuy,

Why not request your own background check to see what shows up?

"Who May Request a Copy of a Record (or Proof That a Record Does Not Exist)

Only you can request a copy of your own Identification Record.

Individuals typically make this request for personal review, to challenge the information on record, to satisfy a requirement for adopting a child in the U.S. or internationally, or to satisfy a requirement to live, work, or travel in a foreign country (i.e., police certificate, letter of good conduct, criminal history background, etc.)."

Background Checks for Employment or Licensing

If you are requesting a background check for employment or licensing within the U.S., you may be required by state statute or federal law to submit your request through your state identification bureau, the requesting federal agency, or another authorized channeling agency. You should contact the agency requiring the background check or the appropriate state identification bureau (or state police) for the correct procedures to follow for obtaining an FBI fingerprint background check for employment or licensing purposes.

How to Request a Copy of Your Record

The FBI offers two methods for requesting your FBI Identification Record or proof that a record does not exist.

Option 1: Submit your request directly to the FBI.

Option 2: Submit to an FBI-approved Channeler, which is a private business that has contracted with the FBI receive the fingerprint submission and relevant data, collect the associated fee(s), electronically forward the fingerprint submission with the necessary information to the FBI CJIS Division for a national criminal history record check, and receive the electronic record check result for dissemination to the individual. Contact each Channeler for processing times.

Note: An FBI-approved Channeler cannot authenticate (apostille) fingerprint search results. A request for your FBI Identification Record or proof that a record does not exist must be submitted directly to the FBI if an authentication (apostille) is needed.

What Happens Next

If we find no record, you will receive a �no record� response. If you do have a criminal history record on file, you will receive your Identification Record or �rap sheet.�

http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/background-checks

FAQs:

http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/background-checks/faqs

It's not that expensive:

"How do I obtain a copy of my FBI Identification Record for personal review?

You may obtain a copy of your FBI Identification Record by sending a request to:

Federal Bureau of Investigation
CJIS Division
Attention: Record Request
1000 Custer Hollow Road
Clarksburg , WV 26306

You are required to provide the following :

1) Your written request.

2) Payment for the $18 processing fee, either by certified check or money order made payable to the U.S. Treasury, or a credit card. For credit card payment information, visit the Identification Record Request website.

3) A current, original tenprint fingerprint submission (not previously processed) taken by a local law enforcement agency and bearing your name, date of birth, and place of birth. Key information needed is magnified below.

What will I receive?

In accordance with regulations established by the U.S. Department of Justice, the FBI�s CJIS Division is empowered to furnish an individual with a copy of any record in our Criminal File pertaining to him/her or to advise the individual that no such record exists. In instances where a criminal history record exists in our Criminal File, the FBI Identification Record itself serves as our official reply. When no record is found, a dated �No Arrest Record� stamp, placed on the back of the fingerprint card the individual submitted for the Criminal File search, serves as our official reply."

or perhaps your prospective employer will require only a "local check" (mine did,) and, if your local record is clean, you can get it done at the localpolice station or sheriff's office.

Regards,
John

BretHarte · Joined: 17 Aug 2011 Posts: 94

You made your bed now lie in it.

johnslat · Posted: Wed Nov 16, 2011 4:56 pm Post subject:

Dear BretHarte,

It must be great to have never screwed up on your life (or at least never to have gotten caught doing it)

Regards,
John

P.S. Strangely enough, I really like your writing, especially "The Outcasts of Poker Flats." Now, there was a group who got to lie in the beds they'd made.

"Experimenting with the effectiveness of vigilante justice, the residents of Poker Flat hope to improve the town by expelling a group of undesirables. Among these objectionable characters are professional gambler John Oakhurst; a prostitute known as Duchess; her madam. Mother Shipton; and Uncle Billy, the town drunkard and a suspected thief."

Disreputable characters, all of them. Got what they deserved.

BretHarte · Joined: 17 Aug 2011 Posts: 94

I started with tips on useful things then deleted them. If he'd been a guy with prostitution, thievery, drunkenness or gambling, I would've helped with info that might land him a job. But felony assault? No, I'm not going to help.

johnslat · Posted: Wed Nov 16, 2011 8:16 pm Post subject:

Dear BretHarte,

Still, he was honest enough to admit to it - and it couldn't have been too serious - " . . . did not prevent me from getting a CA teacher's license."

Here's something I hadn't known before:

California Assault Law

Penal Code 240 PC

"Simply put, it means performing an act that is likely to result in the application of force to another person.

Because California assault law doesn�t require an actual injury, it�s easy for people to be falsely accused of (and wrongfully arrested for) this offense."

http://www.shouselaw.com/assault.html

Regards,
John

DirtGuy · Joined: 28 Dec 2004 Posts: 529

Had a ton of trouble logging back onto the forums but that seems to be over for the moment.

