Mississippi Background Check Guide · 2025
Applying for a casino job in Biloxi, a teaching position in Jackson Public Schools, or a healthcare role at the University of Mississippi Medical Center? Every one of those employers, and most landlords across the state, will run a background check before they decide. The criminal record they'll see comes through the Mississippi Department of Public Safety's Criminal Information Center (CIC), and you can get a copy of the same record on yourself.
This guide explains how Mississippi's record system works, what employers can see, and how the state's expungement statute (Section 99-19-71) can clear eligible records from your file.
Mississippi's criminal record system is less digitized than most states, which means errors and outdated dispositions are more common, not less. Running a self-check is the surest way to know what's actually in your file before someone else opens it.
The CIC database pulls in arrest and disposition data from sheriff's departments and county circuit clerks across all 82 counties. Coverage and update speed vary, a Hinds County dismissal might post within a month, while a rural county disposition can lag a year or more. Running your own record check catches dispositions that never made it into the state file and gives you a paper trail to dispute them.
If a court has granted you an expungement under §99-19-71, that order has to make its way from the courthouse to the CIC for the record to actually disappear from the state database. The process isn't automatic, and gaps happen. A self-check verifies the expungement is in effect.
The Mississippi Gaming Commission, Department of Health, Board of Nursing, and State Board of Medical Licensure all run fingerprint-based background checks. These dig deeper than ICHAT-style name searches and pull federal records too. Knowing what's on your file lets you address concerns in advance, often through a written explanation submitted with your application.
Apartment complexes in Jackson, Gulfport, Hattiesburg, and Oxford run criminal checks through commercial screening companies that rely on aggregated court data, including Mississippi's. Outdated or wrong information can keep you from a lease, and catching it first is far easier than fixing it after a denial.
Felony convictions and most misdemeanor convictions processed in Mississippi circuit, county, justice, and municipal courts appear on the CIC record, unless they've been expunged. The report includes offense, date, county, court of disposition, and sentence.
Mississippi reports arrests with charging information, including pending cases that haven't been resolved. Unlike states that strip arrests from public records, Mississippi shows them on the standard criminal history report, though employers using FCRA-compliant screeners can only consider arrest-only records under specific conditions.
One quirk of Mississippi records: roughly 10–15% of arrests in the CIC database lack final dispositions because the courthouse never submitted the outcome. An "arrest without disposition" can look worse than a real conviction on a tenant screening report, which is why a self-check matters.
Federal court records, out-of-state convictions, juvenile records (sealed by default), traffic infractions, and civil cases are outside the CIC system. A complete personal check usually pulls federal court records and any other states where you've lived.
Submit Mississippi DPS Form 1066 (Request for Criminal History) by mail or in person to the Criminal Information Center in Pearl, MS. Cost: $32 by money order or certified check. Turnaround: 7–10 business days. Form available at dps.ms.gov.
For the most accurate record (and what licensed professions require), schedule a fingerprint appointment through the CIC's vendor IdentoGO. Cost: $50, includes state and federal results. This catches aliases and prevents identity-confusion errors that name-based checks miss.
Mississippi Electronic Courts (MEC) at courts.ms.gov offers free public access to most state court records. Search by name and county. Coverage is best for circuit courts; some municipal courts maintain separate paper files.
For a single report covering Mississippi plus federal courts, multi-state records, and sex offender registries, a professional service is faster and cheaper than assembling pieces yourself. Background-Check.com consolidates all of this in one report.
For nationwide coverage based on fingerprints, request an Identity History Summary from the FBI. This is essential if you've ever been arrested in another state.
Mississippi's expungement statute allows:
Expungement is petition-based, you must file a motion in the court of conviction. There's no automatic Clean Slate program in Mississippi.
First-time drug possession defendants who complete probation under §41-29-150 can have their case dismissed without a conviction entered, and can later petition for expungement of the arrest record itself.
Mississippi has not passed a statewide Ban the Box law. State agencies operate under their own policies, and the city of Jackson voluntarily removed criminal-history questions from city job applications in 2017. Most private employers in Mississippi still ask about criminal history on initial applications.
Mississippi defers to federal law on third-party background checks. The FCRA requires written consent, mandates pre-adverse-action notice if an employer plans to reject you based on a report, gives you the right to dispute errors, and prohibits reporting non-conviction arrests older than 7 years.
If you're applying for a casino job, the Gaming Commission runs its own enhanced check that goes beyond a standard CIC search. Specific disqualifying offenses include felony theft, money laundering, and any offense involving moral turpitude within a defined lookback period.
Yes, especially in Mississippi, where the disposition-gap problem makes errors more common than average. If you have any older case, any arrest you're not 100% sure was finally resolved, or any expungement that's supposed to be in effect, run a $32 CIC check before any job or license application. It's the cheapest insurance you can buy.
For a comprehensive report combining Mississippi CIC data with federal records, sex offender registries, and out-of-state convictions, run a multi-source personal check through Background-Check.com.
The official route is the Mississippi DPS Criminal Information Center: $32 name-based check by mail or in person, $50 fingerprint-based check through IdentoGO. For broader coverage, request an FBI Identity History Summary or use a professional multi-state service.
Mississippi has no state cap on how far back convictions can be reported. Federal FCRA limits non-conviction records (arrests not leading to conviction) to 7 years on third-party employment reports. Convictions can appear indefinitely unless expunged.
Records expunged under §99-19-71 should be removed from the CIC database and should not appear on FCRA-compliant employer background reports. Because Mississippi expungements aren't automatic, verify your expungement was actually processed by running a self-check after the court order.
CIC name-based: $32. CIC fingerprint-based: $50. FBI Identity History Summary: $18. Professional comprehensive multi-state checks: $20 to $80.
Yes, if they use a third-party screener, the federal FCRA requires written authorization. Employers requesting records directly from the CIC must also have your authorization on file in most cases. Either way, the FCRA gives you the right to see any report used in a hiring decision and dispute inaccuracies.