Minnesota criminal records are spread across several official systems. Use Minnesota Court Records Online (MCRO) for district court cases and public court documents, the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) Public Criminal History Search for statewide public conviction history, the originating police or sheriff for arrest and incident data, and the Minnesota Department of Corrections for people under state correctional jurisdiction. These systems overlap, but they do not contain the same information.
Which Minnesota criminal-record system should you use?
The most common search mistake is expecting one government portal to contain every type of Minnesota criminal record. Start by matching your question to the agency that actually maintains the information.
| You need | Best official source | Cost | Main limitation |
|---|---|---|---|
| District court case | MCRO | Free online access | Pending criminal cases cannot be found by defendant-name search. |
| Public Minnesota conviction history | BCA Public Criminal History | Free | Does not show public arrest history and generally reports convictions for 15 years after sentence completion. |
| Recent arrest / incident | Police or sheriff that created the record | Inspection of public data is free | Active investigative information can remain confidential. |
| County jail custody | County sheriff / jail | Varies | No single statewide Minnesota county-jail search. |
| State prison / supervision | Minnesota DOC | Free public search | Does not replace county jail searches. |
| Certified court document | District Court Administration | Fee applies | MCRO itself cannot issue certified copies. |
Minnesota Court Records Online (MCRO)
Minnesota Court Records Online (MCRO) is the Judicial Branch’s public system for Minnesota district court cases and many court documents. Registration is not currently required.
Find court cases
Search using person name, business name, attorney, case number, citation number or attorney bar number.
Find documents
Use a case number to locate public documents that are remotely accessible.
Find hearings
Search scheduled hearings using supported party, attorney, case and judicial-officer information.
Follow the case
Open Case Details to review filings, events and the procedural history of a public case.
How to search Minnesota criminal court records
Open MCRO Case Search
Start with the official Minnesota Judicial Branch portal rather than a commercial people-search database.
Use the strongest identifier available
A case number or citation number is usually more precise than a name search.
For name searches, try exact variations
Minnesota’s name search is exact. Try searches with and without a middle name or middle initial. Wildcards and the “Sounds Like” option can help with spelling variations.
Open Case Details
Review the Register of Actions, case status, charge information, filed documents and hearing information.
Read the final disposition
A criminal complaint or charge tells you what was alleged. The later court entries tell you what happened.
Critical MCRO limitation: pending criminal cases
Minnesota has an important rule that can surprise users: a pending criminal case will not appear when MCRO is searched by the defendant’s name if no conviction has been entered.
The Judicial Branch says this limitation also applies to cases that are dismissed or continued for dismissal because MCRO treats them as pending criminal matters for name-search purposes.
Which criminal documents can you download from MCRO?
MCRO currently provides remote access to public documents filed on or after July 1, 2015 in major and minor criminal case types when those documents are otherwise public.
Some court-generated judgments, orders, appellate opinions and notices from July 1, 2005 through June 30, 2015 can also be available.
Newer public criminal documents
Many qualifying documents filed on or after July 1, 2015 can be viewed and downloaded through MCRO.
Older / restricted remote access
Access to documents filed before July 1, 2015 is more limited and may require local court administration.
There is currently no charge for documents accessed and downloaded through MCRO.
How to read a Minnesota criminal court record
| Field | What it tells you | Important caution |
|---|---|---|
| Case number | Unique identifier for the court case. | Use it for document and copy requests. |
| Charges | Offenses alleged by the prosecution. | A charge is not proof of guilt. |
| Register of Actions | Chronological court filings and events. | Read later entries for the final outcome. |
| Disposition | How each charge was resolved. | Different counts can end differently. |
| Sentence | Penalty or conditions after a qualifying conviction. | Check probation, confinement and other components separately. |
| Hearing information | Scheduled or recorded hearings. | Confirm current dates directly if attendance is required. |
Minnesota BCA Public Criminal History Search
The Minnesota Public Criminal History Search is a free service provided by the Minnesota Department of Public Safety and Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.
Public BCA criminal-history information generally includes conviction data for 15 years following completion of the sentence.
Public information can include:
- offense
- date of offense
- court of conviction
- date of conviction
- sentence
- level of conviction
- probation agency or place of confinement
What Minnesota’s BCA public search does not show
The BCA public website is useful, but it is not a complete record of every Minnesota criminal-justice event.
- public arrest history is not included
- juvenile criminal history is generally private
- other states’ criminal records are not included
- federal criminal history is not included
- convictions beyond the public 15-year period are not displayed
- private or confidential BCA data are excluded
Why “no records found” can be misleading
A BCA no-result response can mean:
- the person has no BCA criminal-history record
- the information is not public
- the spelling is wrong
- a nickname was used instead of the legal name
- the record is under a former name
- the source agency did not send the information to BCA
- the information is maintained by another agency or the federal government
How to obtain your own fuller Minnesota BCA criminal history
The free public BCA website shows only public criminal-history information. The subject of the record can request additional public and private information about themselves through the BCA’s data-request process.
