Given Mr. Hemming's extensive record it seems unlikely a background check would have cleared him. So the conclusion is either that Uber didn't do one, or that

Given Mr. Hemming's extensive record it seems unlikely a background check would have cleared him. So the conclusion is either that Uber didn't do one, or that Hemming falsified his identity. Fingerprints are the standard way of preventing falsified identity in criminal background checks. Just what Uber and Lyft insist are useless would have prevented Hemming's hiring, most likely. Funny that a lot of cities are insisting on "useless" fingerprint checks now, isn't it.