Broward County criminal records come from several different official systems. Felony and misdemeanor court cases are searched through the Broward County Clerk of Courts, current arrests and jail bookings are available through the Broward Sheriff’s Office, statewide Florida criminal-history checks are maintained by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, state-prison records come from the Florida Department of Corrections, and federal criminal cases use the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida. This guide shows which system to use first, what information each one contains, and what to do when an older record is missing online.
Which Broward County criminal record do you need?
Criminal court case
Use Broward Clerk Case Search for felony, misdemeanor, traffic-criminal, ordinance and other qualifying court records.
Recent arrest / jail record
Use BSO Arrest Search for current booking and inmate information, including booking photographs where available.
Statewide Florida criminal history
Use the Florida Department of Law Enforcement when the search needs to go beyond Broward County.
Incident or arrest report
Request the underlying agency record from BSO or the municipal police department that created it.
State prison record
Use Florida Department of Corrections offender tools for qualifying state-correctional records.
Federal criminal case
Broward federal prosecutions use the Southern District of Florida and PACER, not the county Clerk search.
How to search Broward County criminal court cases
The official Broward County Clerk of Courts Case Search supports public searching across multiple case types.
For criminal-record research, useful case categories include:
- Criminal Felony
- Misdemeanor
- Traffic Criminal
- Domestic Violence criminal matters
- County Ordinance
- Municipal Ordinance
- criminal appeals
- certain search-warrant misdemeanor records
Open the Clerk’s public Case Search
Use the official Broward Clerk portal rather than a commercial people-search website.
Select the appropriate court type
Limiting the search to felony, misdemeanor or another relevant case category can reduce false matches.
Search by party name or case number
Party-name search requires both last and first name. A known case number is usually more precise.
Open the case detail
Review charges, filing dates, court events, disposition and available electronic documents.
Use Archives when the online file is incomplete
Older criminal cases and unavailable electronic documents may require a Court Records Request.
Broward Clerk search quirks that can affect your results
The Broward Clerk publishes several technical search rules that can matter when a record is difficult to find.
First and last name required
Party-name search requires both fields. Very short names are treated as exact matches.
Only first 200 results
Broad searches are limited to 200 returned results, so use court type, middle name or filing date to narrow the list.
Traffic citations only
Citation-number search currently applies to traffic citations and will not work before the citation enters the Clerk’s system.
Understanding Broward case-number codes
| Code | Meaning |
|---|---|
| CF | Criminal Felony |
| MM | Misdemeanor |
| TC | Traffic Criminal |
| CO | County Ordinance |
| MO | Municipal Ordinance |
| TI | Traffic Infraction |
How far back are Broward criminal court documents available online?
Broward Clerk guidance states that criminal court records filed on or after January 6, 2014 generally have electronic documents available for viewing online. Some older cases also have electronic images.
Online availability is governed by Florida court access rules and can vary based on case type, document type and confidentiality restrictions.
Older Broward criminal records: use the Archives Division
Broward’s Archives Division provides much deeper historical coverage than the current online document system.
1915 to present
Broward Archives states that felony case records are available from 1915 forward.
1973 to present
Archives lists traffic and misdemeanor cases from 1973 forward.
Helpful information for an archive search includes:
- case number
- defendant name
- date of birth
- year of arrest
- case or arrest type
- specific documents requested
Judicial Complex, East Building
201 S.E. 6th Street
3rd Floor, Room 03305
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301
Phone: 954-831-6565, option 3
Hours: Monday-Friday, 8:00 a.m.-3:30 p.m., excluding holidays
Broward felony vs. misdemeanor criminal records
Felony cases
Felony criminal cases are handled through the Circuit Court and Broward Clerk Felony Division.
201 S.E. 6th StreetNorth Building, 1st Floor, Room 1882
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301
Phone: 954-831-6565, option 1
Misdemeanor / traffic-criminal cases
Broward misdemeanor and traffic-criminal matters use the Traffic and Misdemeanor Division.
201 S.E. 6th StreetWest Building, 1st Floor, Room 1130
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301
Broward County arrest and jail records
For a recent arrest or someone currently in custody, use the Broward Sheriff’s Office Arrest Search.
BSO says the Arrest Search is updated approximately every 15 minutes. Results can include arrest number, inmate name, sex, detention location and, when the arrest number is opened, booking photographs and additional details.
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301
Phone: 954-831-5900
Published hours: 9:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.
BSO says the Central Intake Bureau processes arrests from law-enforcement agencies across Broward County.
Broward Sheriff’s Office local records check
Broward Sheriff’s Office offers local records checks through its Public Records Online Portal.
BSO also explains that the local check does not include police involvement that did not result in an arrest.
