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Crime in the U S Statistics

Violent crime in the U.S. last year increased 1.3 percent and property crime decreased 2.9 percent over 2005, according to preliminary crime statistics collected from more than 11,700 law enforcement agencies. The full report, including state-by-state breakdowns, is available at www.fbi.gov.
 

While the information can include potentially anything about the individual's employment, credit, or past history, the most common usage of background checks refers to criminal records.