Delaware criminal court records require a court-by-court search
Delaware does not provide one public online database that functions as a complete statewide criminal-court name search. Superior Court handles felonies, the Court of Common Pleas handles most adult misdemeanors and preliminary hearings, Justice of the Peace Courts handle many lower-level criminal and traffic matters, and the Supreme Court handles appeals. Court records can be requested from the court maintaining the case, while a consolidated certified Delaware criminal history must be obtained separately through the State Bureau of Identification.
Important: Delaware CourtConnect is a civil case search
Delaware Courts provides a system called CourtConnect. However, the Judicial Branch describes it specifically as an online civil case information service for Superior Court, Court of Common Pleas and Justice of the Peace Court.
Delaware’s public-record policy separately states that the courts cannot provide a consolidated Delaware criminal history. That statewide certified history must be requested from the State Bureau of Identification.
Which Delaware court has the criminal case?
Felonies
Delaware Superior Court has exclusive jurisdiction over adult felony convictions and most adult drug felonies.
Misdemeanors
Handles adult misdemeanors, motor-vehicle offenses and felony preliminary hearings.
Lower-level criminal matters
Handles specified misdemeanors, criminal violations, most qualifying motor-vehicle cases, warrants and initial appearances.
Juvenile / family-related matters
Family Court has extensive juvenile jurisdiction and also handles specified adult criminal matters within its statutory jurisdiction.
How to request a Delaware criminal court record
Delaware Courts publishes an Application for Access to Court Records for judicial-record requests.
For criminal cases, the form asks the requester to provide as much of the following as possible:
- defendant’s full name
- date of birth
- criminal charge or charges
- case number
- approximate arrest date
- specific record requested
The form allows a requester to indicate whether the request is for a disposition, certified copy or another judicial record.
How to search Delaware criminal court records step by step
Identify the county
Determine whether the case was handled in New Castle, Kent or Sussex County.
Identify the level of offense
Determine whether the matter is a felony, misdemeanor, lower-level violation, traffic offense or juvenile matter.
Choose the correct court
Felonies generally point to Superior Court; misdemeanors commonly point to Court of Common Pleas; many entry-level criminal matters begin in Justice of the Peace Court.
Check public calendars and opinions
Superior Court publishes criminal trial, suppression-hearing, sentencing and daily calendars. Published criminal opinions and orders can also be searched online.
Request the judicial record
Use the court’s records-access process and provide the defendant name, DOB, charge, case number and approximate date when known.
Verify the disposition
Do not treat an arrest, complaint, preliminary hearing or indictment as a conviction. Verify how the case actually ended.
Delaware Superior Court criminal and felony records
Superior Court is Delaware’s court of general jurisdiction and has statewide original jurisdiction over criminal cases subject to statutory exceptions.
It has exclusive jurisdiction over felonies and most drug offenses involving adults. Delaware Courts also describes Superior Court as the only Delaware court in which a felony conviction can be entered.
Superior Court criminal cases can include:
- felony prosecutions
- indictments
- criminal trials
- pleas
- sentencing
- post-conviction proceedings
- sentence-modification motions
- appeals from specified lower courts
Delaware Court of Common Pleas criminal records
The Court of Common Pleas has statewide criminal jurisdiction over adult misdemeanors and motor-vehicle offenses, including qualifying misdemeanor drug offenses.
It also handles:
- felony preliminary hearings
- appeals from Justice of the Peace Courts
- appeals from Alderman’s Courts
- misdemeanor trials
- arraignments
- sentencing in cases within its jurisdiction
Delaware Justice of the Peace criminal records
Justice of the Peace Court is Delaware’s entry-level court for a large volume of criminal matters.
Its criminal jurisdiction includes qualifying:
- misdemeanor cases
- criminal violations
- motor-vehicle offenses
- county and municipal ordinance violations
- fish and wildlife violations
- alcoholic-beverage violations
- initial appearances
- bail proceedings
Justices of the Peace can also issue search warrants, arrest warrants and summonses after appropriate probable-cause findings.
Family Court criminal and juvenile records
Family Court records should not be treated like ordinary public adult Superior Court records. Delaware Family Court has extensive jurisdiction over juvenile matters and other family-related proceedings.
Juvenile records and other Family Court material can have substantially stronger confidentiality restrictions. If a search concerns a juvenile case, use the Family Court’s specific records-access procedures.
