"We can't finger print you if you don't live in our town"

I called the local PD on Friday, a rough paraphrased transcript below:

Me: I would like to schedule a time to get finger printed for a pistol permit application
Dispatch: We do it on Wednesday from 10-2
Me: I understand that is your open hours for finger printing services, but I work and can not make those hours so I would like to schedule another time.
Dispatch: But there is no one here to do it outside of those hours...
Me: Is it possible for me to schedule a time so that there will be someone there that can do it, possibly after 5:30 during the week or early on a Saturday?
Dispatch: I don't know, we only have the hours on Wednesday.... I guess you could ask the Public relations officer (can't remember the exact title)
Me: That would be great, how do I get in touch with him.
Dispatch: I will transfer you to his voicemail
Me: Thank you...

And then I left a voice mail

Haven't heard anything back yet.

The guy in dispatch was nice, but was shocked that I would need to come at another time. Almost like no one else had ever asked that before... I guess no one works in my town.
 
Not making excuses for anyone my but sometimes in these paramilitary type organizations, the officers aren't at their own discretion to choose the tasks they do. I other words, the guy that does the prints at certain hours is likely scheduled for those hours for that task and during other hrs is scheduled to be doing other things, like patrol or whatever, and some depts would not consider calling someone in off patrol to do prints. Smaller town depts tend to be more flexible but the larger the dept the less flexible they become.

It's super frustrating but no different than the dentist or other service businesses. They're OEM when they are open and the customer is expected to accommodate the hours of availability, not the other way around.
 
rawlus - I call my dentist's office and schedule an appointment, he doesn't just say I'm open these 4 hours in the middle of the week, too bad so sad if those hours don't work for you.

Also, these guys must come into the PD at least twice a day right? Beginning of their shift and end of the shift? I don't know I'm not a cop, but that would make sense to me.

So the guy that does the prints on Wednesday from 10-2 MUST to be at the PD at least for a few minutes at other times during the week. All that I am asking is to schedule a 10-15 minutes finger printing appointment around ONE of those times when he is already going to be there.

As a hard working, tax paying American I don't see that as a favor or special circumstance by any stretch of the imagination.
 
i mentioned it before call the chief. they finger print bad guys 24hrs a day. if your nice he would be the one to make the call. if you get nowhere with him call your selectman he will make it happen.
 
i mentioned it before call the chief. they finger print bad guys 24hrs a day. if your nice he would be the one to make the call. if you get nowhere with him call your selectman he will make it happen.

I agree with Todd.

It's been a VERY LONG TIME since "public servants" served the public!! Sadly.
 
Local police are doing this because CT law mandates that the state must get you back a license within 8 weeks (someone please confirm this for me) of their receipt of a "complete application".

So what they do is make it difficult to submit a complete application.

To the OP. PM me, let me know where you live and I can probably suggest a PD that will print you.

If that doesn't work , I know a private person who will do it.

Remember to use this for guidance:

http://www.ct.gov/bfpe/lib/bfpe/bfpedeclrule.pdf

Don
 
Yup, small towns are easier to deal with even though they have less resources. I did it a year and a half ago or so. I had the option of making an appointment with my resident state trooper or coming in at a particular time when he had his normal office hours (forget when that was). I also called troop K in Colchester and they said they could do it at any shift change, some of which are at night. I ended up going to Middletown (The big police/public safety building right off the highway) and getting the electronic prints because I had something else I had to do in the neck of the woods. My town had no problem accepting those prints but my resident trooper at that time was a really nice guy, not picky at all. He recently left and I don't know the new guy yet.

So maybe different state troops have different hours/policies. If troop K still does them at any shift change they might be an option. It might be a hike if you are west of the river but if it's after work at least you wouldn't have to burn time off from work.
 
It's crazy that the hours are so restrictive. The guy in my town gave me a list of days and times. It included Saturday morning hours as well. I picked one and it was as easy as that. Well, for the application. I was a re-new so he said they already had my prints on file so he didn't take a set there. But I did have to sit with him for about an hour so he could electronically file the application.
 
It's crazy that the hours are so restrictive. The guy in my town gave me a list of days and times. It included Saturday morning hours as well. I picked one and it was as easy as that. Well, for the application. I was a re-new so he said they already had my prints on file so he didn't take a set there. But I did have to sit with him for about an hour so he could electronically file the application.


1 hour?!?

Slow computer skills?
 
Someone told me on Tuesday that DESPP in Middletown does digital fingerprinting at all hours that they are open. Couldn't make it yesterday...

I only work about 25 minutes from there so I shot down on my lunch break today, got the prints, and got back to work (a few minutes late because there was a few people ahead of me getting printed, but I can make that up at the end of the day).

Well, off to my PD tonight to hand in my application.
 
After I spoke to the OP on this problem, I called a guy I know who used to be the licensing officer in his town. He would regularly turn apps around in 2 weeks. He's a good guy and has no interest in hiding the process behind smoke and mirrors.

