As with any professional industry, the criminal background check industry is filled with jargon, key phrases and technical terms that can confuse the average person. Recognizing that the misdemeanor and felony background checks that our customers receive might have confusing terms within them, we have created a complete glossary designed to make reading and understanding a report from InstantCriminalChecks.com as easy as possible.
This glossary lists many relevant terms in alphabetical order, and a clickable glossary allows people to easily get to the letter of the alphabet that they need in order to find the term they are searching. You will find many important terms including credit bureau, court of appeals, felony, felonies, judgment and misdemeanor. Our goal is to make sure every customer has a solid understanding of the information in each criminal background check. By defining terms and their context in a criminal check, we hope our customers are able to make well-informed, solid decisions about employees and future tenants. If there is a term that is not present in this glossary, you are welcome to contact our customer service representatives for additional help. We will be happy to help you understand your report and will update this glossary accordingly.
If you are looking for Background Screening Industry Abbreviations, please click here.
A| B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M
N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z
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| B.
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| Bail | |
| Bond money paid to a court, by or on behalf of a criminal defendant, as security that, when released from jail, the defendant will appear at future hearings. If another person posts the bail money, then that third party vouches that the defendant will appear at future court dates. Bail can be forfeited if the defendant fails to appear or violates release conditions. |
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| Battery | |
| An intentional, unwanted and forceful/violent touching of another person, or something closely connected with that person. |
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| Bench Trial | |
| A trial held before a judge and without a jury. | |
| Bind-Over | |
| A finding at a preliminary examination that sufficient evidence exists to require a trial at the Circuit Court level on the charges made against the defendant. |
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| Breaking & Entering | |
| Using some force to enter a building (opening a door, raising a window, taking screen off, etc.); damage need not result. |
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| Burden of Proof | |
| The duty to establish by evidence a requisite degree of belief concerning a fact in the mind of a trier of fact. The duty to establish facts in an adversary proceeding. Different burdens of proof exist in the law: Prima facie evidence: Preponderance |
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Charge |
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| An accusation of wrong doing. | |
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Child |
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| Individual who is younger than 18 years of age. | |
| Common Law | |
| A body of legal principles which derives its authority solely from usages and customs of ancient times, or from the judgments and decrees of courts recognizing, affirming, and enforcing such usages and customs; particularly the ancient unwritten law of England. Common law is to be distinguished from "statutory law," which is enacted by a legislative body such as Congress or a state legislature. |
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| Community | |
| A city, town, district, neighborhood, or other commonly recognized geographical, social, or political area. |
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| Community Resources | |
| Workplaces, businesses, places of worship, social groups, consultants, health care facilities or professionals, places for recreation or entertainment, and other facilities, professionals, or supports generally available to the population-at-large within a community. |
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| Community Service | |
| A court imposed sanction that requires offenders to work in the community to repay society for the harm done by their actions. |
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| Competent | |
| Means a person is capable of making informed decisions in specific areas regarding the conduct of one’s personal and/or financial affairs. Family – Parent, foster parents, spouses, siblings, and others who perform the roles and functions of family members in the life of an individual, including persons in a relationship of mutual support with an individual that is exclusive and expected to endure over time. |
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Complaint |
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| the document on which criminal misdemeanors are charged in District Court, as well as the initial charging document for felonies. |
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| Concurrent Sentence | |
| Upon conviction for multiple crimes, a criminal sentence served at the same time as another criminal sentence, rather than one after the other. |
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| Consecutive Sentence | |
| Upon conviction for multiple crimes, criminal sentences that must be served one after the other, rather than at the same time. |
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| Court-Appointed Attorney | |
| Legal counsel assigned by the court to represent an indigent criminal defendant. A court-appointed attorney is not necessarily a "free" attorney; the court can order that some or all of the attorney’s bill be reimbursed. |
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| Credit Bureau | |
| A reporting agency that assembles information on borrowers to help lenders evaluate credit worthiness. You are entitled to see your credit report and dispute or add to the information you feel is erroneous. Your objection(s) must be filed in writing with the report. |
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| Court of Appeals | |
| An "intermediate" appellate court between the Supreme Court and state trial courts. Final decisions from a Circuit or Probate Court hearing may be appealed to the Court of Appeals. |
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| Criminal Case | |
| A charge filed by a prosecutor against a defendant concerning violation of a criminal law. The act of violating a criminal law is an offense against the community, not a private wrong. Examples of criminal cases include theft and murder. |
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| Cross Examination | |
| The questioning of a witness by a party other than the one who called that witness to the stand. |
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Defendant |
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| A person who has been formally charged with committing a crime. |
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| Delinquency (Criminal) | |
