[Artemisia] RE: Background checks

[Michael the Loud]

> The only way to know details is to  read the
> person's criminal file, which is not available to
> the general public, nor available for background 
> checks.  

Where did you get that information?  

In Utah the legal record database is called Chorus and
is available to the general public for free.  Lawyers
pay an amount to access this database and some lawyers
frequently send out mail to those recently arrested
for specific crimes (drugs, DUI, etc.)  

In Chorus they give you specific case numbers which
can be looked at.  Some records are however sealed
such as divorce decrees and some file are removed in
the case of espoungements.  However the rest are
available to the general public.

Because of limited space not all files in Utah are
kept in the courthouse and to access these files is
done for an archival retrieval fee.  Usually anything
older than 2 or 3 years are archived.

In the criminal file you can get transcripts of almost
anything on the case.  Everything from the transcript
taken from the arrest itself to the actual proceedings
from the trial.  Copies of this can get real expensive
but they are available.

The reason why these are not accessed during a generic
criminal check is because of expense.  If the database
doesn't show anything then nothing exists and their is
no need to look further.  Think about how much will it
cost to pay a paralegal to go down to the courthouse,
pull the case photocopy the related documentation at
between 25 cents to $2 per page.  

Michael


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