What Background Check Do the Pennsylvania State Police Use?

A background check is necessary for acceptance into the Pennsylvania State Police.

To become a Pennsylvania state police officer, an applicant must undergo a background check conducted by the state police agency. The state police have created Pennsylvania Access to Criminal History (PATCH), a computer-based system to run background checks.

Information from PATCH

According the Pennsylvania State Police website, once a requester provides an applicant's information to the state police, it will be checked against the criminal history database. If the applicant has no criminal record, the requester can print a "No record" certificate; however, if there is a hit in the database, the applicant's record will be reviewed manually.

Review of Record

If the applicant has a criminal record, it will be mailed to the requester. Manual review of a record may take up to two weeks.

Registered and Nonregistered Users

Registered and nonregistered users can access PATCH. A registered user is a company, agency or office that routinely conducts background checks; it is put on a billing cycle and invoiced every 30 days. A nonregistered user is an individual, who pays per session. An individual can submit up to 10 record checks in one session.

References

• Pennsylvania State Police: Pennsylvania Access to Criminal History Fact Sheet