For a statewide Florida criminal-history search, BSO directs requesters to FDLE.
Police reports and Florida public-record requests
If you need an incident report, arrest affidavit, dispatch record, body-camera record or another agency-held record, identify the law-enforcement agency that created it.
Broward County includes many separate municipal police departments, so a report from Fort Lauderdale, Hollywood, Coral Springs or another city may not belong to BSO.
Identify the arresting or investigating agency
Use the arrest record, court file or incident location to determine which agency created the record.
Use that agency’s public-record process
BSO uses its Public Records Online Portal; cities may use their own records office or portal.
Describe the existing record precisely
Include report number, arrest date, location and names where available.
How to look for warrant information in Broward County
Warrant research can require both court and law-enforcement sources. A warrant may be associated with a Broward court case, but active warrant information can also be maintained in law-enforcement databases.
Useful starting points include:
- Broward Clerk Case Search for known criminal cases
- Broward Sheriff’s Office records or warrant-related information
- the issuing court
- FDLE’s statewide wanted-person resources where appropriate
Florida statewide criminal-history search through FDLE
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is the state’s central repository for Florida criminal-history information.
The current public fee is $24 per Florida criminal-history search.
Immediate online result
Current cost: $24 plus a $1 credit-card processing fee. Instant results are not certified.
FDLE staff search
Current base cost: $24. Non-certified processing is generally about 5 business days; certified processing about 6-7 business days, excluding mail delivery.
Authorized purpose
An ORI-based check requires a valid ORI supplied by the requesting agency or authorized entity.
Florida Criminal History Checks
How to review your own Florida criminal history for errors
FDLE provides a free Personal Review process for individuals who want to inspect their own Florida criminal-history record and challenge inaccurate or incomplete information.
The Personal Review is fingerprint-based and can only be requested by the person whose record is being reviewed or their designated attorney.
FDLE Personal Review mailing address
Florida Department of Law EnforcementP.O. Box 1489
Tallahassee, FL 32302-1489
Attn: Criminal History Record Maintenance Section
Record-maintenance questions: 850-410-7898
Email: chrm@fdle.state.fl.us
Florida Department of Corrections offender records
If a Broward County criminal case resulted in a Florida state-prison sentence, use the Florida Department of Corrections offender-search system.
State DOC records are different from BSO county-jail bookings. Someone recently arrested and held by Broward Sheriff may not belong in the state-prison search.
Broward County criminal appeals: Fourth District Court of Appeal
Broward County is in Florida’s Seventeenth Judicial Circuit, and appeals from Broward are handled by the Fourth District Court of Appeal.
The Fourth DCA publishes written opinions, per curiam affirmances and opinion archives.
West Palm Beach, FL 33401
Phone: 561-242-2000
Hours: Monday-Friday, 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m., excluding holidays
Fourth District Court of Appeal
Federal criminal records in Broward County
Federal prosecutions involving Broward County are generally filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.
Fort Lauderdale Division
U.S. Federal Building and Courthouse299 East Broward Boulevard, Room 108
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301
Phone: 954-769-5400
Public counter hours: 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. on regular business days
Electronic federal court records are generally available through PACER.
Broward criminal court copies and certification fees
Broward Clerk allows qualifying viewable electronic court documents to be purchased online as electronic certified copies.
Find the case
Search the Broward Clerk Case Search and open the case detail.
Look for available documents
Only documents that are electronically viewable can be purchased online through eCertify.
Select certified copies
Use the Clerk’s purchase option and complete checkout.
Use Records Request if the document is missing
Older or non-electronic records must be ordered through the appropriate Clerk or Archives process.
| Service | Current published fee |
|---|---|
| Photocopy of public record | $1 per page |
| Certification of filed public/official document | $2 per document |
| Archives record search | $2 per year searched |
| Archives photocopy | $1 per page |
| Archives certification | $2 per document |
| Exemplification | $7 per document |
Florida sealing and expungement for Broward criminal records
Florida’s court-ordered sealing and expungement process generally begins with an application to FDLE for a Certificate of Eligibility.
Apply to FDLE
Complete the Certificate of Eligibility application for court-ordered sealing or expungement.
Submit fingerprints and the required application material
FDLE requires a completed fingerprint form or card and other supporting information.
Pay the current FDLE processing fee
The current Certificate of Eligibility application fee is $75.
Wait for the eligibility decision
FDLE currently states that eligibility processing typically takes about 12 weeks.
Petition the proper court
The Certificate of Eligibility does not itself seal or expunge the record. A court order is still required for court-ordered relief.
