Start here: choose the Collin County record you actually need
Collin County makes a surprising amount of criminal-case information searchable online, but no single database answers every question. A felony court file, misdemeanor case, recent jail booking, sheriff’s offense report, active warrant and Texas statewide criminal-history search are maintained through different systems. The fastest route is to identify the record type first.
Which Collin County office keeps the record?
One of the easiest ways to waste time is to send the right request to the wrong county office. Collin County itself warns that court records and police records are maintained by different agencies.
| You need | Start with | Important distinction |
|---|---|---|
| Felony criminal court case | Collin County District Clerk | District Court criminal records. |
| Class A or Class B misdemeanor | Collin County Clerk – County Court at Law | County Clerk supports seven statutory County Courts at Law. |
| Class C appeal | County Clerk | County Courts at Law also handle Class C appeals. |
| Justice Court / some traffic matters | Correct Justice of the Peace court | Identify the court first using the county case-search system. |
| Municipal citation / city case | Municipal court | City municipal courts are separate from county clerk records. |
| Current county jail inmate | Collin County Sheriff’s Office | County jail custody is different from Texas state-prison custody. |
| Sheriff arrest or offense report | CCSO Open Records | The Sheriff does not issue court records. |
| Plano, Frisco, Allen, McKinney or Wylie police report | The city police department that created it | The county does not centrally store those city police reports. |
| Statewide Texas public criminal history | Texas DPS Crime Records | This is broader than one Collin County court search. |
| Texas state prison / TDCJ offender | Texas Department of Criminal Justice | TDCJ is separate from the Collin County Detention Facility. |
Collin County Online Judicial Search: the best first stop
Collin County’s official Case Information page links to the county’s Online Judicial Search and Case Search applications.
The county describes the Judicial Search as a one-stop system that can connect several types of public information that would otherwise require separate searches.
Past and present court cases
Search by name, case number or citation number for records ranging from traffic matters to felony cases.
Current inmates
Locate people in county custody and view linked information such as bond amounts, mug shots and related criminal cases when available.
Active warrants
The same system can show active warrants and link users back to cases tied to those warrants.
Open the county Case Information page
Use the official Collin County page rather than starting with a commercial background-check site.
Select Online Judicial Search
This is generally the easiest starting point when you do not yet know which county court handled the matter.
Search with the strongest information available
A case or citation number is usually the cleanest identifier. For name searches, use the person’s full legal name and review possible matches carefully.
Identify the court and case type
This determines whether the District Clerk, County Clerk, Justice Court or another court is the correct place to request documents.
Request the actual document when necessary
Online case information is useful for locating the matter, but certified or historical documents may still need to come from the clerk responsible for that court.
Felony and misdemeanor records go to different Collin County clerks
District Clerk
Felony criminal matters filed in Collin County district courts are maintained by the Collin County District Clerk.
Online District Court criminal case coverage is available for cases filed or completed from 1988 to the present.
County Clerk
The County Court at Law Clerk files Collin County Class A and Class B misdemeanor cases and Class C appeals.
The office supports seven statutory County Courts at Law.
How to get Collin County felony criminal records
The Collin County District Clerk Criminal Division is the official source for District Court criminal record searches and felony case documents.
1988 to present
The county states that its online case-search applications contain District Court criminal cases filed or completed from 1988 to the present.
1800s through 1987
Older criminal case searches must be requested from the District Clerk in person or through the official Record Request Form.
What to include in a written historical search request
- individual’s complete name
- date of birth
- completed Record Request Form
- self-addressed stamped envelope when mailing
- required search payment
- case number if already known
Collin County misdemeanor criminal records
The Collin County Clerk’s County Court at Law Criminal Division handles Class A and Class B misdemeanor cases and Class C appeals.
The office can provide case information, bond information and documents relating to a criminal misdemeanor charge.
Criminal misdemeanor case or bond information
Phone: (972) 548-6420 or (972) 548-6422
The County Clerk maintains separate criminal clerks for County Courts at Law Nos. 1 through 7.
Searching old Collin County criminal cases
This is one of the most useful Collin County-specific details to know: the online District Court criminal case data does not cover every historical file.
Start online
District Court criminal cases from 1988 forward are included in the county’s online search coverage.
District Clerk search
Cases completed from the 1800s through 1987 require a District Clerk historical record search.
