CONVICTED? NEVER CONVICTED.

Note: This article was originally posted in 2014. It has been updated with new information.

Owning a business investigation company we often had clients who would come to us to perform self-background checks. They had had an indiscretion long ago and wondered if it would appear during an employment background check. Or they had records expunged and wanted to make sure that searches would not reveal the records. Every now and then we would find records that the client swore had been expunged.

The search techniques used and the diligence of the background check company can often uncover records thought to be vaporized by the delete key. As records become more digitized it is increasingly more difficult to erase yourself from the digital world. Just like the picture from a sophomore year party that a friend posted on your favorite social media page, once it’s out there-it’s out there. Removing it can be difficult and time-consuming.

EXPUNGED?

Similar to those unwanted pictures, records of your past, even expunged records, can be found in the digital world. The legal term “expunged” has different definitions in different States. Some allow for the records to be sealed and treat the case as it never happened. Some change the conviction to “dismissed” but the other details of the case are the same. In Maryland, it means to remove from public inspection. Although records are expunged, they are filed somewhere.  

Once you receive an order to have your record expunged and it is served, the judicial system possessing the record will remove it from its online court access. Anyone searching your name would not see the record. Contrary to what the fast working TV detectives would have us believe, there is not one government sourced database of criminal records. Records of arrests and adjudications are kept at the local courthouses and county jurisdictions. The closest to any semblance of a national database is the FBI’s fingerprint database, to which only law enforcement has access. See “National” record checks  Third-party vendors must rely on court reported data offered by State and local governments. 

As with your personal information and shopping habits, court data is downloaded, bought, and sold every day. Vendors collect the data from several sources. As the data is shared and stored and stored again it ends up in narrower access points allowing for the production of a single report.  If the vendor then resells that report, the record moves to another database. You get the idea. Just like the unwanted picture, although expunged from the government files, your record is sitting in who knows how many vendors databases waiting to be accessed.  

REMOVING THE RECORD 

The criminal record you had expunged was downloaded, bought, shared, compiled, stored, all the digital speak long before the record was expunged. The best, and least expensive, way to rid the record from existence is to deal with the source vendor directly. Most companies that deal with personal information are forthright about the data that they dispense and pride themselves on the accuracy, which means they are more than willing to help. Sending them a copy of the expungement order along with a request to have the record removed usually will suffice. The problem is finding all the places where the record is stored. This can be a tedious and long process for the individual. There are companies that will chase the record and do the work for you, but of course, fees are involved.

DISCLOSURE

Cities and states throughout the U.S. have enacted laws banning the criminal history question from employment applications. See Ban the Box 

In October 2018, a Massachusetts criminal justice reform bill went into effect that included further Ban the Box regulation. The new regulations include disclosure of misdemeanor convictions for three years (Previously was five). Also, employers cannot inquire about expunged records. Applicants that have had records expunged may legally answer “no record”.

The bottom line is, job seekers cannot be 100% sure that an expunged record will not turn up in a background search. If unsure, be honest about the existence of a record with the requester. Provide copies of the expungement order when the record is requested. However, know your rights within your state and handle the criminal records question per the law. You may not be required to answer.

Refer to the blog archive for more articles about criminal records in Employment

Communication is Key

Customer communication can solve many problems

Readers of this blog know that one of my customer service pet peeves is communication. Many headaches can be avoided by keeping customers informed. Even if it’s bad news, getting “in front” of the problem will result in better customer interaction and build trust in your business.

Communication with a company in which I’d completed business caused both irritation and satisfaction. Thompson Creek Window Company had installed windows. Touch-up work was necessary after the job was completed. Although scheduled for a month later the process was smooth and painless. There had been quoted a two-hour arrival window in a confirmation email. On the appointed day, the scheduled timeframe passed. I called to check. The two-hour window surprised the customer service rep as their policy is usually four, but at this point, that wasn’t the issue. When was the tech arriving? The representative made a call and I was told that the tech had been delayed due to a problem at another site. I would be the last call of the day and the tech would call a half-hour before arriving.

The end of the [business] day came and no call-no repair tech. Well, sometimes they arrive after hours to finish the scheduled jobs. That didn’t happen. Day wasted. The first thing the next morning I’m on the phone to work it out.

The customer service representative was empathetic and apologetic. Good start. She said she would “investigate” and get back to me. I put investigate in quotes because I found that an interesting choice of words. Regardless, it made me (the customer) feel that she took the matter seriously and would actually get answers.  (Read I’m in your way, to see how simple words can change a customer’s experience)

It took a couple hours but the customer service rep did get back to me. And she had really investigated what had happened.  She explained the company’s internal communication process and policies. She then explained where the failure occurred. In my case, the repair tech had been delayed beyond the appointment time and emailed the service coordinator. However, that email was after hours and the coordinator was out of the office the next day. 

She offered the explanation not as an excuse but as factual reporting. I thanked her for the explanation and for being so thorough. She said that she tries to respond to customers the way she would like to be treated. While I understood their process, I explained that a call directly to the customer at the time of the missed appointment would have helped; it would have been more welcome than no communication. The customer service rep sincerely took my suggestion. She then scheduled my repair for the first available date, which was within three business days.

Not offering excuses and providing a thorough answer definitely deescalated my situation. I’m sure some customers would have been more irate and would not have accepted the answer, but hey, the appointment had already come and gone, what could the representative have done at that point. Except for provide-Customer Service.

Another positive experience that started out as an inconvenience occurred at a Chick-Fil-A. I had placed an order using the mobile app for pickup. The order went through and the payment processed.  When I arrived at the restaurant, it was closed for remodeling. Now what. Luckily, I’m in an area that pretty much has two of everything in a short drive. I hop over to the next nearest restaurant ready to tell my story. Once inside I ask for the manager. A sentence into my dilemma and she asks to see my mobile order to confirm. Without further explanation from me, she processed my order. I complimented the manager for being on top of the issue and her reply was, “Thanks, but we’re really not on ‘top of it’ if the app is still accepting orders”. She immediately got on the phone and I could overhear her speaking to someone about the problem. 

Both of these examples exemplify how communication is essential to customer service. My experiences started out poorly due to a lack of communication but both ended positively. In both instances, the problem was identified, what was suppose to happen explained, and the problem fixed with little effort on the part of the customer. 

Read more articles on Customer Service