Choose between a court docket, Pennsylvania background check, jail record, or police record
Philadelphia criminal information is spread across several government systems. Public court cases are available through Pennsylvania’s Unified Judicial System; the First Judicial District handles Philadelphia Municipal Court and Court of Common Pleas cases; the Pennsylvania State Police operates PATCH for statewide criminal-history checks; Philadelphia Department of Prisons maintains local custody information; and state-prison records come from the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections.
Philadelphia does not have one database containing every criminal record
The word “criminal record” can refer to a court docket, a formal Pennsylvania criminal-history report, an arrest report, a local jail record, a state-prison record, a warrant, or a federal case. The agency you use depends on what you actually need.
Criminal court case
Charges filed in court, docket entries, hearings, dispositions, sentences and court events.
PATCH criminal history
A formal Pennsylvania criminal-history background check from the State Police Central Repository.
Local custody
Information about a person currently housed in the Philadelphia Department of Prisons system.
State incarceration
Pennsylvania state-prison and parole information through the Department of Corrections.
Arrest / incident records
Law-enforcement reports are separate from the court docket and may have their own access restrictions.
Federal criminal case
Federal prosecutions in Philadelphia are handled separately in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
Search Philadelphia criminal court dockets for free
The most useful public starting point for Philadelphia criminal court records is the Pennsylvania Unified Judicial System Case Search.
Public Web Docket Sheets include records from:
- Philadelphia Municipal Court
- Criminal Courts of Common Pleas
- Pennsylvania appellate courts
- Magisterial District Courts elsewhere in Pennsylvania
You can search Philadelphia criminal cases with more than just a name
Pennsylvania’s UJS system supports several useful search identifiers.
Participant name
Search by the defendant’s first and last name. Add other filters when a common name returns too many cases.
Docket number
If you already have the docket number, use it rather than performing another broad name search.
OTN / complaint number
The UJS portal can support identifiers such as offense tracking, police incident or complaint information where available.
Open UJS Case Search
Choose the public case-information system rather than Secure Web Docket Sheets, which require authorized access.
Search by participant name or docket number
Use full identifying information when possible. For Philadelphia cases, selecting Philadelphia as the county helps narrow results.
Open the docket sheet
Check the court, docket type, charges, case status, disposition and later docket entries.
Check whether the case moved courts
A Philadelphia felony can begin in Municipal Court and later move to the Court of Common Pleas after the preliminary-hearing stage.
Use PATCH when you actually need a background check
Pennsylvania courts specifically warn that public docket sheets should not be used in place of a Pennsylvania State Police criminal-history background check.
Philadelphia criminal docket numbers can tell you which court handled the case
Docket formats are useful because they help separate Philadelphia Municipal Court cases from Court of Common Pleas criminal cases.
MC-51-CR
Philadelphia Municipal Court criminal cases generally begin with a format such as MC-51-CR-….
CP-51-CR
Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas criminal cases generally use a CP-51-CR-… docket format.
Read the disposition before deciding what the record means
| Docket information | What it helps establish | What to verify |
|---|---|---|
| Offense / charge | What was alleged or formally charged. | Do not interpret the charge itself as a conviction. |
| Case status | Whether the case remains active, closed or has another status. | Check later events for the final outcome. |
| Disposition | How an individual count was resolved. | Each charge can have a different outcome. |
| Sentence | Court-imposed punishment or conditions. | Match the sentence to the correct count. |
| Docket entries | Chronological case activity. | Look for pleas, hearings, orders and post-sentence activity. |
| Court summary | A broader summary of qualifying criminal cases for that person. | Still verify identity and individual dockets carefully. |
Why Philadelphia criminal cases can appear in two different trial courts
Philadelphia’s First Judicial District is unusual because its county court system includes both the Philadelphia Municipal Court and the Court of Common Pleas.
Early stages and misdemeanor matters
Philadelphia Municipal Court handles adult criminal matters including preliminary arraignments, misdemeanor proceedings and felony preliminary hearings.
General criminal trial jurisdiction
Felony cases held for court and other qualifying criminal matters proceed to the Court of Common Pleas Criminal Trial Division.
How to inspect or obtain the actual Philadelphia criminal court file
Public docket information is useful for online research, but it is not necessarily the same as obtaining the underlying court document.
Philadelphia’s court guidance states that public criminal court files may be inspected and copied at the criminal courthouse, subject to public-access rules and applicable fees.
Bring these details if possible
- full defendant name
- MC-51 or CP-51 docket number
- approximate filing year
- specific document you need
- case court: Municipal Court or Common Pleas
- government ID if the requested service requires identification
Main Philadelphia criminal courthouse
Juanita Kidd Stout Center for Criminal Justice
1301 Filbert StreetPhiladelphia, PA 19107
Philadelphia court materials identify this building as the central location for major Municipal Court and Court of Common Pleas criminal operations.
