Cable company sued after flawed employee background check leads to murder

by A Phoenix, Arizona-based cable company is being sued after one of its employees murdered a child during what was supposedly a basic internet service check, the Arizona Republic reports.
 Michael Gallardo sits on death row after being charged with the murder of Rudy Padilla Jr. Gallardo - a cable installer for Cox Communications - broke into Padilla's house and overpowered him. Padilla's parents are suing Cox and its subcontractor, Allcom, and believe both companies should be held responsible for the crime. Allcom contends that Gallardo passed a background check when he was hired in May 2005. However, it was later revealed that he had served 16 years in prison for armed robbery, burglary and other crimes. The companies claim they aren't to blame, as Gallardo wasn't working on the day of the crime, and Cox requires all of its employees to have clean records. According to the Consumerist, cable companies that outsource work run the risk of their technicians being "bad apples," and should require that their vendors mandate background checks prior to making hires. Allcom has been unable to produce any documentation proving that Gallardo submitted to or passed a background screening.