Connecticut Criminal Records Search: Cases & Public Records

Connecticut provides public access to certain criminal court information through the Judicial Branch. For most people searching by a defendant’s name or docket number, that is the first useful stop.

The Connecticut Judicial Branch Criminal/Motor Vehicle Case Lookup is the official starting point for searchable public criminal case information. It is different from a fingerprint-based criminal-history check and does not show every case ever filed.

Pending cases versus criminal convictions

Connecticut’s online conviction display has special limits. The Judicial Branch’s published disclaimer describes a generally ten-year conviction display period, exclusions for certain case categories, and changes caused by erasures, corrections and pardons. Do not interpret the absence of an online entry as an official clearance certificate.

Read the Judicial Branch criminal case lookup disclaimer (PDF).

1. Open the official Judicial Branch search page. Visit CT Criminal/Motor Vehicle Case Lookup. Do not enter personal details into a commercial website unless you understand who operates it.
2. Choose the correct type of search. Select the pending criminal or motor vehicle case route for an active matter, or the conviction route if you want publicly displayed past conviction information.
3. Choose defendant name or docket-number search. If a docket number is available, use that first. Otherwise, use the defendant-name search and follow the portal’s field instructions.
4. Enter available information accurately. Use the correct spelling. If the search offers additional filters, narrow using available court, date or other relevant information.
5. Review possible matches. Compare the docket number, defendant information, charge description, court location and relevant dates. Multiple people can share the same name.
6. Open the relevant case. Review the charge, court events, pending status or disposition as displayed. A criminal charge alone does not establish guilt.
7. Record the docket number and court location. You will need these details if you contact the criminal clerk’s office for documents, a disposition or certification.
8. Verify consequential results with the custodian. For official employment, licensing, immigration or court purposes, determine whether the requesting organization requires a State Police criminal-history record or certified court documentation.

Connecticut Judicial Branch · Judicial Branch Self-Help

Finding a matching case is only the beginning. Read the final court outcome before making any assumption about the person named.

For a formal Connecticut criminal-history check, use the State Police Bureau of Identification (SPBI), part of the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection (DESPP).

Connecticut has multiple procedures, including record requests by mail, fingerprint-based requests and agency-specific CCHRS submissions. The correct process depends on why the record is needed.

1. Visit the SPBI records page. Open the State Police Bureau of Identification and find the Criminal Records Unit section.
2. Select the proper request process. Follow the state’s Criminal History Record Request Form instructions. For visas, immigration, foreign adoption or similar purposes, check the separate Letter of Good Conduct requirements rather than assuming a standard record request is sufficient.
3. Check whether fingerprints are required. Certain requests need fingerprints captured by an authorized law-enforcement agency. Agency-sponsored checks may involve CCHRS pre-enrollment and service codes.
4. Verify the fee for your request. Review the latest state fee notice and form. Connecticut has posted a rate-change notice effective October 1, 2026; do not rely solely on older fee tables.
5. Submit through the specified channel. The State Police Criminal Records Unit page instructs users to send applicable mail requests by U.S. Mail and says it does not accept email or fax submissions for those requests.
6. Retain the response and request details. Keep a copy of the official report and follow the listed agency process if the result appears incomplete or inaccurate.

Searching the public Connecticut Judicial Branch case lookup is generally free. Official criminal-history checks, fingerprinting, copies and special records may carry charges.

Verify State Police criminal-history and fingerprint charges.

If the Judicial Branch search shows a case but you need an official court document, the criminal clerk’s office serving the court location is the appropriate next contact.

1. Find the case online. Record the complete docket number, court location and relevant charge or judgment.
2. Identify the courthouse. Use the Connecticut court locations directory or Judicial Branch website to locate the responsible criminal clerk.
3. Specify the record you need. Ask for the judgment, disposition, sentencing document, docket history or another identifiable filing.
4. Confirm access and certification. Ask whether it is public, whether a plain or certified copy is available, and what charges or identification requirements apply.
5. Request delivery. Follow the clerk’s available in-person, mail or other permitted procedure.

For help navigating the court system, Connecticut Judicial Branch lists the Court Service Center email Court.ServiceCenter@jud.ct.gov. It is a general procedural resource, not a substitute for the specific case custodian.

The Connecticut Department of Correction maintains a public inmate information service for people in its custody. Connecticut’s correctional system can hold both sentenced people and individuals awaiting trial, so custody does not necessarily establish a conviction.

DOC advises that the information may change quickly, and some individuals are excluded from public display. Verify an official criminal conviction through the court or State Police rather than relying on incarceration status alone.

Connecticut’s Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection maintains the state’s publicly searchable sex-offender registry.

1. Open the official registry page. Use the Connecticut government Sex Offender Registry service.
2. Follow the public search link. Search by the name or location tools provided by the registry.
3. Read identifying information. Compare the available physical description, photograph, address and offense details.
4. Review official warnings. A registry entry is not an individualized finding that someone is currently dangerous or likely to reoffend.

Connecticut’s Clean Slate program is a major reason that certain criminal conviction records may not appear in a public lookup. The program provides for automatic erasure of some eligible convictions and petition-based erasure of others.

Automatic Clean Slate erasure generally concerns eligible convictions for qualifying conduct and convictions on or after January 1, 2000. Certain older eligible convictions require a court petition instead.

What to do if an eligible conviction remains visible

1. Check the official eligibility criteria. Open Connecticut Clean Slate Eligibility and review offense exclusions and waiting-period requirements.
2. Obtain your current criminal history. Use the Connecticut State Police Bureau of Identification procedure.
3. Determine which route applies. Automatic erasure, Clean Slate hearing request, older-conviction court petition and pardon processes are not interchangeable.
4. Follow the official instructions. Submit the appropriate form and supporting records to the court or DESPP as directed.

Connecticut state criminal case lookup does not replace searches in the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut.

Federal criminal dockets and documents are generally searched through PACER. Registration is free, but record access may generate fees, subject to PACER’s rules and available exemptions.

Public availability does not mean a record can automatically be used for every purpose. Employment and tenant screening may involve the Fair Credit Reporting Act and Connecticut-specific legal requirements.

• Do not treat a pending charge as a conviction.
• Check whether a conviction was reversed, erased, pardoned or otherwise modified.
• Do not assume a matching name identifies the correct individual.
• Observe applicable restrictions on erased and confidential records.
• When using a consumer-reporting agency, comply with applicable notice, authorization, dispute and adverse-action obligations.

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