Search Delaware criminal court calendars and dockets
Delaware Superior Court publishes public calendars that are useful when you already know the county or are looking for current criminal court activity.
Current calendar categories include:
Weekly criminal calendars
Criminal trials and suppression hearings, sentencing calendar and daily proceedings.
Monthly criminal calendars
Criminal trials and suppression hearings, sentencing calendar and daily proceedings.
Monthly criminal calendars
Criminal trials and suppression hearings, sentencing calendar and daily proceedings.
Search Delaware criminal opinions and orders
Delaware Courts maintains an online Opinions and Orders database.
The database can be filtered for criminal matters and currently includes published criminal opinions and orders from Superior Court and the Delaware Supreme Court.
This can be particularly useful for:
- suppression decisions
- post-conviction rulings
- sentence-modification rulings
- appellate decisions
- criminal motions
- published judicial orders
Certified copies of Delaware Superior Court criminal documents
Superior Court’s current fee schedule lists:
| Service | Current published fee |
|---|---|
| Certified copy of a document, up to 3 pages | $15 |
| Exemplified copy, up to 3 pages | $25 |
| Additional copy charge | Up to $2 per page |
| Fax copy charge | Up to $8 per page |
| Closed-case retrieval | $25 |
| Expedited closed-case retrieval | $50 |
Fees differ by court and service, so do not assume these Superior Court charges apply to every Court of Common Pleas or Justice of the Peace request.
Order a Delaware Superior Court criminal transcript
A docket entry or judgment is different from a verbatim transcript of what happened in court. Superior Court’s official court reporters prepare certified transcripts upon request.
| Delivery | Original + 1 copy | Additional copy |
|---|---|---|
| Normal | $3/page | $2/page |
| Expedited | $5/page | $3/page |
| Daily / overnight | $6.50/page | $4/page |
| Same day | $7/page | $5/page |
The transcript request asks for the county, criminal case number, defendant/case name, proceeding date, judge and proceeding type.
Open Superior Court Transcript RequestCertified Delaware criminal history: State Bureau of Identification
Delaware Courts explicitly states that courts cannot supply a consolidated Delaware criminal history. For that record, use the Delaware State Police State Bureau of Identification (SBI).
SBI criminal histories are fingerprint based.
| Check | Current published fee |
|---|---|
| Certified State of Delaware Criminal History | $72 |
| Certified Delaware + Federal Criminal History | $85 |
The state-plus-federal check is available when that combined check is legally mandated. Applicants must schedule fingerprinting and provide accepted identification.
Open Delaware SBI Criminal Background CheckDelaware inmate and custody records
Delaware’s Department of Correction directs the public to VINELink for offender incarceration and custody-status information.
VINELink can also provide notifications when participating custody information changes.
Open Delaware DOC Inmate LocatorDelaware arrest warrants and criminal court records
Justice of the Peace judges can issue arrest warrants, search warrants and criminal summonses when statutory probable-cause requirements are met.
However, Delaware judicial public-access policies restrict access to certain unexecuted or unreturned warrants and the supporting affidavits or testimony until the records become publicly releasable.
Delaware criminal appeals and Supreme Court records
Appeals from Superior Court go to the Delaware Supreme Court, the state’s highest court.
Criminal opinions and orders from the Supreme Court can be searched through the Delaware Courts Opinions and Orders database.
Dover, DE 19901
Phone:
302-739-4155
Hours: Monday–Friday, 8:30 a.m.–4:30 p.m.
Delaware criminal-record expungement
Delaware distinguishes between mandatory and discretionary adult expungement.
SBI-administered process
Delaware’s expungement guidance states that mandatory expungements are handled through the State Bureau of Identification when statutory eligibility is satisfied.
Court petition
Superior Court and Family Court handle qualifying discretionary petitions, depending on the record and jurisdiction.
Current SBI expungement costs
SBI currently charges $72 for the initial expungement application/criminal-history process. If SBI determines the person qualifies for a mandatory expungement, the current additional mandatory-expungement fee is $75.
Superior Court discretionary petition
Current Superior Court instructions list a $75 filing fee for a discretionary expungement petition and require a recent certified criminal history from SBI.
Which Delaware criminal court records may be restricted?
Public judicial access does not mean every item in a criminal file is open. Delaware policies identify several categories of restricted information.
Examples include:
- expunged records
- presentence investigation reports
- unreturned warrants
- certain warrant affidavits
- nonpublic criminal-history database records
- protected victim and witness information
- juvenile records subject to confidentiality
- records sealed by law or court order
Federal criminal court records in Delaware
Federal criminal prosecutions are separate from Delaware state court records. Federal cases are filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware.
