Question about filling out Background Investigation Pack?

[CRS1]

Hello to all LEO's.

I have a question and I'm hoping someone can help me. I'm filling out the Background Investigation pack for the local Police Department. For the most part I have the forms 95% filled out, but I'm stuck in a few questions.

1) List all the motor vehicles owned by you and your spouse. Years, Plate #'s, Year, and Type.

For the most part I have the information filled out for all the cars I have owned. With the exceptions of some plate #'s and years I have owned those cars, the same goes for my wife. I have the make and models and state (NY) but I don't have the Plate #'s. If I don't have that information will that hurt me?

2) I can not recall all my traffic tickets. I know I had 2 speeding tickets that I got over 10 years ago. I called DMV and they said that after 10 years they purge all those tickets. The I got 3 seatbelt tickets and the last one was about 2 years ago. Will not having the exact dates of the seatbelt tickets hurt me? It's been so long and I have no record of the tickets. I don't want to make it look like I'm hiding anything, but the truth is that I just don't remember.

ANY suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I know all the LEO's here had to fill out the B.I. pack and just need a little help.

Thank You All!!!

[StalkerCop]

Do what you can and be honest. If you can not remember all the specifics, put what you can and make not that you dont have details. They are not going to say no because you can not remember some specifics as such. I have done backgrounds and have ran across applications that were missing some information and it is understandable when the information is so old.

[CRS1]

Do what you can and be honest. If you can not remember all the specifics, put what you can and make not that you dont have details. They are not going to say no because you can not remember some specifics as such. I have done backgrounds and have ran across applications that were missing some information and it is understandable when the information is so old.

Thanks for the reply. I have been going crazy looking for any documentation on all the cars I have owned and tickets I've had since I 1st started to drive when I was 16. I'm 34 now.

I will guesstimate and do the best that I can.

If I put down that I got a speeding ticket let's say 6/1994, but also letting the P.I. know that, that date may not be accurate and they do their research and find out the ticket was 9/1993. According to you I should be ok, being that I let them know about it, but did not have the correct dates?

Same as for all cars owned and plate numbers?

[Michigan]

Thanks for the reply. I have been going crazy looking for any documentation on all the cars I have owned and tickets I've had since I 1st started to drive when I was 16. I'm 34 now.

I will guesstimate and do the best that I can.

If I put down that I got a speeding ticket let's say 6/1994, but also letting the P.I. know that, that date may not be accurate and they do their research and find out the ticket was 9/1993. According to you I should be ok, being that I let them know about it, but did not have the correct dates?

Same as for all cars owned and plate numbers?

Should be fine. The point of a background isn't to see how well you can remember exact dates. As long as you're honest as you can be, then you'll be fine. Being off by a few months or a year or two is not going to hurt you; no one expects you to remember a ticket that you got almost 20 years ago.

-Same goes for the cars. You can only do so much. If the DMV can't help with the car history then do the best you can with what you remember.

You could always talk to the investegator and ask him/her what they would like you to do about the information that you don't have.

good luck

[nonickname69]

For the tickets just as much as you can remember, year and month if you know it. If you were found guilty or whatever and the fine/punishment.

[L-1]

I'm curious about the car question. Does it ask you to list every vehicle you and your spouse have ever owned (historically), or does it simply ask you to list all the motor vehicles owned by you and your spouse (currently).

There's a big difference.

I have never known of a personal histiry statement to ask for prior vehicles.

As far as the cites go, list what you can remember, approximate year, your best recollection as to violations and disposition, etc. If there may have been more from way, way back but you don't remember, say so.

[CRS1]

Here's the exact question:

"List all, the motor vehicles ever owned by you or your spouse and all license plate numbers ever issued to such vehicles."

Then they have in the spaces below the question.

Period Owned (To, From)
Make
Type
Year
Plate#
State

I'm ok answering all, but the Period Owned and Plate#'s. Those I don't remember except for my recent cars.

