This week, the owners of AugustaCrime.com have removed over 20,000 mugshots and arrest information from the website that were more than a year old.
Website designers are also working on a system that only keeps arrest information on the site for 12 months with an automated system to remove those over a year old.
Many readers and those charged with criminal offenses have complained that the mugshots and their availability online have made it difficult to find employment, especially since the arrest data is not updated to show the outcome in court.
“We believe employers should have a right to investigate the past of those who seek employment with their agency,” said Greg Rickabaugh, president of Rickabaugh Publishing, LLC, which owns AugustaCrime.com. “You would not want to hire someone to operate heavy machinery who has been charged with several drug offenses or drunk driving. These charges listed on this website also provide local citizens the right to see what types of activities their neighbors, friends and co-workers have been accused of.”
To be clear, Augustacrime.com serves as a news source by providing a historical record of those formally charged with crimes, not convictions. Each page makes it perfectly clear that charges shown are not convictions. Employers should keep this in mind when questioning an applicant about any charge they see here.
From the Disclaimer:
“Information posted on this website is provided for informational purposes only, and is subject to change and may be updated periodically. Content is public domain and is compiled from public records. While every effort is made to ensure that the posted information is accurate, it may contain factual or other errors. Detainee information changes quickly, and the posted information may not reflect the current information. An arrest does not mean that the detainee has been convicted of the crime. The information on this website should not be relied upon for any type of legal action. AugustaCrime.com is not affiliated or supported by any law enforcement or government department or agency.”
For those who want a more detailed look at criminal records and convictions, below are some links for Richmond, Columbia and Aiken counties:
Richmond County:
http://www.augustaga.gov/421/Case-Management-Search
Columbia County
http://www.columbiaclerkofcourt.com/
Aiken County
http://publicindex.sccourts.org/aiken/publicindex/?AspxAutoDetectCookieSupport=1
GOOGLE TIPS
While your mugshot may have been removed from our site, google archives old pages and it may still show in a google search.
For those who need help in removing their images from google once it has been removed from our site, below are a few tips:
Go to google.com/support. Type in the search on that page “remove information from google”
That should direct you to a page that has a link that says Removing Content from Google –Google Help
Check a box that states the reason. It says webmaster has removed content. Once you check that box you will enter the url – such as augustacrime.com/john-smith/ under the content removal
And then it asks you to enter search criteria. Usually, that would be the person’s name. That is supposed to take care of it but it is not instantaneous.
