background checks

[ghostrider]

I'm not sure if this is the right forum to ask this, but is it possible to get copies of the background checks done for a CHL, or does DPS just get a 'yes' or 'no' from the county and FBI?

I ask because I need to renew my Canadian license and they want a 'letter of good conduct' (read: background check) from the local police, which is a pain to get. In there infinite wisdom (read: they don't care) the Canadian authorities in Ontario won't accept a state-issued CHL even though it requires a more thorough check than what APD likely does.

[Mike1951]

Forgive my absent mindedness, but in the last week I read where anyone can have an FBI background check done on themselves for $18.

Here ya go:

http://www.fbi.gov/hq/cjisd/fprequest.htm

[KaiserB]

A local and federal background check are different. Keep in mind not all localities submit/share data to the federal level. Much of this is due to funding, lack of technology, etc.

So if the agency needs a BG check from your local county/city it is probably to double check against a national BG check.

[seamusTX]

I don't know why you say a letter of good conduct is hard to get. I had to get one once. I just went to the police station and asked. They took my name, address, driver license number, etc., and a few days later I got it. Granted, that was in a small town in another state.

They're not just looking for convictions, which is what standard background checks show. A lowlife who is arrested or has the cops called to his house every week might always get the charges dropped and not show up on a state or federal background check.

- Jim

[ghostrider]

>I don't know why you say a letter of good conduct is hard to get. I had to get one once. I just
>went to the police station and asked. They took my name, address, driver license number, etc.,
>and a few days later I got it. Granted, that was in a small town in another state.

Well, more of a pain than a problem; APD is downtown, parking big pickups is a problem, and the last time I went through this, it took some time to explain to the officers what I wanted. (And it seemed like a simple request to me).

The issue I have with Canada is that firearms laws are mostly federal and consistent across provinces, but in this case some provinces will accept a copy of a valid CHL and others won't. Since my license was issued in ON, I don't believe I can have it renewed in a different province.

It just seems silly that a copy of my CHL is sufficient for a PA or NH non-resident CHL, but not for a Canadian license which is simply a license to possess firearms (no CHL allowed).

[Liko81]

A local and federal background check are different. Keep in mind not all localities submit/share data to the federal level. Much of this is due to funding, lack of technology, etc.

So if the agency needs a BG check from your local county/city it is probably to double check against a national BG check.

Well, in any state where a concealed handgun license exempts you from the NICS check, that's not entirely true; the Brady and NICS Improvement acts basically require states (and their subdivisions) to share information with NICS. The difference is in how fast that information can be made available. Most states can do it in a matter of days; some take a month or longer to update NICS. So all localities MUST share with the feds, it's just how current the feds are. Usually when NICS is behind on records, it's because the state itself is behind, and thus the "double-check" may or may not do any good.