Public federal case records are generally accessed through PACER.
Delaware Superior Court criminal-record locations
| County | Courthouse | Address | Main phone |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Castle | Leonard L. Williams Justice Center | 500 North King Street, Wilmington, DE 19801 | 302-255-0800 |
| Kent | Kent County Courthouse | 414 Federal Street, Dover, DE 19901 | 302-735-1900 |
| Sussex | Sussex County Courthouse | 1 The Circle, Suite 2, Georgetown, DE 19947 | 302-855-7055 |
Superior Court has a Prothonotary office in each county courthouse for qualifying judicial-record business.
Map: Delaware Superior Court in Wilmington
New Castle County Superior Court is located in the Leonard L. Williams Justice Center in downtown Wilmington.
Delaware criminal court record search tips
Do not use CourtConnect as criminal history
Delaware officially presents CourtConnect as a civil-case search.
Start with offense level
Felony, misdemeanor and lower-level violation cases often belong to different courts.
Know the county
New Castle, Kent and Sussex have separate court locations and records offices.
Use DOB with common names
Delaware’s court-record request form specifically encourages detailed identifiers for criminal cases.
Search calendars for current activity
Superior Court publishes criminal trial, suppression and sentencing calendars by county.
Search published opinions separately
Significant rulings can appear in Delaware’s Opinions and Orders database.
Get the disposition
A charge, preliminary hearing or indictment does not establish conviction.
Use SBI for consolidated history
Delaware Courts cannot provide a consolidated criminal history; SBI handles certified histories.
Missing does not mean nonexistent
Expungement, juvenile confidentiality, sealed records or warrant restrictions can affect public access.
Using Delaware criminal court records for screening
A publicly accessible Delaware court record is not automatically the same thing as a consumer report prepared for employment, housing, credit or another regulated eligibility decision.
Delaware criminal court records: frequently asked questions
1. Can I search Delaware criminal court records through CourtConnect?
Delaware Courts officially describes CourtConnect as an online civil-case information system. It should not be represented as a complete statewide Delaware criminal-record search.
2. How do I obtain a specific Delaware criminal court record?
Identify the court and county that handled the case and use that court’s public-record access procedure. Delaware’s Application for Access to Court Records asks for details such as the defendant’s name, DOB, charges, case number and approximate arrest date.
3. Which Delaware court handles felonies?
Superior Court has exclusive jurisdiction over adult felony convictions and most adult felony drug offenses.
4. Which Delaware court handles misdemeanors?
Court of Common Pleas has statewide jurisdiction over adult misdemeanors and motor-vehicle offenses, while Justice of the Peace Courts handle certain misdemeanors and violations.
5. Where can I see current Delaware criminal court dates?
Delaware Superior Court publishes criminal trial, suppression-hearing, sentencing and daily calendars for New Castle, Kent and Sussex Counties.
6. How do I get a certified Delaware criminal history?
Request it from the Delaware State Police State Bureau of Identification. Delaware Courts states that the courts cannot provide a consolidated Delaware criminal history.
7. How much is a certified Delaware criminal history?
The current State Bureau of Identification fee is $72 for a certified State of Delaware criminal history. A combined Delaware and federal history, when legally mandated, currently costs $85.
8. Where can I find Delaware inmate records?
Delaware Department of Correction directs the public to VINELink for offender incarceration and custody-status information.
9. Can an expunged Delaware criminal record disappear from public court access?
Yes. Delaware judicial access policies exclude expunged records from ordinary public disclosure.
10. Does a Delaware state court search include federal cases?
No. Federal criminal cases are separate and are generally searched through PACER and the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware.
Official Delaware criminal court record resources
- Delaware Courts — Public Access to Judicial Records
- Delaware Courts — Application for Access to Court Records
- Delaware Superior Court
- Delaware Court of Common Pleas
- Justice of the Peace Court — Criminal Proceedings
- Delaware Courts — Calendars
- Delaware Courts — Opinions and Orders
- Delaware Superior Court — Fees
- Delaware Superior Court — Transcript Request
- Delaware State Police — Certified Criminal History
- Delaware Department of Correction — Inmate Locator
- Delaware Courts — Expungement and Pardon
- Delaware Superior Court — Locations
- PACER — Federal Court Records