| How
do I get an Arkansas criminal history background check? |
|
| There are two ways
to obtain statewide Arkansas background checks. |
| Manual Process |
| The first way
(manual process) requires the subject of the record check to
sign the State Police form ASP-122. This form must be
notarized. The cost is $20.00. The completed
form along with an addressed stamped envelope and $20.00 is
mailed to Arkansas State Police, Identification Bureau, 1
State Police Plaza Drive, Little Rock, AR 72209. The
request will be processed and the results of the background
check will be mailed to the (business/person) authorized on
the form. This method is open to all persons who have
the written notarized release of the subject of the
request. This method takes seven to 10 days to
complete excluding mailing time.
The ASP-122 is available as an Adobe PDF document. Click to download the ASP-122 form, print and follow the instructions on the form.
Adobe PDF documents require the
free Adobe Reader.
|
| Electronic
Process |
The second way
(electronic process) is open only to employers and
professional licensing boards (hereinafter PLB) under
Act 63 of the First Extraordinary Session of 2003. The
employer or PLB is required to register with Arkansas State
Police and have their application accepted and
approved. That approved application allows them to
register for electronic internet service with the
Information Network of Arkansas (INA), the internet access
provider. The employer or PLB is then required to
complete information online and create passwords. Upon
completion of this process, the employer or PLB will be
allowed electronic access to certain criminal history
information (see below).
The employer or PLB will be required to have a signed
release from the employee and must maintain that release in
their files for three years. If correct information is
submitted, the results of the search may be completed in
minutes. If research is required, the response may
take several hours to complete. |
| What
information will my response contain? |
|
| Manual Process |
If the request is
submitted through the manual process, the report will show
only felony and misdemeanor convictions for the State of
Arkansas. FBI or other states' criminal history
information will not be released. The request checks by
name against information that has been entered in the
Arkansas Crime Information Center criminal history
database. The ACIC database is based on fingerprints
submitted after an individual's arrest.
|
|
 |
You will not have access to the
same information that is available to law
enforcement. |
|
You will not be allowed access to
arrests that are pending (where the court has not
entered a disposition). |
|
You will not be allowed access to
arrests that ended in the case being dismissed, nol
prossed or found not guilty. |
|
You will not be allowed access to
traffic records that do not appear on the criminal
record. You will not be allowed access to
sealed offenses except to the extent the information
is releasable under Arkansas Attorney General
Opinions 2003-057 and 2003-183. Visit the Attorney
General's website for more information (opens in
a new window). |
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|
|
| Electronic
Process |
If the request is
submitted in the electronic form, the report will show:
|
|
|
any pending felony arrests (charges
pending in court where a disposition has not been
entered). |
|
any felony or misdemeanor
convictions for the State of Arkansas. |
|
if the person is required to
register as a sex offender (all levels - one through
four). |
|
FBI or other
states' criminal history information will not be
released. The request checks by
name against information that has been entered in the
Arkansas Crime Information Center criminal history
database. The ACIC database is based on fingerprints
submitted after an individual's arrest.
You will not have access to:
|
|
|
the same information that is
available to law enforcement. |
|
misdemeanor arrests that are
pending (charges pending in court). |
|
arrests that ended in the case
being dismissed, nol prossed or found not guilty. |
|
traffic records that do not appear
on the criminal record. |
Only in certain instances will persons be allowed access
to a sealed record information. See Arkansas Attorney
General Opinions 2003-057 and 2003-183. Visit the Attorney
General's website for more information (opens in a new
window). |
| What
are the costs of the Arkansas criminal history background
check? |
|
| Manual Process |
| The cost is $20.00. The
funds may be sent by money order or personal/business
check. Credit cards are not accepted for the manual
transaction at this time. A stamped envelope must be
included with each request. |
| Electronic
Process |
| The cost is $22.00
($20.00 background check fee and an additional $2.00
processing fee is assessed and collected by the internet
access provider).
If the employer is required by Arkansas law to perform
the background check, the total cost will be $20.00 (at this
time).
There is also a $50.00 annual fee that is assessed by INA to
utilized their service. This fee is waived for State
agencies and educational institutions. If you already
receive services from INA, you may be able to add this
service without additional registration expenses.
|
| What
are the advantages of using the Arkansas State Police
background check process as compared to other background
check products offered over the Internet? |
All other background checks from private companies are
linked by name only. If an applicant has a common
name, there can be convictions linked to that person that do
not belong to them or they could deny a conviction that is
in fact them.
The Arkansas State Police retrieves the Arkansas criminal
history information from the ACIC database. That
database, in conjunction with the Arkansas State Police
AFIS, connects all arrests based on fingerprints and not
merely by name. If someone who has a criminal record is
arrested under a false name and fingerprints are taken at
the time of arrest, the current arrest will be linked to any
previous criminal history regardless of the false name that
was given.
Also, if a charge appears on a person's criminal history
background check and the person claims that it is not their
arrest, that person can arrange to have fingerprints taken
by a law enforcement officer and those fingerprints compared
to the fingerprints from the arrest that allegedly is not theirs.
State Police will be able to positively confirm or exclude
that person from that arrest/criminal history.
The State Police background check is not based on
comparison of fingerprints to fingerprints, it is based on a
name query of the criminal history system that is linked by
fingerprints.
The State Police records are based on submission of
fingerprint arrest cards from law enforcement arrest and not
merely court records. |
