Information Contained in Federal Criminal Records

Criminal records include information about crimes and offenders, notations of arrest, fingerprint identification and a mention of the consequent developments in a criminal case.  The Federal Bureau of Investigation or the FBI is in charge of maintaining the criminal history database through the system of the National Crime Information Center. The system acts as a storehouse of information on crimes that have been classified as misdemeanors or felonies, arrests, arrest warrants, missing people and thefts.

The federal criminal records help the state agencies to immediately locate people who are prohibited from purchasing firearms or do not qualify to be in positions which require them to work with the elderly, children or the physically challenged. The federal criminal records also serve a purpose for criminal justice agencies while they attempt to make decisions on career criminal charges, correctional options, and pretrial releases. 

Types of Federal Records

The Federal Bureau of Investigation http://www.fbi.gov/ is in charge of maintaining the national systems that allow interstate access to the criminal database covering all the states in the country. The network of systems used to maintain federal criminal records include the Interstate Identification Index or III, the NICS Index, the Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System or IAFIS, the National Protection Order File, the National Crime Information Center and National Sex Offender Registry. 

Federal criminal records are also maintained for the purpose of statistical analysis to determine the rate of crimes committed, nature of the crimes, the relationship between the criminal and the victim and the impact of the crimes. The data is often used to allocate human resources and funds to areas with a high crime rate. The FBI maintains the National Incident Based Reporting System or the NIBRS.  

The National Criminal History Improvement Program or NCHIP’s http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/nchip.htm duty is to ensure that the records available for the use of the law enforcement officials and for public access are precise and authentic. It is through this program that the Bureau of Justice Statistics offers technical help and funds to the different states to develop the system of making crucial criminal information available to the people.

Maintenance of Federal Records

Here is a quick checklist of the systems through which the FBI maintains the records: 

The Interstate Identification Index or III: This system enables the interstate exchange of criminal history data. The Federal Bureau of Investigation maintains a list of people arrested on charges such as misdemeanors and felonies. The identification system includes relevant information about the offenders including their personal details and their SSN, the state identification number and the FBI number. The searches are conducted with the help of different identifiers. The use of this system has been facilitated by the National Crime Prevention and Privacy Compact that introduces the formalities and structures to enable a federal-state exchange of criminal data.

The National Instant Criminal Background Check System or the NICS index:  This index is a record of people who have been forbidden by federal law from possessing firearms. You cannot sell arms to someone in the NICS index. The entries in this index are mostly sourced from the federal agencies with exceptions in certain cases where the details may come from the law enforcement agencies of a state.

Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System: This system enables an electronic search of fingerprint files and the transfer of fingerprint images. The high-end equipment used for scanning fingerprint images can take out and convert the ridge details into digital form. This helps the computers to match fingerprints. The IAFIS is in fact considered to be the biggest biometric database with over 47 million entries.

The National Crime Information Center or the NCIC: The National Crime Information Center acts as a repository for justice records that are kept by the FBI. The database contains information on stolen property, vehicles and even firearms, missing people, and those wanted by the law enforcement agencies. Not everyone can access the NCIC files and these can only be obtained through the state “central control terminal operators." The queries can be made on the basis of name and other personal details and not on the basis of fingerprints.

National Sex Offender Registry: The National Sex offender Registry is maintained by the National Crime Information Center and is definitely the most helpful tool to locate sex offenders. It contains information on sexual predators, people who have been convicted of sexual offenses against kids and the ones accused of violent sexual crimes.

The Combined DNA Index System: The DNA profiles of offenders and felons are stored through the Combined DNA Index System or CODIS. The project was started in 1990 with just fourteen states. At present, all the fifty states in the country are part of the Combined DNA Index System program.

A copy of a federal criminal record can be obtained by virtue of the Privacy Act and the Freedom of Information Act.  In most cases, personal records of deceased individuals can be accessed.  You can also access the records of other people, but only after they grant you permission to do so.