[L-1]

Here's the exact question:

"List all, the motor vehicles ever owned by you or your spouse and all license plate numbers ever issued to such vehicles."

Then they have in the spaces below the question.

Period Owned (To, From)
Make
Type
Year
Plate#
State

I'm ok answering all, but the Period Owned and Plate#'s. Those I don't remember except for my recent cars.

I am truly surprised. I have never seen that question on a personal history statement.

I bought my first car in 1964. Strangely, I can remember its license plate number but I can't remember the plate numbers of any of the cars in between except for my current car. I can't remember the years of several of those cars. For that matter, I can't even remember the make of my fifth car. (Just getting old I guess.)

[PhilipCal]

I am truly surprised. I have never seen that question on a personal history statement.

I bought my first car in 1964. Strangely, I can remember its license plate number but I can't remember the plate numbers of any of the cars in between except for my current car. I can't remember the years of several of those cars. For that matter, I can't even remember the make of my fifth car. (Just getting old I guess.)

Bought my first car the same year. I can basically remember each of the cars, I've owned, but would be very hard put to recall the exact dates I owned them. Forget the plate numbers. When I first read your post, my reaction was the same as my colleague. Reading the wording of the question, I understand your concern. I have two suggestions. Call the agency for clarification of the question. As an alternative, simply do the best you can, with the notation "To the best of my memory", or something to that effect.
I too, have seen many Personal History Statements, but never with that particular question.

[Mike11]

go down to the dmv and buy a copy of your driving record. if nothing is on it, just put down what you want them to know. all they are going to do is run your driving record thru the state files. if your record is clean, that will be the end of it.

[sigcopper]

Not to be rude to Mike11, please don't take his advice. I've been doing backgrounds for 6 years. I want to know each and every ticket. I want to see if you are going to lie to me and cover up anything including rinky dink tickets. If you lie about those, what else would you lie about?

As for the cars, I've never seen that type of wording before. What happens when you own a car for over 10 years and the state comes along and gives you a new plate for the same car? I can't remember all of the plate numbers but I can remember all of my cars. That 65 Chevelle I owned once was real sweet. I also don't know the purpose of knowing all of the cars a person has ever owned and the plate numbers. What are you going to check on if a car was owned 15 years ago? That plate number is long gone in the state system if the car was junked.

In MN the plate stays with the car and in WI the plate stays with the person. There could also be an issue in recalling plates.

I just don't see the purpose in knowing what they are asking for. Give your BI a call and PLEASE post your answer back here. Inquiring minds want an answer.

[Zephendo]

That question was asked on my background as well.

I just did my best to answer it, I was missing some plate numbers, but I did my best.

As far as tickets went, I did not have the exact dates either, and for my older tickets I just put the year.

Neither of these were problems for my background investigator, I moved through the process very quickly. The key is just to be as open and honest as possible.

[School Cop]

I am truly surprised. I have never seen that question on a personal history statement.

I bought my first car in 1964. Strangely, I can remember its license plate number but I can't remember the plate numbers of any of the cars in between except for my current car. I can't remember the years of several of those cars. For that matter, I can't even remember the make of my fifth car. (Just getting old I guess.)

Yeah, I never had to answer that. What a bizarre question!

[Mike11]

[QUOTE=sigcopper;2004264]Not to be rude to Mike11, please don't take his advice. I've been doing backgrounds for 6 years. I want to know each and every ticket. I want to see if you are going to lie to me and cover up anything including rinky dink tickets. If you lie about those, what else would you lie about?[QUOTE}

I knew somebody would say something. But hey, if is not on your record it doesn't exist. I doubt a traffic ticket that is old enough to have dropped off your record could be found with the best of investigative techniques. And who would put that much effort into looking for traffic tickets anyway? Besides, if they are that old, it would be really hard to remember them anyway.

[sigcopper]

Well, when I call a department I ask for all contacts and it would show up under a contact. If it wasn't listed on the background it would shoot up a big red flag and I would question the applicant even further about other items. By failing to list a single ticket, the applicant could be dq'ed.