Funding is now available to help courts improve the system of criminal background checks.

Funding is now available to help courts improve the system of criminal background checks.

The Ohio Attorney General is making $2.45 million in funding available to courts to help improve the system of criminal background checks and the accuracy and completeness of the state’s criminal records database.

Chief Justice Sharon L. Kennedy of the Supreme Court of Ohio has been working with Attorney General Dave Yost on database improvements.

Criminal background checks play a vital role in keeping the public safe.

They are used by employers to screen potential employees tasked with the care of the most vulnerable people in schools, hospitals, nursing homes, and day care centers, among others. Background checks also determine who can buy a gun, who can adopt a child, and who can volunteer in many community organizations.

Obtaining fingerprints is essential for matching a criminal record to an individual.

The attorney general has allocated the funds in three parts. There is $1.2 million to pay for LiveScan devices. These are real-time digital fingerprint capturing machines so a court can take fingerprints on site and transmit the prints to BCI.

There is $750,000 available for juvenile court projects that make it easier for those courts or clerks of courts to electronically report adjudication information.

And $500,000 is available for common pleas, municipal, or county courts and clerks of courts to defray the cost of projects to recover case dispositions not previously reported to BCI.

Under Ohio law, the Attorney General’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI) serves as the central repository for all fingerprint and criminal records. Those are supplied to BCI by law enforcement agencies, and courts.

Chief Justice Kennedy recently sent a letter to judges statewide reminding them of their obligation to the process.

“I am writing to emphasize the importance of fingerprinting in criminal case reporting, to reiterate the statutory duties of courts regarding criminal case reporting, and to encourage you to develop systems for criminal case reporting so that you can ensure that your court’s data is reported accurately and timely to the Bureau of Criminal Investigation,” Chief Justice Kennedy wrote.

“The overriding question we need to ask ourselves is, ‘What is best for the people we serve?’ Every answer, every solution begins and ends with the people we serve. There can be no doubt that the accurate reporting of criminal information is the best thing for the people we serve.”

Service and safety go hand-in-hand as it relates to criminal background checks. Since its inception nearly 30 years ago, the National Criminal History Improvement Program (NCHIP) has helped states join the FBI to build a national system of criminal records. The records are then used in criminal investigations and prosecutions, sentencing, corrections, and more.

“Every Ohioan must be able to trust that our background check system is as comprehensive and current as possible,” Yost said. “Only an ongoing collaborative effort among local law enforcement, the courts, and BCI will help to continue building the public’s trust.”

The deadline to apply for the grants is May 15, 2024.