NCJ Number
94006
Date Published
1983
Length
29 pages
Annotation
This study addresses (1) the status of criminal history record systems in the United States, (2) the alternatives for a national computerized system, (3) the possible impacts of such a system, and (4) the relevant policy issues that warrant congressional attention.
Abstract
Most of the building blocks for a national computerized criminal history record system are already in place. There are many ways that a national system could be designed. At one end of the spectrum, criminal history records for all offenders could be stored in a central national repository. At the other end, a national repository could be limited to records of Federal offenders, with records of State offenders stored only in the respective State repositories. The emerging consensus among Federal and State criminal record repository and law enforcement officials favors the latter, with only Federal offender records and an index to State offenders (known as the Interstate Identification Index or 'III') maintained at the national level along with a national fingerprint file on serious offenders. Depending on how a national system is controlled and used, the quality of the records exchanged, and the standards set for access and operation, the system could have important implications for employment and licensure, Federal-State relationships, and civil and constitutional rights, as well as for public safety and the administration of justice. Full implementation of III raises a number of issues that warrant congressional attention to ensure that beneficial impacts are maximized and potentially adverse impacts are controlled or minimized. Issues include policy control, record quality, file size and content, noncriminal justice access, oversight and audit, Federal funding, message switching, and Federal direction and legislation.