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Criminal Record Search
In Texas, there are several different major repositories of information on
“criminal” records. Most deal with Convictions only. What is a conviction?
A conviction is when a judgment is handed down from a court indicating that
the person in question was found guilty or plead guilty. As we all know, in
America, everyone is innocent until found guilty. Frequently people ask
private investigators about searching the TCIC/ NCIC system.
Unfortunately TCIC/NCIC is not available to the public.
Note: Employers or potential employers should only search for convictions
with a signed release for the applicant / employee and consulting with an
attorney before hand.
Four Levels
1. Court Records.
These are the best way to verify if a criminal action has been initiated against
someone. The main problem with searching these records is the cost. (There
are municipal courts where misdemeanors are heard and where felony
crimes are first entered into the system) Then there are Circuit courts these
are where a felony case would go to be heard. These courts are not
connected by computer and no database of cases in available, meaning a
search would have to be done at each location and few, if any, will look up
information over the telephone. This makes this the best source, but the
most expensive and time consuming. We recommend that this be done
where the person lives or lived for any length of time rather than on a
statewide basis.
2. Texas Department of Public Safety.
DPS keeps an achieve of all criminal activity which is in the form of a
searchable database. A search can be done immediately and is rarely off-line.
The problem with this database is that the State Police rely on the courts and
municipal police departments to submit this information to them. This costs
money to compile and process and our experience would indicate that this is
not being done as quickly or efficiently as it should be. In some cases, we
have found capital crimes from years ago where the person is in prison in
Texas not being reported to. It is also very important to know that the
information provided about the person being searched MUST be accurate or
a false negative con be obtained. We at M.S.I. feel that this is an excellent tool
but should not be the only source we use when accuracy is essential.
3. Texas Department of Corrections.
This source has an excellent database of everyone who has served time in a
prison or otherwise been remanded to their supervision. It gives good detail
about the crime and sometime even pictures of the criminal. The only
weaknesses with this source is that criminals who are not sentenced to
prison time do not show up in this database and sometimes with more
common names or limited information, confirmation cannot be made.
4. Arrests.
Some data from Texas arrest records at the county jail level can be obtained
legally through a private source. This information is excellent for determining
if someone was arrested and processed at one of the available county jails.
This source does not have access to all Texas county arrest records and
some criminals are not processed at the county jail level, but it is an excellent
source to assist us in where to look further
Database Research & Investigation
Driver License Records
Motor Vehicle Records
Criminal Records-Prison Records
Civil & Criminal Court History
Sex Offender Registration History/ Records
Resume Verification
Reference Verification
Education Verification
Employment Application Verification
Real Estate Ownership
Judgments & Liens
CIVIL INVESTIGATIONS
The information we provide can make the difference in any civil case you or
your client are currently conducting. Metropolitan provides the facts that
legal teams need to win cases.
Criminal Investigations - Our team consists of ex law enforcement officials
that all carry accomplished careers in the area of investigation. Metropolitan
can immediately deploy our team of investigators to work along side law
enforcement.
In Texas, there are several different major repositories of information on
“criminal” records. Most deal with Convictions only. What is a conviction?
A conviction is when a judgment is handed down from a court indicating that
the person in question was found guilty or plead guilty. As we all know, in
America, everyone is innocent until found guilty. Frequently people ask
private investigators about searching the TCIC/ NCIC system.
Unfortunately TCIC/NCIC is not available to the public.
Note: Employers or potential employers should only search for convictions
with a signed release for the applicant / employee and consulting with an
attorney before hand.
Four Levels
1. Court Records.
These are the best way to verify if a criminal action has been initiated against
someone. The main problem with searching these records is the cost. (There
are municipal courts where misdemeanors are heard and where felony
crimes are first entered into the system) Then there are Circuit courts these
are where a felony case would go to be heard. These courts are not
connected by computer and no database of cases in available, meaning a
search would have to be done at each location and few, if any, will look up
information over the telephone. This makes this the best source, but the
most expensive and time consuming. We recommend that this be done
where the person lives or lived for any length of time rather than on a
statewide basis.
2. Texas Department of Public Safety.
DPS keeps an achieve of all criminal activity which is in the form of a
searchable database. A search can be done immediately and is rarely off-line.
The problem with this database is that the State Police rely on the courts and
municipal police departments to submit this information to them. This costs
money to compile and process and our experience would indicate that this is
not being done as quickly or efficiently as it should be. In some cases, we
have found capital crimes from years ago where the person is in prison in
Texas not being reported to. It is also very important to know that the
information provided about the person being searched MUST be accurate or
a false negative con be obtained. We at M.S.I. feel that this is an excellent tool
but should not be the only source we use when accuracy is essential.
3. Texas Department of Corrections.
This source has an excellent database of everyone who has served time in a
prison or otherwise been remanded to their supervision. It gives good detail
about the crime and sometime even pictures of the criminal. The only
weaknesses with this source is that criminals who are not sentenced to
prison time do not show up in this database and sometimes with more
common names or limited information, confirmation cannot be made.
4. Arrests.
Some data from Texas arrest records at the county jail level can be obtained
legally through a private source. This information is excellent for determining
if someone was arrested and processed at one of the available county jails.
This source does not have access to all Texas county arrest records and
some criminals are not processed at the county jail level, but it is an excellent
source to assist us in where to look further
Database Research & Investigation
Driver License Records
Motor Vehicle Records
Criminal Records-Prison Records
Civil & Criminal Court History
Sex Offender Registration History/ Records
Resume Verification
Reference Verification
Education Verification
Employment Application Verification
Real Estate Ownership
Judgments & Liens
CIVIL INVESTIGATIONS
The information we provide can make the difference in any civil case you or
your client are currently conducting. Metropolitan provides the facts that
legal teams need to win cases.
Criminal Investigations - Our team consists of ex law enforcement officials
that all carry accomplished careers in the area of investigation. Metropolitan
can immediately deploy our team of investigators to work along side law
enforcement.
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