Arrest information is public and can be obtained by contacting the law enforcement agency or using online search engines. Arrests require a warrant, except for citizen’s arrests. The Freedom of Information Act guarantees release of arrest information with few exceptions.
All information about the arrest is in the public domain, so it is up to the party who wants to know the information to apply to the agency under whose jurisdiction the arrest was made. There are also online search engines that collect arrest information for free or for a small fee. Multiple law enforcement agencies have the power to arrest, but all require an arrest warrant issued by a judge to comply with the law. The only exception is a citizen’s arrest, where a person witnesses a felony or other crime and attempts to detain a person until the proper authorities can bring the would-be criminal into submission.
Information about the arrest is public information and can be accessed by contacting the law enforcement agency directly, usually through a records office. The request can be made in person or in writing, especially if authenticated. This request is then fulfilled and the information is released. There may be a small fee for making copies, but this service is usually free to the public.
There are also online search engines that can provide detailed information about a person’s life, including date of birth and other demographic information. Some of this is arrest information that details whether a person has been arrested, whether an arrest warrant is outstanding for a person, and how many times a person has been arrested and for what crimes. This is useful when running a background check.
The Freedom of Information Act, signed into law in 1966 by President Lyndon Johnson, guarantees the release of arrest information with few exceptions. The law only applies to the executive branches of government, and there are nine exceptions to the law that protect against the release of highly sensitive or classified information. This law was designed to appease the populace who demanded to know more about the actions of its federal government. Information is processed and released through citizen requests.
Police departments, sheriff departments, state highway patrol officers, and branches of the federal government all have the power to arrest a person for a criminal act. However, they must first go to a judge and get him to issue an arrest warrant for the person accused of a crime. Then the person can be picked up and arrested on suspicion of committing a crime. Arrests and arrest warrants are both public information about arrests, so simply contact the agencies to access the information.
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