Section 8502 - DefinitionsThe following words, terms and phrases, when used in this subchapter, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this section, except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning:
(1) "Administration of criminal justice" shall mean performance of any of the following activities: Detection, apprehension, detention, pretrial release, posttrial release, prosecution, adjudication, correction supervision, or rehabilitation of accused persons or criminal offenders, criminal identification activities, and the collection, storage and dissemination of criminal history record information.(2) "Conviction data" means any criminal history record information relating to an arrest which has led to a conviction or other disposition adverse to the subject. "Conviction or other disposition adverse to the subject" means any disposition of charges, except a decision not to prosecute, a dismissal or acquittal; provided, however, that a dismissal entered after a period of probation, suspension or deferral of sentence shall be considered a disposition adverse to the subject.(3) "Criminal history background check" means the acquisition of state or federal criminal history record information for an individual. (4) "Criminal history record information" shall mean information collected by state or federal criminal justice agencies on individuals consisting of identifiable descriptions and notations of arrests, detentions, indictments, informations or other formal criminal charges and any disposition arising therefrom, sentencing, correctional supervision and release. "Criminal history record information" shall include the names and identification numbers of police, probation, and parole officers, and such information shall not be within the definition of a "public record" for purposes of the Freedom of Information Act, Chapter 100 of Title 29. Pursuant to the provisions of this subchapter, upon application the State Bureau of Investigation shall release to members of the news media, and to individuals and agencies as defined by this subchapter, a random number that is unique and permanent to each arresting officer as a surrogate for the officer's agency or department-issued identification number. The term does not include identification information such as fingerprint records to the extent that such information does not indicate involvement of the individual in the criminal justice system. Nor shall the term include information contained in:a. Posters, announcements or lists for identifying or apprehending fugitives or wanted persons;b. Original records of entry such as police blotters or other electronically stored information sources maintained by criminal justice agencies which are required by law with long-standing custom to be made public Notwithstanding any other provision of this Title, the arresting criminal justice agency may disclose to the public arrest data that is reasonably contemporaneous to the event for which an individual is currently involved in the criminal justice system;c. Court records of public judicial proceedings;d. Published court or administrative opinions or public judicial, administrative or legislative proceedings;e. Records of traffic offenses maintained by the Division of Motor Vehicles for the purpose of regulating the issuance, supervision, revocation or renewal of driver's, pilot's or other operator's licenses; f. Announcements of executive clemency.(5) "Criminal justice agency" shall mean:a. Every court of this State and of every political subdivision thereof;b. A government agency or any sub-unit thereof which performs the administration of criminal justice pursuant to statute or executive order, and which allocates a substantial part of its annual budget to the administration of criminal justice. Such agencies shall include, but not be limited to, the following: 1. The Delaware State Police.2. All law-enforcement agencies and police departments of any political subdivision of this State3. The State Department of Justice.4. The Office of the Solicitor of the City of Wilmington.5. The Delaware Criminal Justice Information System, Office of the Director.6. The Department of Correction7. The Division of Youth Rehabilitative Services.8. The Division of Family Services.9. The Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Enforcement.10. The Federal Bureau of Investigation.11. The Division of Professional Regulation.12. The Office of Animal Welfare.13. The Division of Management Support Services in the Department of Services for Children, Youth & Their Families.14. The Office of the Child Advocate.(6) "Criminal Justice Information System" shall mean the computer hardware, software and communications network managed, operated and/or maintained for the Delaware Criminal Justice Information System.(7) "Disposition" shall include, but not be limited to, trial verdicts of guilty or not guilty, nolle prosequis, Attorney General probations, pleas of guilty or nolo contendere, dismissals, incompetence to stand trial, findings of delinquency or nondelinquency and initiation and completion of appellate proceeding.