If you are searching for Pennsylvania public records, you can cut out some unnecessary work by including the specific county’s name in your search if you know it. A good example is, if you were looking for public records in Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, to search for such rather than doing a statewide search. If you are searching for criminal records in Lackawanna County, you can simply access Lackawanna County public records instead of looking all over Pennsylvania. Lackawanna County public records will include such documents as Lackawanna County marriage records and Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania death records, among other types of information.

Lackawanna County public records used to be more difficult to access than they are now, even if you only want such simple data as Lackawanna County birth records, Lackawanna divorce records, or some other type of document. Just a few years ago, you would have had to write or even visit a government office and hope that the employees would help you with your Pennsylvania public records search. But that was not always how things turned out, because either you wouldn’t be able to find the records there in the first place, or the documents would not be viewable by the public.

That all changed in 2008, however, with the passing of legislation known as the Pennsylvania “Right to Know” Law. This law makes access of these types of records much easier. In fact, it guarantees your right to see them, whether you live in Pennsylvania or not. And the logistics of accessing them has also gotten easier due to public records tools you can find on the Internet. You may be able to access such public records as Lackawanna County birth records, marriage records, divorce records, criminal records, and death records online, especially the most recent data, as older records may not have been added to the online databases yet...

How the Pennsylvania “Right to Know” Law Helps Researchers

Pennsylvania’s 2008 “Right to Know” law makes it possible for private citizens to read several different kinds of records in Lackawanna County that may have been unavailable to them before. Of course, not every government record about a person is available. But the public, including the media, genealogists, private investigators, and others, now have more types of documentation available to them for their various purposes. Some of this personal information was considered off-limits before. One county might allow access while another would not. Now, however, the law has standardized public records access to some degree, and you can even go to court if you are denied you legal right to see such records.

Many Lackawanna County records like criminal records, death certificates, divorce records, marriage certificates and even materials like statistics, videos, tapes, letters, and other information are guaranteed to be available thanks to the “Right to Know Law” in Pennsylvania.

Privacy Rights Under the Pennsylvania “Right to Know” Law

For the most part, Lackawanna County public records are easier to access than ever before thanks to the “Right to Know” law. However, certain information about people is protected by the law so that the public cannot see it. This includes such things as DNA and RNA data, but also personal identification like driver’s license numbers and Social Security Numbers. Giving the public access to these types of documents could be disastrous in the wrong hands. Some categories of civil and elected public servants are protected, too, like law enforcement officials and judges. Their home addresses are not considered public records under Pennsylvania law. Some employment records, like turned-down job applications, are also restricted from public scrutiny.

Starting Your Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, Public Records Search

Lackawanna County public records like marriage records, death records, criminal records, birth records are easier to find now than ever because of the “Right to Know” law in Pennsylvania, and also because so many public records, at least the more recent ones, are now available online. A good site to start your Lackawanna County records search on is the Pennsylvania Office of Open Records. The County of Lackawanna also has a website, or you can simply call the county office to find out where and how to find their Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania public records.