Include it
A known cause or case number can reduce ambiguity and help staff locate the right file faster.
Historical requests can be submitted to:
Collin County District Clerk2100 Bloomdale Road, Suite 12132
McKinney, TX 75071
Collin County criminal record copy and search fees
Collin County’s 2026 District Clerk criminal fee schedule separates the fee for locating a record from the fee for copying or certifying it.
| Service | 2026 fee | Practical use |
|---|---|---|
| Record search | $5 | Used when the District Clerk performs the record search. |
| Certificate and seal | $5 | Certification component when formally authenticated copies are required. |
| Certified paper copy | $1 per page | Use when a certified court copy is specifically required. |
| Non-certified paper copy | $1 per page | Useful when formal certification is not required. |
| Non-certified electronic document | $1 up to 10 pages | Then $0.10 for each additional page or part of a page under the current fee schedule. |
| Copy per disk over 100 pages | $20 | Applies where a qualifying disk copy is used. |
Fees can change. Confirm the current District Clerk fee sheet before sending payment, especially when requesting a large file or certified copy.
District Clerk forms and current fee documentsCollin County jail and inmate search
If your question is “Is this person in jail right now?”, the court clerk is not the fastest place to start. Use the Collin County Sheriff’s Office Inmate Information resources.
The Sheriff’s Office states that its jail list includes:
- current Collin County jail inmates
- people released during the previous 24 hours
- current charges when available
- bond information
- linked court information through county systems
- other public custody details presented by the Sheriff
Collin County Sheriff’s Office
4300 Community Ave.McKinney, TX 75071
Collin County arrests and releases
The Sheriff’s Office provides an official Arrests & Releases Report.
The county says this report can be run for arrest/release information dating back up to one week.
How to check active Collin County warrants
Collin County’s Judicial Search can check active warrants and connect a warrant back to an associated case when the public system provides that link.
Open the official Judicial Search
Use the county Case Information page rather than an unofficial warrant directory.
Search the person carefully
Use full identifying information and make sure the result belongs to the intended person.
Open the related case
When the warrant record links to a court case, review the court information for context, court number and current case status.
Requesting Collin County Sheriff’s Office records
Sheriff’s Office records are requested separately from court records. The CCSO Open Records page accepts requests online or in writing under the Texas Public Information Act.
Useful information to include
- report or call number if known
- type of incident or report
- date of incident
- location/address
- names of involved parties
- jailing date if relevant
The Sheriff notes that a $5 search fee can apply when the offense number, call number or jailing date is not provided.
| Sheriff record | Listed fee | What it generally covers |
|---|---|---|
| 911 call recording | $1 | Qualifying 911 audio record. |
| Accident report | $6 | Where available through the applicable process. |
| Call for service / dispatch incident record | $3 | Dispatch-related incident information. |
| Inmate mugshot photo | $5 | Public inmate booking photograph where releasable. |
| Offense / media report | $5 | Qualifying offense-report information. |
| Records search | $5 | May apply when key identifying record information is missing. |
The Sheriff’s current open-records page says requests are processed case-by-case and that the office will release or respond to the request within its stated 10-business-day process. A request requiring Texas Attorney General review can take longer.
Mail / in personCollin County Sheriff’s Office – Open Records
ATTN: Open Records4300 Community Avenue
McKinney, TX 75071
Email: CCSOOpenRecords@CollinCountyTX.gov
Lobby: Monday–Friday, 8:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m., excluding county holidays
Arrest happened in Plano, Frisco, Allen, McKinney or Wylie?
This local detail is easy to miss: Collin County does not centrally maintain every police report created inside the county.
If a city police department created the arrest or incident report, request it directly from that police department.
Plano Police record
Request the police report from Plano rather than Collin County’s general Public Information Office.
Frisco Police record
Contact Frisco for reports generated by Frisco Police.
McKinney Police record
Use McKinney’s records process when McKinney Police created the report.
Allen Police record
Allen Police records stay with the city agency that generated them.
Wylie Police record
Request Wylie-created law-enforcement records through Wylie’s process.
Unincorporated / Sheriff record
Use CCSO Open Records when the Collin County Sheriff’s Office generated the report.
Texas DPS statewide criminal-history search
A Collin County court search is not a statewide Texas background search. For broader public Texas criminal-history information, use the Texas DPS Criminal History Name Search.
