Fred Engel visited the Nevada City home of Susan Wallace twice before he allegedly returned early Saturday morning to attack Wallace with a knife and set her house on fire.

Investigators say Engel knew the Nevada Street house from his work as a carpet cleaner, one of numerous services that regularly send employees into the homes of Nevada County residents.

While Saturday's attack is an aberration, and Engel's background with his employer has not been made clear, it highlights the issue of just how trustworthy service personnel are and what steps businesses take to screen out prospective employees who could cause problems for customers or co-workers.

Several service businesses contacted by The Union declined to discuss the sensitive issue, but human resources specialists who find jobs for people say that few businesses conduct background checks on prospective employees.

There are several reasons for this: Cost, laws that restrict the information that's available to prospective employers, companies that will say little or nothing about former employees, and the belief many bosses have that they are good judges of character.

"It's very difficult for employers," said Shari Voors, an employment specialist with the state Employment Development Department in Nevada City.

"The laws in place protect employees, but it also makes it difficult for employers to get the information that they need," she said. "It depends on the position. I think a lot of employers like to hire people that have been recommended by current employees."

Because they can easily end up on the losing side of a defamation case, former employers don't provide much useful information, either, Voors said.

"There's only so much information that a former employer can give out to a prospective employer," she said. Generally, only the person's position and dates of employment are released. "What kind of information is that?"



Roadblocks

Engel, who pleaded innocent Monday to charges of attempted murder and arson, apparently had no criminal record and reportedly quit his job with Chem-Dry of the Gold Country before Wallace was attacked. Officials with Chem-Dry have declined to discuss Engel's employment.

But even if Engel had a criminal record, it's unlikely that a prospective employer could have learned much about his background.

While arrest records are public information in California, they cannot be used to evaluate a prospective employee unless the arrest resulted in a conviction or the applicant is out of jail but trial is pending, according to the Privacy Rights Clearing House of San Diego.

In addition, an employer can't inquire about a marijuana conviction that is more than 2 years old, according to state rules.

Some employers - such as public utilities, law enforcement, security guard businesses, child care facilities and nursing homes - can obtain more detailed information on prospective employees, but most businesses have to live with the restrictions.

Businesses typically limit background checks to applicants who will deal with money or sensitive items, such as prescription drugs, said John Pereira, a human resources specialist for RUSH Personnel Services in Chico.

"You have to make a job offer contingent on the background check coming back OK," he said. "If it's a bookkeeping position or a position that will be handling a lot of money, we'll go ahead and do that."



Potential danger

RUSH offers background checks as an extra service - a routine check costs $20 to $40 - but Pereira said few employers request one. He said many employers believe they are good judges of character.

"I think it's one of those things that depends a lot on the position," he said.

But businesses can expose themselves to negligence lawsuits if an employee commits a crime while on the job. Even a background check won't necessarily shield them from such suits.

Comcast Cable, for example, is being sued by the family of a Carmichael woman who was raped by an installer working as a contract employee for Comcast.

The installer, Luis Saravia, had nine sex-crime convictions on his record when he was hired for the job. Saravia has been sentenced to 37 years in prison and the victim's family is suing Comcast, its contractor, and the business that performed the background check on the installer.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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To contact staff writer George Boardman, e-mail georgeb@theunion.com or call 477-4236.