Montana Town Drops Password Requirements

A flood of criticism has prompted a Montana city to drop its request that government job applicants turn over their user names and passwords to Internet social networking and Web groups.

The city of Bozeman abruptly suspended the practice Friday, saying it "appears to have exceeded that which is acceptable to our community."

Read more here.

Canadian Mistrial Over Juror Background Checks

A mistrial was declared in a Canadian homicide trial after the judge learned Ontario prosecutors had police run background checks on prospective jurors.

Two months into the first-degree murder trial of Richard Zoldi and Shane Huard in Windsor, Ontario, Superior Court Justice Bruce Thomas declared the mistrial Tuesday, the Windsor Star reported Wednesday.

Read more here.

NY Governor to Consider Stricter Background Checks for Gun Licenses

Gov. David Paterson announced a package of legislation yesterday that would increase the state’s use of the National Instant Criminal Background Check System. The database is used to check the records of people applying for gun licenses.

Read more here.

Background Screening Important to HR Process

Human capital is increasingly being acknowledged as the most important investment for any company. Finding the right talent in the right job at the right time is a humungous challenge that the HR teams are facing in the current hiring scenario.

With increasing connectivity, there is an advent of a truly global workforce, multi-location operations which has led to an exponential increase in the risks associated with candidate recruiting and contract staff/vendor hiring.

Read more here.

CO Senate Eliminates Gun Background Checks for CCW Permit Holders

Sen. Greg Brophy, R-Dist. 1, said he was shocked HB 1180 passed out of the Democrat controlled House and Senate.

"I got 19 democrats in the senate and house combined to vote for this bill," said Brophy.

HB 1180 eliminates additional background checks for Colorado concealed weapon permit holders looking to purchase a gun.

Read more here.

Classroom Discipline Bill Passes House

Governor Daniels' top non-economic priority in this legislative session is on its way to his desk.

The House has unanimously approved giving teachers qualified immunity from lawsuits for disciplining students, as long as they act reasonably and in good faith.

The bill also requires criminal background checks before teachers are hired, and creates a public database of teachers convicted of drug or sex crimes.

Read more here.

Police Probe Unauthorized Background Checks

Lawrence police said they do not yet know why Mark Rivera, 32, a former special assistant to schools superintendent Wilfredo Laboy, did unauthorized background checks on hundreds of people using school computers."It's not illegal. However, if this information was disseminated, it could become illegal," said police Chief John Romero.

Read more here.

College of Charleston Employee Background Checks

Two College of Charleston employees have been arrested in the past two months and the college is putting new measures in place to screen employees.

The College employs about 1,800 people in the Lowcountry. Before now, background checks have not been required for all its workers.

The recent arrest of two of its workers is prompting the college to change the way it screens potential employees.

Read more here.

Schiff: Make Background Checks Reliable and Accessible

Representative Adam Schiff (D-CA) introduced legislation to create a nationally-accessible background check system for youth-serving organizations. The Child Protection Improvements Act of 2009, builds on a highly successful pilot program to ensure that youth serving groups such as Big Brothers, Big Sisters and Boys and Girls Clubs can perform quick, accurate, and affordable background checks on prospective volunteers or employees. The bill is being introduced with Reps. John Conyers (D-MI) and Mike Rogers (R-MI) as original cosponsors.

"We are fortunate to live in a country where millions of volunteers generously make time to participate in community service," said Schiff, a former national Board Member of Big Brothers and Big Sisters of America. "But with so many volunteers working with children we need to ensure that child predators are not preying on innocent children through the guise of volunteerism. Children´s safety is paramount, and we need to make certain that those working with our youth have been thoroughly and properly screened."

Read more here.

Crooks With Toy Guns Still Look Deadly

The use of pellet, BB, airsoft and toy guns that look like real firearms in criminal activities appears to be on the rise, some law enforcement officials said.

Earlier this month, two officer-involved shooting incidents in the Sacramento region involved the use of such guns.

Experts, policy researchers and law enforcement officials The Bee interviewed said systematic data in recent years aren't available and little research has been done on the subject.

Read more at The Sacramento Bee.

Nebraska May Require Background Checks for Drivers of Children in State Care

Providing fingerprints and getting an extensive criminal background check could be a prerequisite for transporting kids and vulnerable adults under state care.

On Thursday, state Sen. Arnie Stuthman of Platte Center introduced a bill (LB290) to the Legislature that would require both of those who contract with the state to transport foster kids and vulnerable adults.

People who had felony records would not be able to drive for the state.