Texas DPS says deferred-adjudication and conviction information is public under Texas law and can be made available through its public criminal-history search.
$1 search credit
The current DPS web system charges one $1 credit for the initial name-based criminal-history search. Card purchases can carry a separate transaction charge.
Name information
First and last name are required. Middle/maiden name and date of birth can improve search precision.
Name matches are not fingerprints
DPS cautions that name-based searching can produce false matches or miss the correct person.
How DPS expands a search
The public search can try multiple name combinations and uses matching techniques such as similar-sounding names. Entering a complete date of birth can narrow the result set.
- use the complete first and last name
- include middle name where known
- include maiden name when relevant
- add full date of birth where known
- avoid nicknames
- verify descriptive information before relying on a match
Searching your own Texas record
Texas DPS also provides a process for an individual to review their own criminal-history information using fingerprint-based identification through approved fingerprint services. Use the current DPS instructions before scheduling because service procedures and vendor fees can change.
Texas DPS Crime RecordsTexas sex-offender registry records
The Texas Department of Public Safety maintains a statewide public Sex Offender Registry. Registration information is a specialized public record and should not be confused with a complete criminal-history search.
DPS explains that most registration information is public, while certain protected information, including victim-identifying data and specified personal identifiers, is not publicly released.
Texas DPS registry informationTexas prison and TDCJ offender records
Someone who is in the Collin County Detention Facility will not necessarily appear as a current Texas Department of Criminal Justice prisoner. County jail custody and TDCJ custody are different.
Use the official TDCJ Offender Search for Texas state correctional records.
TDCJ currently allows searching by:
- offender name
- state identification number (SID)
- current TDCJ number
- previous TDCJ numbers through the separate search option
Collin County criminal appeals
Trial-level Collin County criminal records are not the end of the record trail when a case is appealed.
The Fifth Court of Appeals at Dallas has appellate jurisdiction over both civil and criminal appeals from Collin County district and county courts.
Fifth Court of Appeals
George L. Allen, Sr. Courts Building600 Commerce Street, Suite 200
Dallas, TX 75202-4658
Phone: 214-712-3400
For appellate research, use Texas Judicial Branch appellate case-search resources or contact the Fifth Court of Appeals clerk. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals is the state’s highest court for criminal matters.
Fifth Court of AppealsFederal criminal cases involving Collin County
A federal prosecution is not stored in Collin County’s state-court case system. Collin County is within the Eastern District of Texas, with the Sherman Division covering Collin County.
Federal court records are searched through PACER.
Search the court directly
PACER says searching the specific federal court provides current case information as it is entered.
Use the PACER Case Locator
The nationwide index can identify the court and federal case number when you do not know where the case was filed.
PACER currently charges $0.10 per page for many searches and documents, with a $3 cap for many single documents and case-specific reports. Quarterly charges of $30 or less are currently waived.
Expunction, sealed records and orders of nondisclosure
A record that once appeared online may later become unavailable because of an expunction, order of nondisclosure, sealing rule or another legal restriction.
Expunction
The Collin County District Clerk publishes expunction-related forms and an official agency-contact list for the local agencies involved in Collin County expunction matters.
Collin County District Clerk formsOrder of nondisclosure
The County Clerk links to Texas Office of Court Administration forms and instructions for orders of nondisclosure. A nondisclosure order can restrict public disclosure of a qualifying criminal record, but eligibility is case-specific and exceptions apply.
Where to go in person for Collin County criminal court records
The principal county court-record offices are located at the Collin County court complex on Bloomdale Road in McKinney.
Collin County District Clerk
2100 Bloomdale RoadSuite 12132
McKinney, TX 75071 Misdemeanor matters
Collin County Clerk
2100 Bloomdale RoadMcKinney, TX 75071
Criminal case/bond information:
(972) 548-6420
Map location: Collin County court complex, 2100 Bloomdale Road, McKinney, Texas 75071.
How to read a criminal record without misinterpreting it
| Term | What it generally means | What it does not prove by itself |
|---|---|---|
| Arrest | A law-enforcement action placing a person into custody. | Guilt or conviction. |
| Charge | An accusation filed or presented in the criminal process. | That the person was ultimately convicted. |
| Bond | A condition or amount connected with release from custody. | Final case outcome. |
| Warrant | A court-authorized directive, which can have several procedural forms. | Conviction. |
| Deferred adjudication | A Texas case disposition with specific legal consequences. | A simple equivalent of either “dismissed” or ordinary conviction. |
| Dismissed | The charge or case was dismissed. | That no arrest or historical record ever existed. |
| Conviction | A finding or plea resulting in conviction. | That every separate charge in the same case also produced a conviction. |
Practical Collin County search tips
Use the county search before calling
Find the case number and correct court first. That makes a clerk request much more precise.
