Criminal checks sought at Union County Fair
Background checks have become such a common item in the employment world, but now they are becoming just as important when attempting to conduct business. In this article, the county wants any carnival worker to have a background check prior to working the local county fair. I think it is a great practice, especially since many children and teens will be attending this function without parental supervision.
The Union County prosecutor wants police to run background checks on all the carnival workers who roll into town for the Union County Fair this month.
David Phillips sent a letter today to Marysville City Council President John Gore asking that the council, when it meets Thursday night, approve legislation to allow the checks.
The proposal would require companies or vendors that want to operate rides or games at the county fair or any local carnival to provide a list of workers’ names, dates of birth, home addresses and Social Security numbers.
Police then would check sex-offender registries and make sure that no workers were wanted by authorities.
Anyone who refused to comply would not be issued a license by the city, and operating without one would be a fourth-degree misdemeanor.
Phillips was out of town today and unavailable for comment, but he wrote in the letter that parents who let their children attend the fair should not have to worry whether the ride operators are criminals.
“The proposal is not a reflection on carnivals or carnival employees,” Phillips wrote. “But it is a tool to help us safeguard our community.”
Calls to Kissel Bros. Shows, the company in charge of the rides at the Union County Fair, were not returned. Dale Madison, president of the Union County Fair board, could not be reached for comment.
Gore said he supports the checks, and he likely will ask the council to pass the legislation as an emergency so that it takes effect immediately. The fair begins July 21.
The council already approved a resolution opposing the fair board’s plans to have a beer garden at this year’s fair. Marysville Police Chief Floyd Golden and Union County Sheriff Rocky Nelson also oppose the beer garden.
The proposal for background checks makes a lot of sense, Gore said. Nearly everyone who comes into contact with children must be screened in some way, he said.
“This is a changed world we live in,” he said.
A bill introduced last year by Rep. Jimmy Stewart, an Athens County Republican, would have required similar background checks for carnival workers across the state. It stalled in committee.
Stewart’s bill came after Athens County Prosecutor C. David Warren asked for background checks at the local fair. The amusement-ride company wouldn’t provide the information.
The request went to court, and Warren won, but by the time the checks were complete, the fair was over. Still, he found that 10 of the 35 employee records provided by the company had fictitious Social Security numbers, nine people had felony convictions and two had outstanding warrants.
Assistant Marysville Police Chief Glenn Nicol said Phillips’ proposal seems minimally intrusive to the workers.
“Why would anybody refuse if they truly intend on being there for only a good purpose and have nothing to hide?” Nicol said.
