A Bit Confused About MVR / Criminal Background Paperwork .

When I got my CDL school preliminaries done last Friday I was expecting to see things listed on both my MVR and Criminal Background checks , that I had to pay for and provided to the school . There was nothing on either of them , I don't get it . I'm no saint , I've done some things and I want to see Something !

We are taught to divulge everything in order to get a license and a job and I fully expect to do that .

What I received was two practically empty sheets of paper with the raised grain certified state seal and ink . Clean MVR and Criminal Background .I have an arrest in the mid 80's for being a minor with an open container on a beach ...NOT on the criminal background check . I let my operators license get suspended in the early 90's by not paying an unregistered vehicle ticket and got arrested for driving under suspension ...its not there . The most recent and only glaring issue I have since the 90's on my MVR would be a speeding ticket I got leaving Boston MA where the speed limit changes from 65 to 55 and back to 65 in a short spam , and that was about 11mph over.

The only thing on both MVR and Criminal is a statement which says , loosely paraphrased that there is nothing withstanding , I have no current revocations or criminal warrants , tickets or payments etc etc .

What gives ? I paid money for that junk to start school. How is it that these Transportation Companies have access to my entire history but I apparently do not ..?

~S~

I know as a minor everything gets tossed out when you turn 18 so you wont ever see those "criminal" records from when you were a minor show up.

The other things are all really minor stuff, hardly criminal. I know things like DUI stay on your record for a long time if not forever.

I am also new to this so anything I say may be wrong.....

Your lack of criminal and driving problems is a good thing. You haven't done anything that everyone else hasn't done. So don't sweat it that they don't show up. Be honest on your applications and let them decide what is a bad or good record. Yours looks squeaky clean to me.

How do you know the transportation company is getting information you are not? I bet they got the exact same thing?

Dont be fooled. Trucking companies can and do use other "soruces" to get their info they need. If its out there then they can find it out for sure if it was reported by the arresting states. Always best to be homest about it all.

Dont be fooled. Trucking companies can and do use other "soruces" to get their info they need. If its out there then they can find it out for sure if it was reported by the arresting states. Always best to be homest about it all.

That's totally right. Trucking companies have unbelievable sources of information - likely government sources or private-investigator type stuff. I can remember going through orientation with one of the big companies and everyone in the class was shocked at the stuff the company dug up on them. For instance, they asked one guy why he didn't list a job on his application he had eight years ago. Turns out he never actually got the job for that company. He interviewed with them but never worked there. He (and the rest of us) couldn't figure out how they could have come up with that information but I remember him saying, "Man, that's a little bit scary. How could they know I went for a job interview somewhere eight years ago when I never even got the job?"

Not sure.

But they will dig up everything. The stuff you're talking about it mostly really old and a lot of companies won't care. Play close attention to the questions on the application though and answer them honestly. Don't hide anything, but don't tell em anything they don't ask about. If they ask if you've had any felonies in the past five years and you had one ten years ago, tell em no. The questions almost always have a time frame. Just answer the questions exactly - no more, no less.

The stuff you're talking about it mostly really old and a lot of companies won't care. Play close attention to the questions on the application though and answer them honestly. Don't hide anything, but don't tell em anything they don't ask about. If they ask if you've had any felonies in the past five years and you had one ten years ago, tell em no. The questions almost always have a time frame. Just answer the questions exactly - no more, no less.

Yup, this is key. Sounds like most of your concerns are past the time frame they will be asking about. Just pay attention to the questions. Some will say last X number of years, some will say EVER.

When I applied to Knight they asked if my license had EVER been suspended, I answered no. A day later while talking to my wife I remembered a short suspension some 25 years ago for an unpaid ticket. I called my recruiter and explained the citation because I didn't want to take any chances. She said it was no problem, she already had my records and they were clean. But again, to me I didn't want to take a chance of something worded like that coming around to bite me.

Woody

I recently started looking into a trucking career a couple of months ago. In December of 2012, I had a stupid moment and was caught at a roadblock with an "open container after consumption". I passed the sobriety test and was sent home with a ticket, which was later settled with a Prayer for Judgement and payment of court costs. I recently enrolled in Miller-Motte's CDL program and was immediately rejected by Werner Transportation, the company they chiefly recruit for. Werner recruiters say they cannot touch me for at least 3 years.

Today I received what appears to be a rejection letter from Miller-Motte's parent company, Delta Careers, saying that I am not even able to take their CDL course. Have I destroyed any chance of a driving career before I even started? Are there reputable companies that will hire me despite the open container charge? Or would I be wasting my time and money? Any words of advice would be appreciated.

Schism, be sure not to volunteer any information that isn't specifically asked for. I was on phone with a recruiter from a large company just yesterday and was getting all the info and the go ahead to attend their company school. I had checked no felonies ever on my app but decided to be 100% honest and tell them up front about an incident that has been sealed from my record. The recruiter replied that since I had told them about it and the call was recorded then it was now part of my app file and it didn't matter that the incident had been sealed and discharged. In 30 secs the conversation turned from bus tickets to company school to "Sorry, we can't help you until it's been 10 years." Luckily that 10 yr mark is in about 80 days so I didn't totally burn the bridge simply by being forthcoming.

Schism, be sure not to volunteer any information that isn't specifically asked for. I was on phone with a recruiter from a large company just yesterday and was getting all the info and the go ahead to attend their company school. I had checked no felonies ever on my app but decided to be 100% honest and tell them up front about an incident that has been sealed from my record. The recruiter replied that since I had told them about it and the call was recorded then it was now part of my app file and it didn't matter that the incident had been sealed and discharged. In 30 secs the conversation turned from bus tickets to company school to "Sorry, we can't help you until it's been 10 years." Luckily that 10 yr mark is in about 80 days so I didn't totally burn the bridge simply by being forthcoming.

Good thing you mentioned it now cause if they would have found out down the road is auto termination and you find your own way home.

Application asked for convictions. I don't have one.

This is from Ga Justice Project

They have a lot of info regarding the vagaries of criminal records and it's not just specific to Ga.