Felony means District Clerk
Do not send felony document requests to the County Court at Law clerk.
Misdemeanor means County Clerk
Class A/B misdemeanor records are handled by the County Court at Law Clerk.
Older than 1988?
Move directly to the District Clerk historical search process instead of assuming the case does not exist.
Recent arrest? Search the jail
For something that happened very recently, jail or arrest/release information may be the more immediate source.
Identify the arresting agency
A Plano Police report belongs with Plano; a Sheriff’s report belongs with CCSO.
Use DOB carefully
Date of birth helps separate common-name matches, especially in the Texas DPS system.
Check the disposition
Do not stop at the arrest, booking photo or original allegation. Look for the court’s final outcome.
Expand outside Collin County when needed
A Texas DPS search or other county search may be necessary if the person’s history is not limited to Collin County.
Using criminal records for employment, housing or other decisions
Public court information and a consumer background report are not automatically the same thing. Federal and Texas rules can impose additional duties when criminal-history information is used for employment, housing, credit or other regulated eligibility decisions.
If the purpose is a formal background check, determine whether the process is subject to the Fair Credit Reporting Act or another state/federal requirement rather than assuming that a public website search is sufficient.
Collin County criminal records: frequently asked questions
1. Can I search Collin County criminal records online for free?
Collin County provides official online judicial search tools that can be used to locate many county court cases, active warrants and current inmate records. Requesting copies, certified documents or clerk-performed searches can involve fees.
2. Where do I search for a Collin County felony case?
Start with Collin County’s Online Judicial Search. Felony criminal court records are maintained by the Collin County District Clerk.
3. Who keeps Collin County misdemeanor records?
The Collin County Clerk’s County Court at Law Criminal Division handles Class A and Class B misdemeanor cases and Class C appeals.
4. How far back does Collin County’s online felony search go?
The District Clerk states that its online criminal case applications contain District Court criminal cases filed or completed from 1988 to the present. Older cases require a historical search through the District Clerk.
5. How much does the Collin County District Clerk charge for a record search?
The current 2026 criminal fee schedule lists a $5 record-search fee. Copy and certification fees can apply separately.
6. How do I find someone in the Collin County jail?
Use the Collin County Sheriff’s Office inmate search. The Sheriff’s public inmate resources include current inmates and people released during the previous 24 hours.
7. Can I search Collin County active warrants online?
Yes. Collin County’s Judicial Search includes active-warrant information and can link public warrant entries to related court cases when available.
8. Where do I get a Plano or Frisco police arrest report?
Request it from the police department that created the report. Collin County specifically directs records generated by Plano, Frisco, McKinney, Allen, Wylie and other city police departments back to those agencies.
9. Is a Collin County case search the same as a Texas criminal-history check?
No. Collin County’s systems concern county court, warrant, jail and related information. Texas DPS maintains the statewide public Criminal History Name Search for qualifying Texas criminal-history information.
10. Can a missing criminal record have been expunged or made nonpublic?
Yes. Texas law provides processes such as expunction and orders of nondisclosure in qualifying circumstances. A record can also be unavailable because it is maintained by another agency, predates online coverage, or is restricted from public disclosure.
Official sources for Collin County criminal-record research
These government resources should be used to confirm changing fees, access rules, office procedures and database availability.
- Collin County – Case Information / Online Judicial Search
- Collin County District Clerk – Criminal Records
- Collin County Clerk – County Court at Law Criminal Division
- Collin County District Clerk – Forms and Fee Documents
- Collin County Sheriff’s Office – Inmate Information
- Collin County Sheriff’s Office – Arrests, Warrants and Public Resources
- Collin County Sheriff’s Office – Open Records
- Collin County – Police Records Directory
- Texas DPS – Criminal History Name Search
- Texas DPS – Crime Records Division
- Texas Department of Criminal Justice – Offender Search
- Texas Fifth Court of Appeals
- PACER – Federal Court Records