First Judicial District of Pennsylvania
General court phone: 215-686-7000
Check the current Philadelphia Courts site before visiting because room assignments and operating procedures can change.
Philadelphia CourtsPhiladelphia criminal courthouse map
The map below points to the Juanita Kidd Stout Center for Criminal Justice. Confirm your case location before traveling because some court services can be assigned elsewhere.
Use Pennsylvania PATCH when you need a formal criminal-history background check
The Pennsylvania State Police operates Pennsylvania Access to Criminal History (PATCH).
PATCH searches the Pennsylvania State Police Central Repository rather than simply displaying Philadelphia court docket sheets.
| Request | Current fee | Who uses it? |
|---|---|---|
| Standard criminal-history check | $22 | Yourself, another individual, potential hire or other qualifying use. |
| Notarization | Additional $5 | When a notarized result is required. |
| Volunteer criminal-history check | Free | Qualifying volunteer requests. |
| Individual Access & Review | $20 | A person reviewing their own complete Pennsylvania criminal record. |
Understand “No Record,” “Under Review,” and “Record” in PATCH
PATCH does not always return a final answer immediately.
No matching releasable record
PSP says approximately 85% of “No Record” results can be returned immediately.
Manual review required
This does not mean the person has a criminal record. PSP staff review the possible match.
Criminal-history information returned
Review the result carefully and compare it with court records when an exact disposition matters.
Pennsylvania currently states that requests needing manual investigation can take approximately two to four weeks in some cases.
How to request your complete Pennsylvania criminal history
If you need your own complete Pennsylvania criminal-history record—including information that may not appear on an ordinary background check—use the Pennsylvania State Police Individual Access and Review process.
PSP defines Access and Review as a review of an individual’s entire Pennsylvania criminal record, including convictions and non-convictions.
Download Form SP 4-170
This request is handled by mail rather than through the ordinary PATCH background-check workflow.
Complete your identifying information
Follow the State Police instructions and include the required identity documentation.
Include the current $20 fee
PSP currently requires a certified check or money order payable as instructed by the Commonwealth.
Review the full arrest history you receive
This record is commonly used before filing an expungement request, requesting corrections or reviewing your history for accuracy.
Mail Access & Review to
Pennsylvania State PoliceCentral Repository – RCPU
1800 Elmerton Avenue
Harrisburg, PA 17110-9758
Find someone currently held in a Philadelphia jail
The Philadelphia Department of Prisons (PDP) operates the city’s local correctional facilities and provides a service to locate incarcerated people.
PDP currently operates four facilities:
- Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility
- The Detention Center
- Philadelphia Industrial Correctional Center
- Riverside Correctional Facility
Use Pennsylvania DOC for state-prison and parole records
The Pennsylvania Department of Corrections provides an official inmate / parolee locator for people in the state correctional system.
Pennsylvania Department of CorrectionsThis is the better source when someone has been transferred from local Philadelphia custody into Pennsylvania state correctional custody or is under qualifying state supervision.
Police arrest reports are separate from the criminal court docket
Philadelphia Police Department investigative and arrest records are law-enforcement records, not simply another version of the UJS court docket.
Access to police material can depend on the type of report, the requester’s relationship to the incident, active-investigation restrictions, victim privacy rules and other Pennsylvania law.
Likewise, Pennsylvania’s Right-to-Know Law does not make every investigative record automatically public. Criminal investigative material can be subject to statutory exemptions and other disclosure laws.
Philadelphia warrant information is not simply an open statewide public list
Pennsylvania’s Unified Judicial System maintains statewide warrant functionality, but the Statewide Warrants service is part of Secure eServices, not the ordinary public Web Docket Sheets available to everyone.
Public users searching for a possible Philadelphia bench warrant should review the court docket and contact the Philadelphia court or appropriate law-enforcement agency when confirmation is necessary.
Pennsylvania Megan’s Law records use a separate State Police registry
Pennsylvania State Police maintains the Pennsylvania Megan’s Law Public Website.
The registry provides qualifying public information about registered sexual offenders who live, are transient, work or attend school in Pennsylvania.
Pennsylvania Megan’s Law RegistryExpunged and limited-access Pennsylvania cases may disappear from public search
The UJS case-search system warns that certain categories may not display publicly even if the correct search information is entered. Examples include:
- expunged cases
- juvenile matters
- limited-access cases
- other records restricted by law or court rule
Starting a Pennsylvania expungement review
Pennsylvania State Police recommends starting with an Individual Access and Review using Form SP 4-170 so you can see the full Pennsylvania arrest history before determining which records may qualify.
After receiving the history, the next step is generally to contact the clerk in the county where the arrest or prosecution occurred—in this case Philadelphia—for the applicable petition procedure.
