hi everyone,
Does anyone know where I can obtain a free criminal history?
I want to be able to have everyone who is writing letters for
his parole to be able to state that they know his history and
are still willing to believe in him.
I have visited this site, but finally joined in. Still not sure how
everything works here. Do i need to include email address for
responses?

Hisfeather,

Hello and Welcome to PTO!

I do want to address your second question.. personal email addresses are not allowed in posts here on PTO... please encourage members to post their responses or send them to you via private message.. When you have the opportunity, please be sure to read the PTO Rules/Policies.. they are a must read for all members... here's the link.

http://www.prisontalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=23755

Hopefully someone else can come along and answer your first question!

mrs

My sons criminal history is on his Department of Corrections site. What state are you looking for.?some have it some dont.I see Texas is where you are. Is that the state for the records?

hisfeather -

Welcome to PTO :)

Here is some information I found for you, if he is in fact in Texas:

Requests by E-mail (for telephone, see directly above (http://www.tdcj.state.tx.us/offender_information.htm#telephone))

General Offender Information Only

The following information is available (be specific in your email what you are requesting):


TDCJ number
Offender location
Offense history
Incarceration history
Projected Release Date (see definition below) (http://www.tdcj.state.tx.us/offender_information.htm#Projected)
E-mail to this address classify@tdcj.state.tx.us the offender's full name and 7-digit TDCJ number. If you do not know the TDCJ number, provide the exact date of birth (if d.o.b. is not known, provide their approximate age and county of conviction).

** Please include offender's name in subject line of e-mail**

There is no charge for this service. This information is NOT available on the TDCJ website and all online inquiries must be made through e-mail. Photographs and social security numbers of offenders will not be provided to the public.

Here is the link if you want more information

http://www.tdcj.state.tx.us/offender_information.htm

Kelly

my thanks to ya'll for your information. i did go read the rules. (still not too sure on the difference between 'post' and 'thread'. and 'private message'.
i copied the info from kelly, and i think that is what i needed.

Some agencies provide the offenses of record for the current incarceration, but I am unaware of any sources for a free copy of the complete criminal history. For a single inquiry, though, it may be worth paying the nominal fee charged on some sites. In Texas, you can get the conviction information off the DPS website for something like $3 and change. PublicData will give a fixed number of searches for under $10 (its been so long since I set up an account that I forget what their options are...I went with a package that nets me roughly 450 searches each renewal period).

There are also some counties (at least in Texas) that have jail and court records through the county website. However, even within the county, those are not always a complete accounting of the history.

Is PACER just for Federal matters? If you want to check in several states, would PublicData be the best way to go?

Thanks.

Is PACER just for Federal matters? If you want to check in several states, would PublicData be the best way to go?

Thanks.

PACER is only the various federal courts (civil, criminal and bankruptcy). PublicData does not cover all of the states, but they do seem to be adding new ones every couple of months.

This may help. Although it isn't free, you can buy a detective program for your computer in the legal section of Half Price Book Store (I know the one on N.W. Hghwy. in Dallas has this) that should let you research what you need. If you need help obtaining this please let me know.

Thanks Now_Live. Have you used this software? I live in Missouri. What is the title of the software? You think this is better than the DPS searches, etc? I did a google search and found several online detective programs--one called "Online Dectective Software" for $30 unlimited. Do you know anything about these?

I haven't used the software personally, but have mailed it to a friend. I will ask how she is liking it. I have forgotten what the program was titeled - I do remember it costing $8-$10 and I am sure we could exchange information in order for me to send it to you, should you decide on this and not be able to locate it. Please allow me a few days to get back with you.

WHAT TYPE OF INFORMATION WERE YOU NEEDING TO GET. LOOK INTO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT ON FINDLAW.COM THIS WILL GIVE YOU INFORMATION ON HOW TO OBTAIN DIFFERENT TYPES OF RECORDS.HOPE IT HELPS YOU OUT.YOU CAN EVEN REQUEST ALL PREVIOUS ARREST RECORDS FROM COUNTY WHERE ARREST TOOK PLACE.
IT MAY NOT BE FREE TO GET THE COPIES YOU NEED BUT IT ALL DEPENDS ON WHAT YOU ARE REQUESTIN. YOU CAN ALSO ACCESS COURT DOCUMENTS THRU COUNTY COURT HOUSES ON THE INTERNET.TRY THESE WEBSITES http://www.crimcheck.com/freerecords.htm http://www.searchsystems.net/freepub.php

Kelly,
You wouldn't happen to have a link like that for the state of PA would you by chance?

http://www.crimcheck.com/freerecords.htm (http://www.crimcheck.com/freerecords.htm) has links for all states & federal info.

Thanks so much to all who wrote. Much appreciated. I'm wanting records because I was told that if everyone who will be writing support letters for his parole, knows his
history and is still willing to write one, it better supports their support. Makes sense.