He told me that his dept no longer actually does the printing. They sub it out to a private company. That company is in his dept for a few hrs per week, but they are around the rest of the state on other days. You can walk into any PD that uses this company when they are there and they will take prints that are valid in any town.
He also suggested that any applicant might want to call the company and try to find out their schedule.

http://www.bioidentserv.com

Don

edit - their schedule is right here: http://www.bioidentserv.com/web/ind...a5033e8594bc=bd4d88907a09819a3d6ae6a01806b676
 
TOWNS MUST FINGERPRINT YOU IF YOU REQUEST IT.

I am resurrecting this thread because the entire time I tried to help the OP, there was something gnawing in the back of my mind. I vaguely remembered a law that said basically that a PD can NOT refuse to print you.

Well, I got to searching and found this. I'd suggest that you bring this with you any time you go to get printed. This law also means that if your town is trying to make you wait 6 months to get printed, you can go to any other town and they must offer the service. You don't need to to the state police.

So if a PD is happy to print your, but then refuses when you say its for a PP, you can show them this. So again, the law allows them to restrict hours and charge a fee. This really only applies when they choose to limit hours or refuse to print at all specifically for a PP application.

Don

Link: http://www.cga.ct.gov/2011/pub/chap529.htm#Sec29-17c.htm

Text:

Sec. 29-17c. Collection of fingerprints by municipal
police department or Division of State Police. Fees. (a)
No employee of a municipal police department or the Division
of State Police within the Department of Public Safety shall
refuse to collect the fingerprints of a person requesting
such fingerprinting for the purposes of a criminal
history records check in accordance with section 29-17a,
or other noncriminal purposes, provided (1) such
employee's duties include fingerprint collection, and (2) the
person requesting such fingerprinting works or resides in the
municipality where such department or division is located.

(b) The provisions of this section shall not be construed
to prohibit a municipality from establishing a limited period of
hours during which such fingerprints may be collected.

(c) A municipality may charge a reasonable fee for
collecting fingerprints under this section. If a municipality
submits fingerprints electronically to the Department of
Public Safety, such municipality shall charge the person from
whom the fingerprints were collected all applicable state or
federal fees and shall forward such fees, monthly, to said
department.
 
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Don this is why I call you when I have questions that no one else can answer!

I have the sudden urge to go back to all the PDs that refused me and get my prints done again...
 
Don this is why I call you when I have questions that no one else can answer!

I have the sudden urge to go back to all the PDs that refused me and get my prints done again...


I'm from MA, so maybe I don't know what I'm talking about, but Sec. 29-17c states that departments are only required to fingerprint people that work or reside in their municipality.

Of course this does not mean other municipalities will not do it, out of courtesy.


Sec. 29-17c. Collection of fingerprints by municipal
police department or Division of State Police. Fees. (a)
No employee of a municipal police department or the Division
of State Police within the Department of Public Safety shall
refuse to collect the fingerprints of a person requesting
such fingerprinting for the purposes of a criminal
history records check in accordance with section 29-17a,
or other noncriminal purposes, provided (1) such
employee's duties include fingerprint collection, and (2) the
person requesting such fingerprinting works or resides in the
municipality where such department or division is located.
 
Well that still leaves the PD in the town I work (which turned me down) and the state PD that I went to which told me I wasn't "in their jurisdiction"[rolleyes]
 
Good catch Bill. That was my ADD kicking in before I read the entire law.

Woda - you are definitely in the State Police's juristiction, so this law would definitely apply to the DESPP. I'd present them with a copy of that law.

You've already been printed though, right.

If not, look at my post #44. That company prints all over CT. Their schedule is printed on their web site.
 
Yes, I went down to DESPP on my lunch break a few weeks back and got it done.

Also, on a side note, my town's application requests letters of recommendation. When I showed up to drop off the app, the clerk wanted to review it to make sure everything was in it; when it came to the letters I simply said "I will not be providing any letters of recommendation" her answer was a quick calm "Ok". That was it. So it seems they are aware that what they are requesting is not within their rights, but they do not change the application because individuals whom do not know their rights will hand over any and all info that is requested of them.
 
When I applied for my LTC and the officer called and said you have an appointment Monday at 1:30 I said, "thank you I will be there." I then told my boss Monday morning I have an appointment today at 1:30 and will be leaving at noon. I also work about a half hour away from my town. It was worth it. Got my LTC a month later.
 
Would it be worth a try to get a blank fingerprint card from the PD and do it yourself?
Then you could just turn it in at the time of your application.
 
Would it be worth a try to get a blank fingerprint card from the PD and do it yourself?
Then you could just turn it in at the time of your application.

There is nothing in the statute that says the issuing authority has to do the prints at the time the application is submitted.

My recommendation for people who have been told that it would take months to even submit (interview, prints, or whatever reason) has been for years to just get printed and mail it in.

I've used this inkless fingerprint pad when helping students put together applications for other states:
http://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B001HA4PJ4/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

For $6 shipped, to prime members, its tough to beat and mine has lasted through dozens of prints.

Don
 
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