Agencies at Odds Over Fingerprint Checks

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WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Terrorists and criminals could slip into the United States because immigration and law enforcement agencies have not coordinated their fingerprint databases, the Justice Department said on Wednesday.

Disagreements between the agencies mean that visitors entering the country are subject to incomplete fingerprint checks, according to a Justice Department audit.

The department's inspector general said efforts have stalled on a uniform national fingerprint identification system because the Justice Department, the Department of Homeland Security and the State Department disagree on a uniform method for collecting fingerprints and allowing access to the data.

The inspector general's report said although Homeland Security has launched a registration program to fingerprint and photograph most visitors to the United States, the majority are still not checked directly against the FBI's complete fingerprint database.

"As a result, criminal aliens -- including many who committed violent crimes that threaten public safety -- are not identified and prevented from entering the United States," Inspector General Glenn Fine wrote in the report.
More> http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20041229/us_nm/security_fingerprints_dc

[Florida_Geek]

1. Tell me again Bush Voters why you

feel safer with Bush and friends running the country.

[StoryTeller]

2. This affects some of us "normal" people, too...

While getting ready to start the process for our second adoption from China, I recently found out that we not only have to be fingerprinted through the CIS/FBI, which was already the case, but now we also have to be fingerprinted for the Dept. of HS through the state patrol. Yes, because adoptive parents are soooo likely to be terrorists in disguise, you know. :) It's pretty ridiculous because as I understand it, the CIS is part of Homeland Security already. Plus, it increases the cost to us and it adds on a month or two to the process. You'd think they could get their acts together and coordinate their efforts.