and there was that guy in Denver who got in a huge amount of legal trouble maybe even criminal unleashing thousands of  people with his guru course..

Verify previous landlord, verify employment, check local criminal court records for their name. 

Ok, so I don't have all the specifics yet on how it works - and if someone does, please post here - but as of Monday there will be a process for verification of emotional support/service animals in Tennessee, and criminal penalties for lying about it. 

He would have to clear a separate occupant screening that looked at any criminal history and any issues with not taking care of prior rentals.

I don’t agree with holding past criminal offenses against people forever.

Jack In my rental ads I state for the potential tenant to respond with their monthly income, credit score and whether or not he/she has been evicted in the past. 95% of the time I have to ask the tenant for this information, though sites like Zillow Rental Manager are nice because they sometimes include this information (yearly income and credit score) when the tenant contacts you (of course, always get a criminal and credit check to confirm).I've never asked for pay stubs, etc. prior to the tenant looking at the apartment - I usually request that paperwork with the filled-out rental application (I hand them the rental application if they indicate they're interested in renting). 

As @Christopher Phillips writes, showing before receiving applications is the normal process.I suggest giving your potential applicants specific criteria they must meet for consideration: income requirements, credit report, eviction/criminal history, pets/no pets, and so on.

Both report a good income  well over >3x monthly rent, but both have criminal background history and low credit score (upper 500s).

It costs like $30 or $35, and gives you a lot of info about the person, including criminal, credit and eviction history.

I just need for you to understand the seriousness of the situation.Also criminal charges , ugh let's hope it blows over" Because it's a service dog I couldn't get them to sign the pet addendum or anything to protect myself from the actions of this dog.