Blanton is owner of PreHire Screening Services, an Oklahoma City employment screening company that has been in operation for two years.

He has about 60 clients and has done 10,000 to 15,000 background checks for employers.

He said he uses the full name and date of birth to determine if a criminal record does or does not belong to an applicant.

"So, without the full date of birth, that is really going to limit our ability to perform accurate background checks for our clients," Blanton said.

The new rules, which take effect June 10, require litigants to redact personal identifying information such as birth dates, Social Security numbers and home residences in the physical paper copy. The rules also take many records currently available via the Internet offline.

Blanton said he understands the court is trying to protect personal information.

"What is going to end up happening is that employers are not going to be able to run background checks to ensure they are providing a safe work environment for their employees," Blanton said. "That is one of the main reasons for running a background check."

His company has found sex offenders and people with felony convictions in the applicant pool, he said.

"Without the date of birth, you cannot determine if it's them for sure," Blanton said.

The Tulsa World and other media outlets also have used court records in numerous investigative projects, including identifying school employees and bus drivers with felony records.

Barbara Hoberock (405) 528-2465
barbara.hoberock@tulsaworld.com