Read more at KCAU ABC 9.

VA Commision Splits on Ruling to Close Gun Show Loophole

The Virginia State Crime Commission on Tuesday declined to endorse closing the so-called gun show loophole in Virginia law, heightening uncertainty about the prospects of success in the General Assembly.

The deadlocked vote -- taken before a large crowd that included gun owners, at least one survivor of the Virginia Tech shootings and friends and relatives of other massacre victims -- highlighted an enduring split between country and city that transcends party affiliation in Virginia.

Two key commission members bucked their parties' habitual views of gun control measures. The commission's chairman, Del. David B. Albo (R-Fairfax), voted to recommend that the General Assembly close the loophole by requiring all gun buyers to undergo an electronic background check before any sale, including purchases at gun shows. But House Minority Leader Ward L. Armstrong (D-Henry), who noted the economic importance of an annual gun show in his economically depressed rural district, voted no.

Read the rest of the story at The Washington Post.

In the Internet Age, How Deep Should Someone Dig Before Hiring a PI?

Mary Kington once asked her daughter how to use the Internet to see if someone had served time in prison or had a criminal record.

Katrina Gregory steered her mother, a 56-year-old home-health caregiver from Worthington, to the searchable Web site of the Franklin County Municipal Court and the state prison system's online database of inmates and parolees.

Gregory, 26, said she never would have thought to tell her mother to dig deeper.

Incomplete Background Check Foils Bid to Open New Childcare Facility

The Pleasanton City Council Tuesday rejected for a second time a bid by a martial arts professional to operate a childcare facility for 20 children at a time in the Valley Business Park off Valley Avenue.

The council voted 4-1 to support Councilwoman Cindy McGovern who successfully sought to overturn the city Planning Commission's approval of the project on Nov. 12 and a subsequent recommendation that the council abide by that decision.

Read the rest of the story at the Pleasanton Weekly.

"Mommy On Call" Helps Take Care of Sick Children

Mary King is a single mother who can't afford to miss work.

The paralegal specialist, who is active-duty military at Fort Gordon, has two young children, and she is also six months' pregnant.

Her children recently became ill, but the people listed on her contact list weren't available.

"They started day care, and they're catching every bug that comes through there until they acclimate themselves. I had to take off quite a bit of work to stay home with them," Spc. King said.

If her children become ill again, she said, she's going to contact Mommy on Call, a new Grovetown caregiver service that cares in-home for sick children.

Felonies in College Deter Employees After Graduation

Felony convictions can severely impair a person from attending universities and securing careers. In certain, less severe cases, those potential students and employees still struggle for acceptance in society.

Annually at Illinois State University, between 30 and 40 applicants have a felony conviction on their record. Trying to get a job after college with a felony conviction is extremely difficult, as many administrators explain.

Volunteer Won't Agree to Background Check from "Big Brother"

This Christmas, Donald McGinnis will not follow his annual tradition of filling in at Middlesex Hospice so others can spend valuable holiday time with family.

His volunteer position will very likely be terminated Tuesday.

McGinnis, who has been a volunteer at the hospice center for 18 years, is taking a stand against a new federal law that incenses him. After almost two decades of repositioning patients, shaving the men, giving bed baths, spending time and offering support, the Cromwell resident is being required by the government to submit to a criminal background check.

Texas DPS' criminal databases missing thousands of records

More than a third of criminal records are missing from the online Department of Public Safety database available to the public, a Fort Worth company found in a study.

Even government agencies, which have access to more detailed criminal records to screen teachers, doctors, volunteers and tradespeople, use a DPS system fraught with gaps, officials and experts said.

Man Brings Cocaine to Police Station While Getting a Background Check

A man accused of bringing cocaine into the Jackson police station has been formally charged.

Lawrence Hayes, 29, of Jackson was arraigned Thursday on charges of domestic violence and possession with intent to deliver cocaine.

DCF Admits Mistake in Child's Death

Ashley and Tammi Baker were the care takers of five month old Gabriel Golden when he died earlier this month. They found him unresponsive inside their home, and he later died.

Top managers with DCF are admitting the agency made mistakes. William DAiuto is the top administrator for the Lake County area. He said that clearly the agency could have done more.

DCF first got involved when someone complained about Gabriel's biological parents. The Goldens left Gabriel with the Bakers to be his care takers. DCF now says they focused too much attention on the Goldens and not enough on the Bakers.

A new DCF report concludes the investigator was supposed to do a background check on the Bakers within 72 hours, but he waited almost thirty days to do the check.