Automatic sealing is not the same as sealing every local record
Florida law also provides automatic sealing of qualifying FDLE criminal-history records when a qualifying disposition is electronically reported. FDLE specifically warns that this automatic process does not seal local records.
Keep copies before sealing or expunging
FDLE strongly recommends keeping copies of arrest reports, certified dispositions and relevant court orders before obtaining sealing or expungement.
Broward juvenile court records are more restricted
Juvenile delinquency records are not treated like ordinary adult criminal court records. Broward’s online-access rules require Attorney of Record or Registered User access for electronic juvenile delinquency documents.
Florida also provides specialized juvenile expungement procedures under certain circumstances.
Broward criminal-record offices and courthouse map
Central Courthouse
201 S.E. 6th StreetFort Lauderdale, FL 33301
Main phone: 954-831-6565
Headquarters
2601 West Broward BoulevardFort Lauderdale, FL 33312
BSO public-record and detention functions use separate service locations and online portals.
Southern District of Florida
299 East Broward BoulevardFort Lauderdale, FL 33301
Phone: 954-769-5400
Google Map: Broward County Central Courthouse
This single map is lazy-loaded to reduce initial page weight. The Central Courthouse is the most useful location for felony, misdemeanor, archives and Clerk record services.
Broward County criminal-record search tips
Use the court-type filter
Narrow a common name to felony, misdemeanor or another specific case type before reviewing results.
Watch the 200-result cap
Use middle name or filing dates if a broad search returns too many matches.
Older than 2014? Think Archives
Online documents are strongest from January 6, 2014 forward, while Archives reaches much further back.
Recent arrest? Check BSO first
BSO booking data may appear before the full criminal court file is easy to locate.
Local BSO check is not statewide
Use FDLE when the goal is Florida-wide criminal-history information.
Check the disposition
A booking or filed charge is not enough to establish conviction.
Keep documents before expungement
FDLE specifically recommends preserving relevant arrest and court documents before relief is granted.
Federal case? Leave the Broward portal
Use PACER and the Southern District of Florida.
Use Personal Review for your own disputed Florida history
FDLE’s fingerprint-based personal review is free and designed for accuracy challenges.
Using Broward criminal records for employment, housing or screening
A public court search, BSO booking result or FDLE record search is not automatically the same thing as a legally compliant consumer report used for employment, tenant screening, credit or other regulated decisions.
Broward County criminal records: frequently asked questions
1. Where can I search Broward County criminal court records?
Use the Broward County Clerk of Courts public Case Search for felony, misdemeanor, traffic-criminal and other qualifying court cases.
2. How far back are Broward criminal court documents available online?
Broward Clerk states that criminal court records filed on or after January 6, 2014 generally have electronic documents available online, with some older records also imaged.
3. Where can I find older Broward felony records?
Use the Broward Clerk Archives Division. It lists felony records from 1915 to the present.
4. Where can I search recent Broward arrests and jail inmates?
Use the Broward Sheriff’s Office Arrest Search. BSO states that the information is updated approximately every 15 minutes.
5. Is a Broward Sheriff’s local records check a statewide Florida background check?
No. BSO says its local records check is limited to qualifying arrest records submitted from Broward County law-enforcement agencies. Use FDLE for statewide Florida criminal history.
6. How much does an FDLE Florida criminal-history search cost?
The current public FDLE criminal-history search fee is $24. Instant searches also currently carry a $1 credit-card processing fee.
7. How do I get my own Florida criminal record checked for errors?
Use FDLE’s free Personal Review process. It is fingerprint-based and allows you to review and challenge inaccurate or incomplete Florida criminal-history information.
8. How much does Florida’s Certificate of Eligibility for sealing or expungement cost?
FDLE currently charges a nonrefundable $75 processing fee for the Certificate of Eligibility application.
9. Are Broward federal criminal cases in the Clerk’s Case Search?
No. Federal criminal cases are separate and generally use the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida and PACER.
10. Does an arrest record mean someone was convicted?
No. An arrest, booking or charge does not prove conviction. Review the official Broward court disposition to determine the outcome.
Official sources used for this Broward County guide
- Broward County Clerk of Courts — Case Search
- Broward Clerk — Felony Division
- Broward Clerk — Court Records Requests
- Broward Clerk — Electronic Certified Documents
- Broward Clerk — Archives Division
- Broward Sheriff’s Office — Arrest Search
- Broward Sheriff’s Office — Records Requests
- FDLE — Florida Criminal History Record Checks
- FDLE — Personal Review
- FDLE — Seal and Expunge Process
- Florida Department of Corrections — Offender Search
- Florida Fourth District Court of Appeal
- U.S. District Court — Southern District of Florida, Fort Lauderdale
- PACER Federal Court Records