Criminal records document arrests, charges, convictions, and incarceration. They are maintained by state criminal-history repositories, courts, sheriffs, and corrections agencies. Some pieces — court dockets, inmate locators, and warrant lists — are searchable online for free, while compiled statewide criminal histories are restricted and often fee-based.
Last Updated: June 2026 · Reviewed quarterly by the Searchadex editorial team.
A criminal record is a compilation of an individual's interactions with the criminal-justice system: arrests, formal charges, court dispositions, convictions, and sentences. The most complete version — a 'rap sheet' or statewide criminal-history record — is held by a state's central repository, usually run by the state police or Department of Public Safety.
Different agencies hold different pieces. Courts hold case dockets and dispositions; sheriffs and police hold arrest and booking data; corrections departments run inmate locators; and the FBI maintains the national Interstate Identification Index used for official background checks.
Access depends on purpose. Court records are broadly public, and many states publish free inmate and warrant lookups. But a full compiled criminal-history check is restricted — often to the subject, law enforcement, or FCRA-authorized employers — and is not the same as searching individual court cases.
Court dockets, inmate locators, and warrant lists are often free; compiled statewide criminal histories are restricted. The table summarizes free online criminal-justice resources for the 15 largest states.
| State | Free Online? | Official Portal | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | Partial | CA DOJ (record review) + CDCR Inmate Locator | Compiled history restricted to the subject; CDCR locator free. |
| Texas | Partial | Texas DPS Computerized Criminal History + TDCJ locator | DPS public site charges per search; TDCJ inmate search free. |
| Florida | Partial | FDLE Criminal History + FL DOC locator | FDLE charges a per-search fee; DOC inmate search free. |
| New York | Yes | NY court WebCrims + DOCCS inmate lookup | Free criminal case search and inmate locator. |
| Pennsylvania | Yes | PA UJS Portal + PA DOC inmate locator | Free statewide criminal docket search and inmate lookup. |
| Illinois | Partial | Illinois SP (ISP) + IDOC inmate search | ISP background check fee-based; IDOC locator free. |
| Ohio | Yes | Ohio courts + ODRC offender search | Free county criminal dockets and inmate search. |
| Georgia | Yes | Georgia courts + GDC offender query | Free offender query; compiled GCIC history restricted. |
| North Carolina | Yes | NC eCourts + NC DAC offender search | Free criminal case and offender public-information search. |
| Michigan | Partial | Michigan ICHAT + MDOC OTIS | ICHAT history fee-based; OTIS offender lookup free. |
| New Jersey | Yes | NJ Courts + NJ DOC inmate lookup | Free criminal case and inmate search. |
| Virginia | Yes | Virginia Judiciary + VADOC inmate locator | Free criminal case search and inmate locator. |
| Washington | Partial | WATCH (WSP) + WA DOC locator | WATCH conviction search low-cost; DOC locator free. |
| Arizona | Yes | Arizona courts + ADCRR inmate datasearch | Free criminal case and inmate datasearch. |
| Tennessee | Yes | TBI + TDOC Felony Offender Lookup (FOIL) | Free felony offender lookup; compiled TBI history fee-based. |
You can find pieces for free — court dockets, inmate locators, and warrant lists are often online at no cost. A compiled, official statewide criminal-history check usually requires consent and a fee.
Court records of criminal cases are largely public, but compiled criminal-history reports are restricted. Sealed and expunged records are removed from public access by law.
Employers use FCRA-compliant screening companies or request official records through the state repository or FBI with the subject's consent — not by piecing together free court searches.
A court record covers one case in one court. A criminal history is a compiled, statewide record of all of a person's criminal-justice contacts, held by the state repository.
Yes. State Department of Corrections inmate locators and county jail rosters let you search by name for current and often past incarceration, free of charge.
No. Free public-record searches are not FCRA-compliant and cannot legally be used for employment, housing, or credit decisions. Use an authorized screening provider for those purposes.
Official portals are perfect for verifying a single record. When you need compiled reports — combined people search, contact data, or multi-source background information — these professional lookup tools go further. They are paid services, not government sources.
People search, contact info, and background reports.
Reverse phone, email, and people lookup.
Background checks and public-records reports.
Disclosure: links to professional tools are affiliate links. Searchadex may earn a commission if you sign up, at no extra cost to you. These are not government sources, and results are not FCRA-compliant for employment, housing, or credit decisions.
Occasional updates when we add new record types, states, or official portals. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.