Protect Yourself: Run A Background Check on Lovers and Roommates

From seattlepi.mwsource.com: The day may come when running background checks on a roommate or romantic partner will be as common as getting an annual physical.

Several private investigators in Seattle -- reflecting on two recent cases in which women were killed by romantic partners who turned out to be disguising shady pasts -- find it difficult to believe that such searches aren't common practice already.

"If you're involved in a relationship that's going to affect your whole life, what could be of greater value?" asked Linda Montgomery, a private investigator in Ballard who believes that even people who are dating should be willing to share credit reports.

Though experts have access to databases that average citizens do not, there are measures that anyone can take to collect helpful information -- or at least confirm the veracity of what they've been told.

"I think it should become acceptable for people to say, 'Hey, I'm going to check you out.' It needs to be a thing like going to a doctor for a checkup," Montgomery said. Rest of Article. . . [Mark Godsey]