Are you checking it?
National Decertification Index (NDI)
The NDI is IADLEST’s national registry of officer decertification actions. Here is what it holds, how your agency requests access and searches it, and how to keep the check from being skipped.
How to request access and search the NDIHow Guardian keeps the check from being missed
How to check the NDI
ACCESS AND SEARCHES COME FROM IADLEST
Any agency can ask IADLEST for NDI access. IADLEST approves the request and hosts the search; Guardian does not provide access to the NDI or to its data.
1. Request access
Your agency applies to IADLEST for an NDI account. IADLEST reviews the request, sets the terms of use and approves the people who may search.
2. Search the index
Approved users sign in to IADLEST’s NDI portal and search a candidate by name. Any hit is confirmed directly with the state authority that reported the action.
Read IADLEST’s own overview of the NDI
The NDI is not a federal database. Executive Order 13923 of June 16, 2020 — Safe Policing for Safe Communities — directed the Attorney General to create a federal database for sharing excessive-use-of-force information. The NDI is IADLEST’s, and it is the registry agencies can search today.
Why the NDI check gets missed
Nothing about the NDI is difficult. It is one step among dozens in a background investigation, and it lives on a system separate from the rest of the file.
An investigator is collecting a personal history questionnaire, ordering records, scheduling interviews and chasing references. The NDI search sits outside all of it, behind its own login — easy to postpone, easy to forget. When it is skipped, nothing in the file says so. When it is done, there is often nowhere in the file to prove it. A chief signing off on the hire cannot tell the difference.
Whatever system you use, the check needs a record. Here is a one-page log you can print or fill in today: who was searched, when, the result, who confirmed a hit and what they said, and who signed off.
Guardian puts the NDI check in the workflow
A LINK AT THE RIGHT STEP, A RECORD OF THE RESULT, AND A FLAG THAT FOLLOWS THE FILE
Guardian does not provide NDI access, NDI data or NDI search results — IADLEST does. What Guardian’s background investigation software does is make sure the check is not overlooked, and that anything it turns up is not missed by the people who decide whether to hire.
1. A direct link at the right step
At the point in the investigation where the NDI should be checked, the investigator gets a direct link to the NDI, in the file, as a reminder to run it.
2. A record that it was checked
The check has its own place to mark whether it was done. If the NDI turns up an issue, the investigator flags it right there.
3. A flag that follows the file
A flagged issue does not stay on one screen. It stays visible throughout the rest of the investigation file, so the people making the hiring decision see it and it is not missed as a concern.
The link is the prompt; the record is the proof.
Watch the NDI video
Watch the Triage Center video
“We are grateful for Guardian taking the initiative to help IADLEST raise the nation’s awareness of the NDI and more importantly, increase the utilization of this incredibly important and timely tool for background investigators.”
Mike Becar, Executive Director
IADLEST
What the National Decertification Index is
The NDI is a national registry of certificate or license revocation actions relating to officer misconduct. The records are provided by participating state government agencies — the POST boards and licensing bodies that certify officers — and the index is maintained by IADLEST, the International Association of Directors of Law Enforcement Standards and Training.
A search tells an agency whether a participating state has reported a revocation action against a candidate, and points to the authority that reported it. It is a pointer, not a case file.
Two limits matter. Records should be verified with the contributing authority, and inclusion in the database does not necessarily preclude any individual from appointment as an officer. Participation is voluntary, so the index holds what participating states have reported and nothing more.
NDI Frequently Asked Questions
Who can search the NDI, and how do I get access?
IADLEST grants NDI access to people who work for, or on behalf of, a state certifying agency (POST) or a law enforcement agency. You request an account on IADLEST’s NDI site with your contact details, your organization (a police department chooses State & Local) and, where applicable, your supervisor’s details. IADLEST approves the request, and sign-in then uses a verification code sent to your email.
Is the NDI free to use?
IADLEST’s 2024 whitepaper describes the NDI as a cost-free clearinghouse. Confirm the current terms with IADLEST when you request access. Guardian does not provide NDI access.
What do I need to search it, and what comes back?
An approved user enters a last name (required) and, optionally, a first name and a date of birth. The results list every name match, closest date of birth first. A record shows the person’s name and date of birth and the actions reported against them, with basic information such as dates of service, the employer and the certifying authority that reported it. It tells you who to contact; it is not a case file.
What does a hit mean?
A hit means a state certifying agency reported that the person was decertified for misconduct. It does not bar anyone from being hired, and each state sets its own criteria for what counts as decertifiable misconduct. Contact the reporting authority, and the prior employer, for the details before you decide.
Does a search with no record mean the candidate is clean?
No. The NDI holds only what participating states have reported, so an empty search tells you that no participating state has reported a decertification for that name. It does not replace the rest of the background investigation.
Which states contribute records?
IADLEST’s 2024 whitepaper counts 49 participating certifying agencies (the states and Washington, DC) and more than 53,500 records, some dating back to 1973. At the time, Rhode Island’s commission had no decertification authority and Hawaii was still setting up its certifying agency. IADLEST has the current list.
Does Guardian provide access to the NDI?
No. IADLEST provides the NDI, its data and its searches. Guardian’s background investigation software puts a direct link to the NDI at the right step of the investigation, gives the check its own place to be marked done or flagged, and keeps a flagged issue visible across the investigation file.
How do I document an NDI check?
After a search, the NDI can save a PDF receipt showing the date and time, your search criteria and the results; save it to the file. Then record who ran the search, the result and, for any hit, who you contacted at the reporting authority and what they confirmed. The one-page NDI check log has a place for each.