Ya know, Bret Harte, I have a really big mouth but I've learned to shut it when I have no idea what I'm talking about. That perfectly describes you and your holier than thou attitude. You don't know jack ---- about me or the situation beyond what I've posted so while I appreciate all the good info I've gotten on this board, nut cases like you should find a large rock and crawl underneath. I was going to suggest you embark on a long swim to China but I'm sure you've never met a body of water upon which you couldn't walk.

As for the more constructive posts, I took your advice and ordered a couple of background checks on myself. A detective pulled one up that is supposed to be just one step below a full-blown FBI check. The old felony didn't show but a traffic accident and the recent felony-reduced-to-a-misdemeanor did. I then went and ordered an FBI check for about $35 but that takes a few weeks to arrive.

My attorney says the recent offense is so minor that I can petition the court to seal the records and this will mean even the FBI won't show anything. That's what I'm working on now but, again, it takes time.

I'm getting job offers so I'm being upfront with the recruiters and faxing them the report I have. One said she has had people get hired with such old records and not to worry about it. The recent record is turning out to be the problem. I guess I'll just have to sit this round of hiring out until the lawyer does his stuff and I get my recent record sealed.

This whole mess is so totally stupid and I'm beginning to understand what all of you are talking about when you describe the absurdity of KSA. I have gotten not only my teacher's credential in CA but multiple contractor licenses as well and they are brutal on this type of charge. My current employer pulled a background check on didn't bat an eye at what was on it. What is it with the Saudis or is that an unanswerable question?

dirtguy

DirtGuy · Joined: 28 Dec 2004 Posts: 529

Had a ton of trouble logging back onto the forums but that seems to be over for the moment.

Ya know, Bret Harte, I have a really big mouth but I've learned to shut it when I have no idea what I'm talking about. That perfectly describes you and your holier than thou attitude. You don't know jack ---- about me or the situation beyond what I've posted so while I appreciate all the good info I've gotten on this board, nut cases like you should find a large rock and crawl underneath. I was going to suggest you embark on a long swim to China but I'm sure you've never met a body of water upon which you couldn't walk.

As for the more constructive posts, I took your advice and ordered a couple of background checks on myself. A detective pulled one up that is supposed to be just one step below a full-blown FBI check. The old felony didn't show but a traffic accident and the recent felony-reduced-to-a-misdemeanor did. I then went and ordered an FBI check for about $35 but that takes a few weeks to arrive.

My attorney says the recent offense is so minor that I can petition the court to seal the records and this will mean even the FBI won't show anything. That's what I'm working on now but, again, it takes time.

I'm getting job offers so I'm being upfront with the recruiters and faxing them the report I have. One said she has had people get hired with such old records and not to worry about it. The recent record is turning out to be the problem. I guess I'll just have to sit this round of hiring out until the lawyer does his stuff and I get my recent record sealed.

This whole mess is so totally stupid and I'm beginning to understand what all of you are talking about when you describe the absurdity of KSA. I have gotten not only my teacher's credential in CA but multiple contractor licenses as well and they are brutal on this type of charge. My current employer pulled a background check on didn't bat an eye at what was on it. What is it with the Saudis or is that an unanswerable question?

dirtguy

2buckets · Joined: 14 Dec 2010 Posts: 515 Location: Middle East

Saudi Arabia is the height of hypocrisy.

BretHarte · Joined: 17 Aug 2011 Posts: 94

With that response I just can't figure out why you were ever picked up on felony assault. You'll fit in great!

DirtGuy · Joined: 28 Dec 2004 Posts: 529

johnslat:

Forgot to say that you are completely correct in that a person can be charged with felony assault without ever touching anyone and it's not just in CA where such travesties happen. Welcome to the United (police) States of America. Only the lawyers benefit from what this country has become.

DirtGuy

johnslat · Posted: Sat Dec 03, 2011 3:01 pm Post subject:

Dear DirtGuy,

Judging people when you have met them face-to-face and have gotten to know them at least a little is, in my experience, likely to be off-the-mark and, at the very least, needs to be re-evaluated occasionally,

Judging people one has never met based on what they have posted on the Internet is, I'd say, very ill-advised.

Regards,
John

DirtGuy · Joined: 28 Dec 2004 Posts: 529

All gone, expunged, kaput. For my heinous crimes, I was in the court room for less than 2 minutes and the only testimony I had to give was a "thank you" to the judge upon dismissal. 2-3 weeks for the paperwork to be done and my recent "criminal" past no longer exists.

The funny thing is, I've been getting PMs from people in SA who have far worse infractions on their records and they have jobs. Hmmmm.

My message for anyone reading this who has any kind of a criminal record is to work on getting it sealed and then go for what you want. It only cost me $350 to fix the problem and it was worth every penny. Follow the advice of Steve Jobs and don't listen to the naysayers. There are solutions out there so just do it and follow your dreams.

DirtGuy