CHURCH BOARD GUIDE TO A CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE PREVENTION POLICY Criminal Records Checks—A Summary of the Options


criminal records check


county records


advantages


the most accu- rate criminal records check


disadvantages


• limited geographical coverage


• requires consent of applicant


comments


• more effective for persons who have lived and worked in the same county for several years


• doing multiple county checks increases their effectiveness, but at a higher cost


sex offender registry of one state


• in most states these checks can be done online


• no cost • consent of applicant not required


• fast


state criminal records check


• coverage of an entire state


• not limited to sex crimes


• not as accurate as county checks


• errors are common (especially if fin- gerprints are not checked)


• not accessible by churches in all states


• may require fingerprints


• limited geographical coverage


• requires consent of applicant


• may take weeks or months to receive results


continued on page 27


of limited value because only convictions for certain sex crimes com- mitted after a specified date are listed


limited value, but easy and cheap, so many churches use these checks as one com- ponent of a screen- ing program (often in conjunction with other kinds of criminal records checks)


more effective for persons who have lived and worked in the same state for several years


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