Access to your own criminal records

Spacedog

I reciently got a job in Brussels. being a sensitive position of trust, I was asked to provide proof of having no criminal record, this is commonly done as standard procedure here.

I went to my garda station and asked them for a letter, they told me no, and that the only way was to use a freedom of information request, to pay 36 euro for it and to sign a waiver of disclosing personal information.

I did this, and eventually the letter i recieved was worded so obscurely that I was ashamed to hand it in. basically it said 'we have no records of criminal activity from <insert name here> but this does not mean that he/she has not committed any crimes, this letter is not to be taken as a proof of no criminal record'.

I was raging when I read this. I've never done anything to anyone. I've been an honest upstanding citizen all my life and this is the best reference the Gardai can give me?

What's more, why do I have to sign and pay for release of personal information, if all trials for criminal convictions are conducted in public and are a matter of public record?

All I wanted is a letter from tha gards that say
'according to our computer this guy cas no criminal convictions in Ireland.
-signed Garda Brady.'

Instead I get this insult of an obfuscation of my honor and integrety.

MagicSean

Unfortunately we live in a time of litigation. I would think the wording of the letter is to allow for the fact that you may be a very savy serial killer and to limit liability in case you go on a killing spree in Brussells. That's only my own oppinion though.

Did you apply for a cert of character at the garda station or to the garda vetting unit?

deadwood

What more (or how much less) would you want it to say?

I'm sure if you look at the foreign versions, they'll say pretty much, the same thing. If you want a glowing reference, ask for one from a Garda you know, who'll probably insert a caveat in case they discover some dodgy Declan Nerney cd's in your house after you move to Brussels.


Of course they should charge for this. Otherwise you'd have some people walking into every station on a daily basis lookng for this info. When the county councils started charging a nominal fee for planning objections, it cut out the curtain twitchers objecting to work for objections sake. (and no, this isn't the reason for ghost estates cropping up all over the country)

rubensni

You could have tried applying for a Police Character Certificate. They give them out without a charge, and they state exactly what you were looking for: whether or not you have a criminal record, or have ever come to the attention of the Gardai. They're reluctant to give them out though, normally only granting them for visas, etc. Details here:

http://www.citizensinformation.ie/categories/justice/law_enforcement/police_certificate_of_character

bravestar

rubensni wrote: »

They're reluctant to give them out though, normally only granting them for visas, etc. Details here:

It has nothing to do with reluctance. They can only be apllied for in specific circumstances. If the reason you want to apply is not within those criteria then you can not apply for one. It's quite simple.

source

bravestar wrote: »

It has nothing to do with reluctance. They can only be apllied for in specific circumstances. If the reason you want to apply is not within those criteria then you can not apply for one. It's quite simple.

They're for adoption and naturalisation to a country only. ie if you're going to a country for work purposes and you need a visa for it, you may be asked to get a police clearance form, also when you're adopting a child you will get the same, these are the only instances you will get a police clearance cert.