(8) "Dissemination" shall mean the transmission of criminal history record information, or the confirmation of the existence or nonexistence of such information. The term shall not include: a. Internal use of information by an officer or employee of the agency which maintains such information;b. Transmission of information to the State Bureau of Identification;c. Transmission of information to another criminal justice agency in order to permit the initiation of subsequent criminal justice proceedings;d. Transmission of information in response to inquiries from criminal justice agencies via authorized system terminals, which agencies provide and/or maintain the information through those terminals.e. Whenever a peace officer as defined in § 1901 of this title or an emergency-care provider as defined in § 2503A of Title 16 alerts a school district or charter school about the presence of a minor child or a child that has reached the age of 18 that continues to be enrolled in high school that has been identified at the scene of a traumatic event. The peace officer or emergency-care provider may only release the student's name directly to the school district or charter school and state that the student was present at the scene of a traumatic event.(9) "FBI Criminal History Systems" shall mean the electronic clearinghouse of crime data accessible to criminal justice agencies nationwide that is maintained by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. (10) "Governmental agency" shall mean any agency of the government of the United States or the State of Delaware or any political subdivision thereof. It does not include a private individual, any private corporate entity or other nongovernmental entity.(11) "Law-enforcement officer" shall include police officers, special investigators pursuant to § 9016 of Title 29, the Attorney General and the Attorney General's deputies, state fire marshals, municipal fire marshals that are graduates of a Delaware Police Academy which is accredited/authorized by the Police Officers Standards and Training Commission, sworn members of the City of Wilmington Fire Department who have graduated from a Delaware Police Academy which is authorized/accredited by the Police Officers Standards and Training Commission, environmental protection officers, enforcement agents of the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, environmental protection officers, enforcement agents of the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, sheriffs and their regular deputies, agents of the State Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Enforcement, correctional officers, animal welfare officers of the Office of Animal Welfare, and constables. For purposes of this subchapter, sheriffs and their regular deputies shall not have any arrest authority.(12) "Nonconviction data" means arrest information without disposition if an interval of 1 year has elapsed from the date of arrest and no active prosecution of the charge is pending, or information disclosing that the police have elected not to refer a matter to a prosecutor, or that a prosecutor has elected not to commence criminal proceedings, or that proceedings have been indefinitely postponed, as well as all acquittals and all dismissals.(13) "Recipient agency" means any government agency which is directed or authorized by law to conduct a criminal history background check for the purposes of employing or licensing any individual in this State. (14) "Rap Back System" shall mean a service maintained by the FBI to provide authorized non-criminal and criminal justice agencies on-going status notifications of any criminal history subsequently reported to the FBI in its criminal history system after the initial criminal or civil transaction thus eliminating the need for repeated background checks on a person from the same applicant agency.(15) "Release status" shall mean information concerning whether or not an individual is incarcerated and the reason therefor, which shall include but is not limited to information concerning releases on bail, or on own recognizance, commitments in default of bail, referrals to other agencies, decision of prosecutors not to commence or to postpone criminal proceedings, release from institutions and any conditions imposed concerning those released.Amended by Laws 2023, ch. 149,s 8, eff. 8/7/2023.Amended by Laws 2021, ch. 492,s 1, eff. 10/21/2022.Amended by Laws 2019, ch. 165,s 1, eff. 7/26/2019.Amended by Laws 2017, ch. 348,s 1, eff. 7/23/2018.Amended by Laws 2015, ch. 200,s 6, eff. 2/3/2016.63 Del. Laws, c. 188, §1; 65 Del. Laws, c. 452, §§1 - 3; 68 Del. Laws, c. 101, §1; 70 Del. Laws, c. 186, § 1; 71 Del. Laws, c. 199, §§ 12, 13; 71 Del. Laws, c. 205, § 1; 72 Del. Laws, c. 50, § 1; 72 Del. Laws, c. 371, § 3; 72 Del. Laws, c. 379, §§ 4, 5; 73 Del. Laws, c. 249, § 3; 73 Del. Laws, c. 252, §§ 1 - 5; 74 Del. Laws, c. 224, § 1; 74 Del. Laws, c. 250, § 2; 77 Del. Laws, c. 326, § 1; 78 Del. Laws, c. 266, § 5.;