Choose the record type before you start searching
A criminal record is not one nationwide file that anyone can search from a single government website. Court cases, arrests, convictions, jail bookings, prison records, warrants, sex-offender registration and federal prosecutions are maintained by different agencies. The fastest approach is to identify the record you need, determine the correct state or county, and then use the official government source.
“Criminal record” can mean several different records
Before opening a search portal, decide what you actually want to know. Searching the wrong government system is one of the main reasons people conclude that a record is missing.
Criminal court case
Shows charges filed in court, hearings, motions, pleas, dispositions, sentencing and sometimes downloadable case documents.
Arrest record
Created by the law-enforcement agency that arrested or investigated the person. An arrest is not a conviction.
Booking record
Can show current custody, booking date, listed charges, bond, release status and other local information.
Criminal-history record
A centralized state record assembled from criminal-justice submissions. Public access and content differ substantially by state.
Prison / supervision record
State corrections systems can show people incarcerated in state prison or under qualifying supervision.
Federal criminal case
Federal prosecutions are separate from state cases and are generally searched through PACER.
Collect enough information to identify the right person
Name-only searches can be unreliable, especially for common names. Gather as much lawful identifying information as you already know before spending money on searches or requesting records.
- full legal first and last name
- middle name or middle initial
- maiden or former names
- approximate or exact date of birth
- state connected with the person
- county where the event occurred
- approximate case or arrest year
- case number if already known
A practical U.S. criminal-record search workflow
Start with the official court when you need the actual criminal case
Court records are usually the strongest source for answering a basic question: Was a criminal case filed, and how did it end?
The federal government’s USA.gov court directory explains the federal, state, territory, county and municipal court structure and helps users locate the appropriate court system.
Find an official courtWhat to click after reaching the state judiciary website
Look for wording such as:
- Case Search
- Case Lookup
- Public Access
- Criminal Case Search
- Docket Search
- Court Records
- Party Search
- Clerk Records
Information a public court case may contain
Case number
Unique identifier for the court proceeding.
Charges
Offenses formally alleged in the court case.
Docket
Chronological hearings, filings, motions and orders.
Disposition
The outcome of each charge or the case.
Find the official criminal-history agency for the state
Every state has a centralized criminal-history agency or State Identification Bureau, although the agency name differs.
Depending on the state, it may be called:
- State Police
- Department of Public Safety
- Bureau of Investigation
- Department of Justice
- Criminal Justice Information Services
- State Bureau of Identification
The FBI maintains an official State Identification Bureau Listing with the centralized criminal-history agency for each state.
Find your state’s criminal-history agency| Question | Official court | State repository |
|---|---|---|
| Was a criminal case filed? | Usually best source | May depend on reporting. |
| What happened at each hearing? | Yes, when public | Usually not detailed docket history. |
| What is the final court disposition? | Primary source | May contain reported disposition. |
| Statewide criminal-history search? | Often fragmented by courts. | Main purpose, subject to access law. |
| Fingerprint identification? | No | Often available for authorized/personal review. |
Use police and sheriff records for recent arrests and jail bookings
If an arrest happened recently, the most useful source may be the agency that made the arrest or the jail where the person is being held.
Search the official county sheriff, police department or county corrections website for terms such as:
- Inmate Search
- Jail Roster
- Booking Log
- Arrest Log
- Custody Search
- Who’s in Jail
- Public Records Request
- Police Records
Police report not online?
Many agencies require a public-records request. The process, available information, copy fees and exemptions are controlled by the law of that state and jurisdiction.
Request the record from the agency that created it. A county sheriff generally cannot provide an unrelated city police department’s investigative file.
Warrant searches are usually local, not one national database
Public warrant access differs by state and county. Some sheriffs publish an active-warrant search. Some courts provide warrant information in public case records, while other jurisdictions limit online disclosure for active warrants.
Check the sheriff
Look for an official warrants or wanted-person page.
Check the court
Review public docket information or contact the clerk when appropriate.
Verify directly
Contact the responsible court or law-enforcement agency rather than relying on an unofficial website.
Use the state Department of Corrections for state-prison records
Prison records should generally be searched through the corrections agency for the state where the person was incarcerated.
USA.gov provides an official State Departments of Corrections directory.
Find a state corrections departmentA corrections search may show:
- state offender number
- custody location
- sentence information
- admission date
- projected release information
- parole or supervision status
Search federal criminal cases through PACER
Federal prosecutions are separate from state criminal cases. The federal judiciary’s official electronic public-access system is PACER.