PA Expungement GuidanceFederal criminal cases in Philadelphia are separate from Pennsylvania court records
Federal criminal prosecutions in Philadelphia are generally filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
Federal records are searched using PACER, not Pennsylvania’s UJS docket system.
PACER
Search current federal district-court docket information and available documents electronically.
Open PACEREastern District of Pennsylvania
601 Market Street, Room 2609Philadelphia, PA 19106
Clerk / CM-ECF help: 866-323-4323
Older Philadelphia federal criminal cases may require archive research
The Eastern District of Pennsylvania states that criminal docket information filed since July 1992 is generally available through its electronic system.
For older criminal cases, research may require microfiche, the Clerk’s Office, the Federal Records Center or the National Archives.
Court dockets should not replace a proper Pennsylvania background check
Pennsylvania’s Unified Judicial System expressly warns that public docket-sheet information should not be used in place of a criminal-history background check provided by the Pennsylvania State Police.
When the purpose is employment, licensing, housing or another regulated eligibility decision, additional federal and state requirements may apply.
Philadelphia criminal-record search tips that save time
Search both MC and CP dockets
A felony case may begin in Municipal Court and later continue in Common Pleas.
Use county = Philadelphia
Add the county filter when a common name returns too many Pennsylvania cases.
Save the docket number
MC-51 and CP-51 docket numbers make later searches and copy requests much easier.
Use PATCH for background checks
The court docket and a PSP criminal-history report answer different questions.
Recent arrest?
Check Philadelphia Department of Prisons custody information before assuming the court docket is already complete.
Read each charge separately
One count can be dismissed while another ends in conviction or another disposition.
“Under Review” is not a record
PATCH manual review simply means PSP needs to determine whether the possible match belongs to the subject.
State prison?
Use PA DOC instead of the Philadelphia city-prison locator.
Federal case?
Move directly to PACER; Pennsylvania state docket systems do not contain federal criminal prosecutions.
Frequently asked questions about Philadelphia criminal records
1. Can I search Philadelphia criminal court records online for free?
Yes. Pennsylvania’s Unified Judicial System provides free Public Web Docket Sheets for Philadelphia Municipal Court and Court of Common Pleas criminal matters that are eligible for public access.
2. Can I search a Philadelphia criminal case by a person’s name?
Yes. UJS Case Search supports participant-name searches along with docket number and several other search identifiers. Use Philadelphia as the county filter to narrow common-name results.
3. What is the difference between MC-51 and CP-51?
MC-51 generally identifies a Philadelphia Municipal Court docket, while CP-51 generally identifies a Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas docket. A felony matter may appear first in Municipal Court and later in Common Pleas.
4. How much does a Pennsylvania PATCH criminal-history check cost?
Pennsylvania State Police currently lists a standard PATCH criminal-history check at $22. Qualifying volunteer checks are free, and notarization can cost an additional $5.
5. Does “PATCH Under Review” mean the person has a criminal record?
No. PSP says “Under Review” means the information requires manual comparison. The final result can still become either “No Record” or “Record.”
6. How can I obtain my complete Pennsylvania criminal record?
Request an Individual Access and Review from Pennsylvania State Police using Form SP 4-170. The current fee is $20, and the request is submitted by mail.
7. Where can I find someone currently held in Philadelphia?
Use the Philadelphia Department of Prisons service to locate someone in local Philadelphia custody. If the person is in Pennsylvania state prison, use the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections instead.
8. Why might a Philadelphia criminal case not appear in UJS search?
The case may be juvenile, expunged, subject to limited access, not yet reflected in the public system, indexed under different identifying information, or otherwise restricted under law or court rule.
9. How do I search a federal criminal case in Philadelphia?
Use PACER to search records from the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Federal criminal cases are not included in Pennsylvania’s UJS state-court search.
10. Is a Philadelphia court docket the same as a criminal background check?
No. The Pennsylvania judiciary specifically warns that public docket sheets should not be used as a substitute for an official criminal-history background check from Pennsylvania State Police.
Official sources for Philadelphia criminal-record research
- First Judicial District of Pennsylvania — Philadelphia Courts
- Pennsylvania UJS — Case Search
- Pennsylvania UJS — Public Web Docket Sheets Information
- Pennsylvania State Police — Criminal History Background Checks
- Pennsylvania State Police — PATCH Overview
- Pennsylvania Access to Criminal History — PATCH
- Philadelphia Department of Prisons
- Pennsylvania Department of Corrections
- Pennsylvania State Police — Megan’s Law Public Website
- Pennsylvania State Police — Criminal Record Expungement Guidance
- Eastern District of Pennsylvania — PACER
- Eastern District of Pennsylvania — Obtaining Records