This can be useful when:
- reviewing your record for accuracy
- preparing an expungement request
- investigating a mistaken-identity problem
- checking sealed information you are legally entitled to receive about yourself
Minnesota Justice Information Services — CHA Unit
1430 Maryland Avenue East
St. Paul, MN 55106
Phone: 651-793-2400
Minnesota arrest and police records
Minnesota law treats law-enforcement records separately from court records and BCA public criminal history.
Under Minnesota Statutes §13.82, specified adult arrest data are public at the originating law-enforcement agency.
Public arrest data can include:
- date, time and place of arrest
- legal basis or charge
- arresting agency
- whether and where the person is being held
- transfer or release information
- adult arrestee’s name, age, sex and last known address
- incident or response-report number
How to make a Minnesota law-enforcement data request
Police and sheriff records are generally governed by Minnesota’s Government Data Practices Act. Court records are different: Judicial Branch court access follows Minnesota court public-access rules rather than simply Chapter 13.
Identify the agency holding the data
Send the request to the police department, sheriff or state agency that created or maintains the record.
Find its Responsible Authority or data-access policy
Minnesota agencies must maintain policies explaining how members of the public can request government data.
Ask to inspect or receive copies
Request records rather than asking the agency to answer a research question or create new data.
Be specific
Include the incident number, date, location, person’s name and record type when known.
A requester generally does not need to identify themselves or explain why they want public data, although enough information must be supplied for the agency to process the request.
Minnesota data-request guidanceAre Minnesota booking photos public?
Minnesota Statutes §13.82 generally classifies booking photographs as public data.
A law-enforcement agency can temporarily withhold a booking photograph if releasing it would adversely affect an active investigation.
Minnesota county jail records
County jail detainees are not necessarily included in Minnesota DOC’s public correctional search. For recent or local custody, use the county sheriff or county jail.
County jail resources can commonly provide:
- current custody status
- booking date
- charges
- bail information
- release information
- court date information
Minnesota Department of Corrections search
The Minnesota Department of Corrections provides public search resources for people committed to the Commissioner of Corrections and other individuals under DOC jurisdiction.
Minnesota DOC search resourcesPrison / supervision
Use DOC resources when the person is in state correctional custody or qualifying community supervision.
Local jail
Use the appropriate county sheriff or jail when the person is detained locally.
Wanted fugitives
Minnesota DOC also publishes information about certain fugitives who allegedly violated supervised-release conditions and are evading authorities.
Predatory-offender search limitation
Minnesota’s public non-compliant predatory registrant resource is not a complete public list of every person required to register. Individuals whose registration is current may not appear in that particular public search.
How Minnesota warrant records work
Minnesota does not provide one simple public statewide name-search covering every active arrest warrant. Availability varies by court and law-enforcement agency.
Active warrants
Some sheriffs publish public warrant or wanted-person resources.
Known criminal case
A public court record can sometimes show warrant-related events in an existing criminal matter.
Different record type
Search warrants are not the same as arrest warrants and are not searched through MCRO like an ordinary criminal case.
Minnesota Court of Appeals and Supreme Court criminal records
MCRO covers district trial courts. Minnesota appellate records use a separate public system.
The Minnesota Supreme Court and Court of Appeals provide case information through the public view of P-MACS, the Minnesota Appellate Courts Case Management System.
Access Minnesota appellate recordsAppellate resources are useful when a criminal conviction, sentence or other district court ruling has been appealed.
Minnesota criminal court copies and certification fees
MCRO cannot issue certified documents. Request official copies from District Court Administration in the county where the case is located.
| Copy type | Current statewide fee | Use |
|---|---|---|
| Uncertified copy of instrument | $0 | Plain court copy when certification is not required. |
| Certified copy | $14 per document | Official copy bearing court certification. |
| Exemplified copy | $14 per document | Additional court authentication. |
| Exemplified + certified copy | $28 per document | Highest listed combined authentication. |
| Case-management report, 1–50 pages | $5 | Report generated from the court case-management system. |
| Case-management report, 50+ pages | $25 per 50 pages or part | Longer generated reports. |
Certified and exemplified copies requested by mail can generally be paid by check or money order payable to the District Court Administrator.
Official Minnesota copy-request instructionsWhere to find the correct Minnesota courthouse
If MCRO does not provide the document you need, use the Judicial Branch’s district court directory to locate the court administration office for the county where the case was filed.
Find a Minnesota District CourtMinnesota BCA headquarters
Bureau of Criminal Apprehension
1430 Maryland Avenue EastSt. Paul, MN 55106
Criminal-history information: 651-793-2400
Minnesota Clean Slate and criminal-record expungement
Minnesota has both petition-based expungement and automatic expungement.
The state’s Clean Slate Act, Minnesota Statutes §609A.015, became effective January 1, 2025 and authorizes automatic sealing of qualifying criminal and juvenile delinquency records.
The BCA has implemented automated changes for eligible records and has been reviewing historical records that require individualized eligibility analysis.
Clean Slate
Qualifying records can be sealed without the person filing a traditional expungement petition.
Court-ordered expungement
Other records can still require an application and court order under Minnesota expungement law.