Search the specific federal court
If you know where the case was filed, search that district or appellate court directly. PACER says specific-court case information is updated immediately.
Use the PACER Case Locator
The nationwide Case Locator searches an index of federal district, bankruptcy and appellate cases and is updated daily.
Current PACER fee
As of September 2026, PACER charges $0.10 per page. A case-specific document is generally capped at $3. If total quarterly PACER charges are $30 or less, PACER currently waives those charges.
Use the Bureau of Prisons for federal custody
The Federal Bureau of Prisons Inmate Locator contains information about federal inmates incarcerated from 1982 to the present.
Search federal inmatesSearches can use an identifying number or name. Older federal inmate records may require National Archives research rather than the current BOP locator.
Use NSOPW for a nationwide public sex-offender registry search
The U.S. Department of Justice operates the Dru Sjodin National Sex Offender Public Website (NSOPW).
NSOPW searches participating public sex-offender registries from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, U.S. territories and Indian Country.
Search NSOPWChecking your own criminal history is a different process
If your goal is to see what is associated with your own identity, a fingerprint-based personal review can be much more reliable than searching your name.
Start with your state
Use the FBI’s State Identification Bureau directory to locate your state’s central criminal-history agency and check its personal-review procedure.
FBI Identity History Summary
The FBI also allows an individual to request their own fingerprint-based Identity History Summary, often called an FBI rap sheet.
The current FBI fee is $18. Fingerprints are required. Electronic applicants can use participating U.S. Post Office fingerprint locations or other approved submission methods described by the FBI.
FBI Identity History SummaryRead the final disposition—not just the arrest or charge
| Record term | What it generally means | What to verify next |
|---|---|---|
| Arrest | Law enforcement took the person into custody or processed an arrest. | Did prosecutors file a court case? |
| Charge | A criminal allegation was filed. | What was the final disposition? |
| Pending | The case has not reached final resolution. | Check the latest docket and hearing date. |
| Dismissed | The listed charge ended without a conviction on that charge. | Check whether other counts remained. |
| Acquitted / Not guilty | No conviction was entered on that charge following adjudication. | Review every count separately. |
| Convicted / Guilty | A conviction was entered. | Review sentence and later appellate activity. |
| Deferred | Meaning varies by state and program. | Read the jurisdiction’s exact disposition language. |
| Sealed / Expunged | Public access has been limited under applicable law or order. | Do not assume the record never existed. |
A “no records found” result is not a nationwide clearance
A blank result means only that the particular search did not return a matching public record. It does not prove that no criminal record exists anywhere in the United States.
Common reasons include:
- wrong state or county
- misspelled or incomplete name
- former or maiden name
- older case not digitized
- sealed or expunged record
- juvenile confidentiality rules
- pending case with restricted name access
- record not reported to a state repository
- federal rather than state prosecution
- arrest that never resulted in a filed case
Older criminal records may exist only at the courthouse or archive
Online case systems often have historical cutoffs. A case from decades ago may have an index entry online but require a clerk request for the actual file, while very old records may be stored on microfilm, paper or at an archive.
Search the current online portal
Use the official court first, even if you expect the record to be old.
Find the courthouse that handled the case
Identify the county, court name and approximate filing year.
Ask about archived indexes
Older files may be available through a clerk terminal, archive, microfilm or manual search.
Request the specific document
A case number and document name can make a clerk request faster and more accurate.
Sealed and expunged records may disappear from ordinary public searches
States use different terminology and provide different types of criminal-record relief. Depending on the jurisdiction, a record may be sealed, expunged, set aside, dismissed, vacated, restricted from public disclosure or subject to an automatic-clean-slate process.
For the legal effect of a particular order, use the official court or state repository guidance for that jurisdiction.
Juvenile records usually have stronger access restrictions
Juvenile delinquency and juvenile criminal-history records are commonly subject to confidentiality rules that differ from adult records.
Do not assume a juvenile matter will be visible in an adult court search, public state repository, jail search or ordinary background-check portal.
When you need proof, request a court-certified record
An online case summary is useful for research, but it may not be accepted as an official record for immigration, licensing, legal proceedings or another formal purpose.
Online docket
Useful for finding the case and understanding its history.
Plain copy
A copy of a filed court document without clerk certification.
Certified copy
A copy authenticated by the clerk according to the court’s procedures.