| A crime committed by a minor under the age of 17. Juvenile delinquency offenses are prosecuted in the Family Division of Circuit Court. |
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| Delinquency (Loan) | |
| Failure to make a loan payment on time. You may then be required to pay a late fee, expressed as a flat fee or a percentage of the amount due. |
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| Dependent Child | |
| Includes children who are homeless or without proper care through no fault of their parents, guardian, or custodian. |
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| Double Jeopardy | |
| Being tried twice for the same offense. Jeopardy "attaches" or begins in a jury trial when the selected jury is sworn, and attaches in a bench trial when the first witness is sworn. |
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| Dual Citizenship | |
| When a citizen of one country takes on the additional citizenship and it’s privileges from another. What determines this is according to the original country’s requirements. Some countries require you to relinquish their status if you take on citizenship in another country, others don’t. |
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Felony |
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| The most serious of criminal-type offenses. Felonies are classified as 1st, 2nd, or 3rd degree with 1st degree being the most serious. |
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| Fine | |
| A court imposed sanction that requires offenders to pay a monetary penalty for their actions. |
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Government Records Access and Management |
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| The federal act which establishes procedures for accessing, classifying and sharing public, private and confidential and protected records effective July, 1992. |
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| Guardianship of a Person | |
| Includes, among other things, authority to consent to marriage, major medical, surgical, and psychiatric treatment and enlistment into the armed forces. "Guardianship of a person" includes legal custody, if legal custody is not vested in another person, agency, or institution. |
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Habilitation |
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| The process by which an individual acquires and maintains the life skills necessary to cope more effectively with personal and environmental demands or to improve physical, mental, and social competencies. |
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Illicit |
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| Not permitted or allowed; prohibited; unlawful; as in illicit trade. |
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Judgment |
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| A sense of knowledge sufficient to comprehend nature of transaction. The formation of an opinion or notion concerning some thing by exercising the mind upon it. |
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| Juvenile Court | |
| The branch of the judiciary that has legal responsibility for youth under the age of 18. The court is a civil court that adjudicates cases where youth are thought to be abused, neglected, or dependent and cases where youth are accused of some delinquent or status offense. |
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Kidnapping |
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| At common law, the forcible abduction or stealing and carrying away of a person from one country to another. A person is guilty of kidnapping if he unlawfully removes another from his place of business or residence. |
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Legally Competent or Presumed Competent |
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| For individuals 18 years of age or older, not having been declared by a court to be incapable of making informed decisions with respect to the conduct of one’s personal and/or affairs |
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| Licensed Child Placing Agency | |
| An agency licensed by the State to receive children for placement. | |
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Minor |
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| A person under the age of 18. | |
| Misdemeanor | |
| Criminal-type offenses that are less serious than felonies and generally those punishable by fine, penalty, forfeiture or imprisonment otherwise than in a penitentiary. Under federal law, and most state laws, any offense other than a felony is classified as a misdemeanor. |
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Ordinance |
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A rule established by authority; a permanent |
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| Permanent Residency | |
| Usually referring to a type of entrance visa status by the INS. |
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Quid pro quo |
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| What for what, something for something. Used in law for the giving of one valuable thing for another. |
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| Residential | |
| Having to do with where people live. | |
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Secretary of State/state |
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| The state office where your documents will be either apostilled or certified, depending on the country program. |
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| Single Parent | |
| A parent who is not currently married. This can include never
married and divorced individuals. |
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Toddler |
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| This can mean different things in different countries, but usually a child between 18-60 months (1 1/2 to 4 years). |
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| Translations | |
| When a document is converted from one language to another. | |
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| Vocational | |
| Having to do with employment, a job, or one’s career path. |
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| Warrant | |
| (Arrest Warrant) A written order of the court which is made on behalf of the state, or United States, and is based upon a complaint issued pursuant to statute and/or court rule and which commands a law enforcement officer to arrest a person and bring him before a magistrate. |
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| Y.
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| Youthful offenders | |
| Status classification of youths and young adults generally older than juveniles (age 18 to 25), who are given special consideration. |
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| Zealous witness | |
| An untechnical term denoting a witness on the trial of a cause who manifests a partiality for the side calling him, and an eager readiness to tell anything which he thinks may be of advantage to that side. |
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