Cannabis-related automatic expungement
BCA reports that qualifying cannabis-related petty misdemeanor and misdemeanor records, together with qualifying felony-level records resolved in the person’s favor, were expunged from its Criminal History System by May 2024.
Are Minnesota juvenile criminal records public?
Juvenile criminal-history information maintained by BCA is generally private. BCA states that juvenile history can be released only as authorized by Minnesota law.
Law-enforcement data involving juveniles also receive additional protection. Minnesota’s public arrest-data statute does not expose juvenile identity in the same way it does for adult arrestees.
How to correct an inaccurate Minnesota criminal record
First identify where the mistake appears.
District Court Administration
Contact the court maintaining the official case if a disposition, filing or case detail is inaccurate.
BCA criminal history
Obtain and review your own record, then follow BCA procedures for correcting criminal-history information.
Police / prosecutor / corrections
If the underlying data came from another agency, that source agency may need to correct or resubmit it.
Federal criminal records in Minnesota
Federal prosecutions are separate from Minnesota district court and BCA public criminal-history systems.
Use PACER for federal court records.
Search federal cases with PACERFor your own nationwide federal Identity History Summary, use the FBI’s official fingerprint-based process.
Minnesota criminal-record search tips
Use MCRO and BCA together
They answer different questions and should not be treated as substitutes for each other.
Pending case? Don’t search by defendant name
Use case number, citation number or attorney information instead.
Search name variations
MCRO name searching is exact; test middle initials and the Sounds Like option.
Check the 15-year BCA rule
An old conviction may no longer be public through the BCA website even though a court record exists.
Use the arresting agency for arrest records
BCA’s public website does not provide a person’s public arrest-history list.
Separate jail and DOC searches
County jail custody and state correctional jurisdiction use different systems.
Older documents may require the courthouse
MCRO remote-document coverage is much broader from July 1, 2015 forward.
Use fingerprints for identity disputes
BCA expressly warns that aliases can include another person’s name.
Check for Clean Slate
A record that once appeared publicly can later become sealed through automatic or court-ordered expungement.
Using Minnesota criminal records for employment or housing
Public MCRO or BCA information is not automatically a legally compliant consumer report for employment, housing, credit, insurance or another regulated eligibility decision.
Minnesota also has employment-related criminal-history rules, including “Ban the Box” requirements governing when many employers can ask about or consider criminal history.
Minnesota State criminal records FAQs
1. Where can I search Minnesota criminal court records online?
Use Minnesota Court Records Online (MCRO), the Judicial Branch system for public district court cases, Registers of Actions, hearings and qualifying court documents.
2. Is Minnesota BCA criminal-history searching free?
Yes. The BCA Public Criminal History Search is a free service for public Minnesota conviction-history information.
3. How long are convictions public on the Minnesota BCA website?
BCA states that conviction information is generally public for 15 years after completion of the sentence.
4. Does BCA public criminal history include arrests?
No. BCA states that arrest history is not included in its public online criminal-history information.
5. Why can’t I find a pending Minnesota criminal case by name?
MCRO does not return pending criminal cases when searching by the defendant’s name before a conviction is entered. Search by case number, citation number, attorney name or attorney bar number instead.
6. How far back are Minnesota criminal documents available in MCRO?
Remote access is broadest for public criminal documents filed on or after July 1, 2015. Access to older documents is more limited and can require contacting local court administration.
7. Are Minnesota booking photos public?
Booking photographs are generally public under Minnesota law, although an agency may temporarily withhold a photo if release would adversely affect an active investigation.
8. How much is a certified Minnesota criminal court copy?
Minnesota’s current district-court schedule lists a certified copy of an instrument from a criminal proceeding at $14. An exemplified-and-certified copy is $28.
9. Are Clean Slate records still public?
Qualifying records automatically expunged under Minnesota Clean Slate are sealed from ordinary public access, although authorized access can remain and subjects can request their own records.
10. Does Minnesota BCA include federal and other-state records?
No. The public Minnesota BCA search excludes federal criminal history and criminal-history information from other states.
11. Where do I search Minnesota appeals?
Supreme Court and Court of Appeals records are accessed through the public Minnesota Appellate Courts Case Management System, or P-MACS.
12. Is a Minnesota court case the same as a criminal-history background check?
No. MCRO is a court-record service. The Minnesota BCA maintains the state’s criminal-history system used for background-record purposes.
Official Minnesota sources used for this guide
- Minnesota Judicial Branch — Minnesota Court Records Online
- Minnesota Judicial Branch — MCRO FAQs
- Minnesota Judicial Branch — Access Case Records
- Minnesota BCA — Public Criminal History
- Minnesota BCA — Search Public Criminal History
- Minnesota BCA — Criminal History FAQs
- Minnesota Data Practices Office — Law Enforcement Data
- Minnesota Statutes §13.82 — Law Enforcement Data
- Minnesota Data Practices Office — Requesting Data
- Minnesota Data Practices Office — Copy Costs
- Minnesota DOC — Search Individuals & Fugitives
- Minnesota Judicial Branch — Court Copy Requests
- Minnesota Judicial Branch — District Court Fees
- Minnesota Judicial Branch — Criminal Expungement
- PACER — Federal Court Cases