Contact the clerk of the court where the case was filed and ask for the specific document or certified disposition you need. Copy fees vary by jurisdiction.
What to do if your criminal-history record is wrong
Start by determining which agency contains the incorrect information. A court error, police-record error, state-repository error and FBI summary issue can require different procedures.
The FBI states that many corrections should begin with the appropriate State Identification Bureau, especially when the disputed information originated from a state agency.
For an FBI Identity History Summary challenge, identify the inaccurate or incomplete entry and provide available supporting documentation.
How to avoid matching a criminal record to the wrong person
Name-based searches can produce false positives. This is particularly important for common names and databases that use broad or similar-name matching.
Compare several lawful identifiers:
- full middle name
- date or year of birth
- county and state
- known age at the time of the case
- case dates
- former names
- court location
- official case or offender number
Public-record research is not automatically an employment or tenant background check
A person may search many public court records for general informational purposes. Different rules apply when criminal-history information is used to make eligibility decisions.
The Federal Trade Commission explains that when an employer gets a background report from a company that compiles background information, the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requires specific procedures, including disclosure and written authorization before the report is obtained and additional steps if adverse action is contemplated.
State and local laws can impose additional restrictions on when or how criminal history may be considered for employment or housing.
Search habits that make criminal-record research more accurate
Start with location
State and county are often more important than running a broad national name search.
Use official domains
Prefer judiciary, clerk, sheriff, state police, DPS, DOJ and corrections websites.
Save the case number
It gives you a much cleaner route to copies, appeals and later searches.
Check name variations
Middle names, former names and maiden names can matter.
Very recent event?
Check the jail or arresting agency before expecting a complete court disposition.
Older case?
Ask the clerk about historical indexes or archived records if the online search stops early.
Check every count
A multi-count criminal case can contain different outcomes for different charges.
Search federal separately
State court systems generally do not contain federal prosecutions.
Need your own record?
Use the state’s personal-review process or fingerprint-based FBI process instead of name matching.
Common questions about finding criminal records
1. Is there one free nationwide government criminal-record database?
No. State courts, county courts, state criminal-history repositories, law-enforcement agencies, corrections departments and federal courts maintain different records. A reliable search usually requires checking the relevant jurisdictions separately.
2. What is the best place to start a criminal-record search?
Start with the official court system for the state and county where the possible case occurred. Court records are usually the most direct source for determining whether charges were filed and how the case ended.
3. How do I find the official criminal-history agency for a state?
Use the FBI State Identification Bureau Listing. It identifies each state’s central criminal-history repository, such as the state police, department of public safety, department of justice or bureau of investigation.
4. Does an arrest mean a person was convicted?
No. An arrest is not proof of guilt. Search the resulting court case and read the final disposition to determine whether a conviction occurred.
5. Can I request another person’s FBI criminal-history record?
Not through the FBI’s ordinary personal Identity History Summary process. The FBI states that private citizens can request their own fingerprint-based summary but cannot request another person’s record through that process.
6. How do I search federal criminal cases?
Use PACER. Search the specific federal court when known or use the PACER Case Locator when you do not know which federal court handled the matter.
7. Where can I search federal inmate records?
Use the Federal Bureau of Prisons Inmate Locator. The current locator contains federal inmate information from 1982 to the present.
8. Why might an old criminal case be missing online?
The court may not have digitized older records, the file may be archived, public access may be restricted, or the case may be indexed under another name. Contact the clerk when older records are important.
9. Can sealed or expunged records disappear from public search results?
Yes. Depending on state law and the type of relief, public access may be restricted or removed. The precise legal effect differs by jurisdiction.
10. Can public criminal records be used for employment or tenant screening?
Employment and tenant screening can trigger additional federal, state and local requirements. When a consumer reporting company provides the report, the Fair Credit Reporting Act may require authorization, notices, accuracy procedures and dispute rights. A general public-record lookup is not automatically a compliant screening process.
Official resources for continuing the search
- USA.gov — Federal, State, Territory, County and Municipal Courts
- FBI — State Identification Bureau Listing
- FBI — Identity History Summary Checks
- USA.gov — State Departments of Corrections
- PACER — Find a Federal Court Case
- PACER — Current Fees and Pricing
- Federal Bureau of Prisons — Inmate Locator
- Department of Justice — National Sex Offender Public Website
- FTC — Background Checks: What Employers Need to Know