State Records on Celebs, Criminals at Risk

People love celebrity gossip. Admit it, you want to know if Tom Brady's sperm struck again. Apparently, cops in the Bay State are no different. According to state Auditor Joseph DeNucci, law enforcement personnel in Massachusetts often access the state's criminal records systems for personal information, including driving histories, car ownership and Social Security numbers, on famous people. Brady's personal records in the Criminal Offender Record Information system (CORI) were searched 968 times. Other celebrities, including Matt Damon, James Taylor, Paul Pierce and Red Sox owner John Henry, have been searched, too.

Haven't these guys heard of the Inside Track or TMZ?

CORI data is is intended to give cops and courts information on alleged criminals. Access is supposedly restricted to authorized law enforcement users with proper training. Landlords and employers can also get reports on prospective tenants and job seekers.

Here's the crazy frustrating maddening stupid funny thing: This computer database thingie - computer jargon - works great when law enforcement personnel have a few minutes to waste on digging up dirt on (insert famous person name) but records are compromised when it involves criminals we should be worried about. Yes, DeNucci, the same auditor who exposed rampant privacy violations involving celebrities, is also admitting our criminal records system is a risk to public safety. Great.

Seriously, this is all part of the same problem. It can probably be fixed by investing in hiring smarter geeks computer people. Governor Deval Patrick apparently has criminal records reform on his "To-Do" list as evidenced by his administration's intention to pour $60 million into the state's broken criminal records system. According to Curtis Wood of the Criminal History Systems Board, reforming the system could take up to two years.

Photo from Wikipedia.