Outline
Any person seeking to work among the vulnerable groups like children or old people is to have a fingerprint clearance card in the State of Arizona. An application has to be submitted to the Fingerprint division of the Department of Public Safety to obtain the card (Sattarova). This division runs checks on the criminal records or its absence of the potential employees and issues the cards. The issue and revoking of the card is done after checking the criminal history of the person with the list of offences given in article 41-1758.03 of the A. R. S (Arizona State Legislature). The charge for finger printing is around $10 and $24 dollars for processing of the card (Information on fingerprint cards). Some agencies charge $43 and $47 for volunteers and paid employees respectively (Sattarova).
Causes of Preclusion for Teachers
The article states that the candidate may be precluded from being issued a fingerprint clearance card if he has at any time been convicted for a listed set of crimes. If the person has not done any of the crimes given in the article he may be issued a card. However, if the contender is found to be convicted of committed, attempting or conspiring to commit the following offenses anywhere in the country he will be prohibited. The long list includes everything from assault, robbery, manslaughter to fraud, child molestation, possession, use or traffic of any of the controlled substances.
Even obscene telephone conversations, causing ones spouse to become a prostitute, pandering, portraying of adult as a minor, transporting persons for the purpose of prostitution, polygamy and concubinage, threatening or intimidating, forgery of a credit card, fraudulent use of a credit card and even child neglect could preclude a teacher from obtaining an IVP fingerprint clearance card. After an application is submitted to the Department of Public Safety, the department does a background check to find out if there are any arrests in the state or national level. If any, the offenses are compared with the list in question. The previously mentioned offenses in the list are called precluded offenses (Arizona State Legislature).
If the person has been arrested for any of the precluded offenses, the DPS checks to see what the outcome of the offense is. That is, whether there was any action taken, such as conviction dismissal etc. If there is a conviction, the card is denied by the DPS. There are chances that the DPS could not reach a conclusion about the outcome of the case. In such a case, the applicant is denied the card. If the department finds out that a cardholder has been arrested for a precluded offense his card will be suspended (Denial or Suspension of a Fingerprint Clearance Card, 2007). The article specifically states that the person whose card has been suspended is to be stopped from working in teacher capacity immediately (Statutes and Rules. 2007).
A person with a precluded offense may be given the card, if the candidate is given ‘a good cause exception’. This is done by the board or by any of the courts or other bodies like the departments related of education, of health services, of juvenile corrections, of emergency and military affairs, or the board of examiners of a nursing care organization administrators and assisted living facility etc., this should be before 16 August 1999. The Board also can give a good cause omission after the date said above and no other offense, mentioned in the list, is identified after the date. In case the contender is found to be guilty with reference to the list, the Board denies the card to the complainant.
Tiers/Classes for approval
At present, there are no special classes or separation based on the seriousness of precluded offenses. All the crimes of the statute 41-1758.03 are given the same seriousness and the card is denied to the appellant.
Process for appeal
If an individual is denied the card, he can appeal to the DPS within 30 days of receiving the decision for permission for the appeal. The board also supplies the appeal packet to the appellant. On receiving the appeal packet, the DPS will conduct a detailed background check on the individual and hand over the packet to the Board. The application should not be late. It should be escorted with two letters of reference, and evidence that candidate has met sentencing requirements, Police reports and character information. Last two of the documents need only be produced wherever is necessary (Applying for a Good Cause Exception). Fees for good cause exception is $3, and is collected by the Board (Statutes and Rules.2007).
The file goes on for an examiner appraisal, to check whether the application is complete. If not, the candidate is contacted over the phone or by letter and the application completed. Having a ‘conviction set aside’ order at this position will augment the chances of the complainant (Sattarova). After this, the file goes on to ‘expedite review’, where the board reviews the criminal records of appellant and the documents that the appellant has submitted. This can lead to two things, one is that the appellant may be given the card, or the appellant has to appear in person for a hearing. At present the expedited review is to be within 20 days of the submission of the completed application package.
The hearing, if it takes place, must be within 45 days after giving a notice of 20 days to the applicant. The hearing officer is an executive law judge chosen by the Board. The judge will finalize the order within 80 days of the hearing and will notify the Board. The Board personnel will post the order to the complainant. The Board, in the request of the hearing officer granting good cause exclusion, informs the DPS. The DPS will issue the card within 10 – 14 days. If the good cause exception is denied to the appellant, the board gives information on what steps may be taken by him (Applying for a Good Cause Exception, 2007).
T-Chart about procedures for precluding offenses
References
- Arizona State Legislature.(online).
- Applying for a Good Cause Exception (Board of Fingerprinting).(2007). (online).
- Denial or Suspension of a Fingerprint Clearance Card (Department of Public Safety).(2007).(online).
- Information on fingerprint cards and fingerprinting services. (online)
- Sattarova,O.Arizona Fingerprint Clearance Cards. (online). Web.
- Statutes and Rules.(2007). (online).
- Statutes and Rules.(2007).(online).