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Important Notice (August 2010):
Hamilton Police Service is advising citizens that recent changes by the RCMP are increasing the time required to complete some Vulnerable Sector Screening Requests.
Delays are now being experienced for individuals who are involved or hope to be involved in the Vulnerable Sector (VS), such as teaching, coaching, day cares, senior’s homes and disabled groups. Applications requiring this type of background check are now scrutinized through a more rigorous screening process.
In addition to checking past and current criminal records, the VS checks include a search of the pardoned sex offender database. In 2009 in Hamilton, VS screening led to about 40 “potential matches” out of approximately 21,107 VS applications. These 40 potential matches were then required to submit fingerprints, prolonging the screening process.
On July 19, 2010, the RCMP instituted enhancements to the Canadian Police Information Centre (CPIC) system, which broadened the scope for VS potential matches. When performing a VS query, the CPIC system initially attempts to identify a possible match to a sexual offence for which a Pardon has been granted, based initially on the surname and given name of the individual. If this query does not identify the possible existence of a record, the system now performs a subsequent query based on the sex and birth date of the individual. If this query locates similar biographical data in criminal files it may trigger the CPIC system to prompt for the submission of fingerprints to verify or refute the existence of pardoned sex offender records.
In the first seven working days of implementation, the Hamilton Police already has 80 “potential matches.” If this trend continues, it is expected that approximately 15 per cent of VS checks will be identified as potential matches and therefore will experience delays in their response.
Individuals affected by this enhancement will have to follow the following process if they wish to continue with the screening process:
If the application is for any purpose other than Volunteering (i.e. Employment, Student Placement, Student Enrolment, Adoption, Foster Care, Kinship Care, etc) the applicant must pay a $25.00 processing fee.
If it is for volunteer purposes, in order to waive the RCMP fee, the applicant must have a letter from the volunteer agency on letterhead.
When the applicant returns with the required RCMP fee or agency letter; the Hamilton Police Service will fingerprint the applicant between the hours of 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. (The fingerprint fee will be included in the Hamilton Police Service’s $40.00 or $15.00 fee for processing the application).
An RCMP Form 1 must be completed by the applicant at the time of fingerprinting.
The Hamilton Police Service will send your prints and documentation to the RCMP. The applicant will be notified when we receive the results.
It is important for the public to understand that under no circumstance does this notification confirm that the applicant is or is not a pardoned sex offender. However, in almost all cases, this “possible match” is ruled out via fingerprints.
Hamilton Police Service strives to meet a two week (employment/student placements) and 30 days (volunteers) turnaround for non-fingerprint VS checks. However, the RCMP’s CPIC enhancement could delay the process significantly (up to 120 days) for some applicants who require fingerprinting. Therefore, please ensure that you allow yourself ample time to process your request should this situation arise.
It is important that agencies requiring individuals to submit Vulnerable Sector Requests are aware of this change because these agencies will experience a similar increase and the delay will inevitably affect their operations.
If you have any questions or concerns regarding this process, please contact the RCMP directly by email at: ccrtis-scictr@rcmp-grc.gc.ca