How do I merge defendants?

Use Merge Defendants to copy information from the Merge From defendant record and transfer it to the Merge To defendant record. When the two records merge, the routine saves information in one record and deletes the remaining record or records from the database.

Example: Merging defendants

Jane wants to merge Defendant 1 and Defendant 12. She realizes that she set up an extra defendant record that belongs to the same record as Defendant 1. When she runs this routine, the system will copy the data from Defendant 12, append the copied information onto the record for Defendant 1, and then delete Defendant 12.

You have two options:

Merge a record into a single defendant's record. Use Merge Single Defendant Record when you know the defendant number on each record.
Merge a multiple records into a single defendant's record. Use Merge Multiple Defendants when you want to use search criteria to select matching defendant records. You'll have a chance to review the records to select which records to include in the merge and which records to exclude from the merge.

When you click GO, the routine will perform the following tasks.

	Merge Single Defendant	Merge Multiple Defendants
Assign the Merge To defendant number to the cases linked to the Merge From record.	X	X
Delete the Merge From record.	X	X
Use the criteria on the Merge Defendants tab to identify records that may also belong to the Merge To record.		X

Important!
- There is no undo to restore the deleted defendant record.
- Include all of the information that you wish to save in the Merge To record.

Watch a webinar

Learn how to merge defendant records together. [MP4]

Step 1: Back up the database

Before proceeding, back up the current files. Always make a back up of the database BEFORE running routines that modify or delete transactions. See the help topic titled How do I back up a database?

Step 2: Run Checkout to search for errors in Defendant records

Run Connect Court Management > Defendants > Checkout. Then, set up the options to search defendant records for errors in the current year. Look for errors in defendant records that you wish to merge into a single record.

Step 3: Print the defendant records

Use Connect Court Management > Defendants > Modify Existing Defendants to look up the defendant records that you will be merging. Press the Print Screen button on your keyboard to print the defendant's information to paper. Do this for both the Merge To and Merge From defendant record. You can use the printed information as a record to verify the merged defendant file contains all of the information from the Merge To record.

Step 4: Merge defendants

Now, you're ready to merge the defendant files. You can merge a single record, in other words, combine the information from two defendant records into a single record. Or you can use merge multiple defendants to search the database for all of the defendant records that share key information, such as a Social Security number, last name, date of birth, and so on, and then merge the matching records into a single record.

Do this...

1. Open Connect Court Management > Defendants > Merge Defendants.

2. Do you want to merge a single defendant?

Yes, I want to merge two records into one record. Click to select Merge Single Defendant. This option is located on the left portion of the Merge Defendants tab.
No, I want to search for possible matches and merge the matching records into one record. Click to select Merge Multiple Defendants. This option is located on the left portion of the Merge Defendants tab.

3. Set up the report options.

Fill in the options on the form. Use the sections in this help topic to fill in each field. The fields are listed in alphabetical order.

4. If you selected Merge Multiple Defendants, use the options on the Review tab to view a list of defendant records that match the selection criteria.

Use the options on the Review tab to select the merge properties. Then, select the checkbox located next to the defendant records that match, or select the checkbox at the top of the grid to select all of the matching defendant records.

See the section titled Review for more help.

5. Then, click GO (CTRL+G).

The defendants are merged.

Step 5: Look up the merged defendant record in Modify Existing Defendants

Last step. Open Connect Court Management > Defendants > Modify Existing Defendants. Look up the Defendant number that belongs to the Merge To defendant. Review the defendant information carefully. Make sure the merged record includes the defendant information from the Merge From defendant. If the defendant is missing information from the Merge From defendant, you can use the printed pages from Step 3 to bring the merged defendant record up to date.

Options

Address

An address is a set of directions for delivery of letters and packages. Use this option to search for defendants who reside at the same address. This option is only available when Merge Multiple Defendants is selected.

Create alias for the merged defendant name

An alias is an assumed or additional name used by an individual. When this routine merges defendant records, use this option to add the Merge From defendant name to the list of aliases on the Merge To defendant record.

Date of birth

The birth date is the month, day, and year when an individual was born. Use this option to search for defendants with matching birth dates. This option is only available when Merge Multiple Defendants is selected.

Driver license number/state

A driver license is an official document that states that a person may operate a motorized vehicle. A driver license number is a unique number that is assigned to the driver license. The state is the state issuing the driver license.

Use this option to search for defendants using the same driver license number and state.

This option is only available when Merge Multiple Defendants is selected.

Last name

The Last Name is the defendant's surname, or family name. In the example, Jon Grey, Grey is the last name. This option is only available when Merge Multiple Defendants is selected.

Match the first [ _ ] characters of defendant's last name

Use this option to search for a matching string of characters instead of using the defendant's full last name. For example, Jane wants to find records that contain variant spellings of the last name Grey. She sets the Match the First field to 2 characters. When she runs the routine, the system will find defendant records that begin with the letters GR.

Note: Choosing a larger value may require additional time to finish running the search criteria.

Merge attachments

An attachment is a file, document, PDF, or image that you want to save as part of a record in Connect applications. Use this option to transfer the attachments from the Merge From record to the Merge To record.

Do you want to merge attachments?

Yes, save attachments to the Merge To record. Click to select Merge Attachments.
No, delete attachments with the Merge From record. Click to deselect Merge Attachments.

Merge from/to

The Merge From is the defendant number that will be copied into the Merge To record. The Merge To is the defendant record that you wish to keep. When you run the routine the merged records will be saved under the Merge To defendant number and the Merge From record will be deleted.

Merge notes

Use this option to transfer the notes from the Merge From record to the Merge To record.

Do you want to merge notes?

Yes, save notes to the Merge To record. Click to select Merge Notes.
No, delete notes with the Merge From record. Click to deselect Merge Notes.

Merge single defendant

Use Merge Single Defendant to combine two records into a single record. Merge Single Defendants also lets you select which records to merge. For example, if you know of another record that belongs to a defendant, but running the option to Merge Multiple Defendants did not include the record, you can use Merge Single Defendants to select the record and merge it into the record that you wish to keep.

Merge multiple defendants

Use Merge Multiple Defendants to set up the selection criteria the routine will use to identify records that may belong to the same defendant. When you enter a new case, the system will compare the Social Security number (SSN) and date of birth (DOB) of the new defendant to the SSN and DOB of defendants from the existing database. If you find that a defendant already has been added to the database, you can merge the information from the separate records into a single record.

Review

When the Merge Multiple Defendants option is selected, the Review tab will display the records that match the selection criteria. Use the options on the Review tab to:

Filter the search results.
Remove a defendant record from the merge routine.
Select the Merge From and Merge To records.
View additional information about a record.

Additional Information button

Show the record properties to verify the information belongs to the same defendant.

Merge From checkbox

Select the checkbox to merge the record when you click GO.

Delete button

Click this button to remove the row from the selection list. Use this option when you do not want to merge the record.

Switch button

Click this button to assign the Merge To defendant as the Merge From defendant.

Selection criteria

In Caselle, the Selection Criteria allows you to choose which information to include in the routine.

Social Security number

A Social Security number is a unique number assigned to each individual that can work legally in the United States. This option is only available when Merge Multiple Defendants is selected.