Do expungements appear on the criminal record databases ?
| Criminal record databases can be defined as an online compilation of criminal history records of individuals. Availability of such a database can be of immense help to criminal record agencies and law enforcement agencies during their criminal investigation. However, there are certain disadvantages of this system. It would no longer be possible to expunge records completely due to criminal record database. |
Almost every state in the U.S. has the provision in the law to order for sealing or obliteration of most of the juvenile criminal records of an individual. Apart from this, many states also allow adults who have been arrested but not convicted to get their criminal records expunged from the database.
During early days, law enforcement agencies, courts and correction departments used to maintain criminal records on paper. It was easier to maintain primarily due to localized pattern of record maintenance. Digitization has now made it possible to store a vast resource of information at one single point. Many of the commercial databases contain criminal records of more than 100 million people.
However, in most of the cases, it is becoming increasing difficult to properly maintain and regularly update such large information. Due to improper maintenance of expunged records, these records are getting displayed in the criminal background checks that have been requested by private employers and landlords. In this current age, almost 80 percent of the companies are requesting for an enquiry into criminal background of a person before hiring him as their employee. Several people are facing the risk of unemployment due to database negligence.
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