Arrest records in Arizona are spread across several distinct systems. The Arizona Judicial Branch’s Public Access to Court Case Information covers case and docket records statewide, but Arizona’s 15 county Sheriffs and Clerks of Court each maintain their own booking logs and local case files. Anyone sentenced to state prison appears in the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry inmate database. Record-relief in Arizona is governed by A.R.S. §13-905 (set-aside) and A.R.S. §13-911 (sealing), not a general expungement law.
If someone you know was just booked tonight, our Arizona inmate search page has phone-first contact info for locating them.
Search Arizona Arrest Records by Name
A nationwide name search pulls records from Arizona and all other states into one preliminary scan, which is useful before you dig into the official county and state portals below. The preliminary scan is free; a full compiled report requires payment. Use it alongside the official Arizona sources, not instead of them.
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How to look up arrest records in Arizona
The Arizona Judicial Branch’s Public Access to Court Case Information is the broadest single search available. It covers Superior Court divisions in all 15 counties, plus many justice court and municipal court dockets. Search by name or case number. You will see charges, hearing dates, dispositions, and attorney-of-record entries where the court has entered them. Because the largest counties also run separate case-search systems, a result here is not necessarily complete — check the county page for your county to find its local court search.
Misdemeanor arrests in Arizona often produce cases in justice courts or city municipal courts rather than Superior Court. Those courts handle misdemeanors, traffic matters, and local ordinance violations. The statewide portal includes many of them, but coverage varies by precinct and municipality. If a misdemeanor case doesn’t appear in the statewide portal, the county page below lists the specific justice court or municipal court contact for that area.
For anyone currently in state prison, search the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry inmate lookup. It shows current custody status, sentence length, and facility location. It does not show county jail detainees — those are held pre-trial or for shorter sentences and appear only in the individual county Sheriff’s booking system.
The Arizona Department of Public Safety maintains Arizona’s statewide criminal-history repository and runs the Arizona Highway Patrol. If you need a certified criminal-history record for employment, licensing, or court purposes, the request goes through Arizona Department of Public Safety rather than through the courts portal. Check the agency’s website for current request procedures and fees.
Arizona also carries a significant tribal layer. Twenty-two federally recognized tribes hold jurisdiction over roughly a quarter of the state’s land. If a person does not appear in a county jail roster, the remaining places to check are the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry inmate lookup, the federal Bureau of Prisons locator, and the relevant tribal authority. Note that Navajo County and Apache County are county names, not tribal nations — whether a specific case falls under tribal or federal jurisdiction is a case-specific determination.
For county-level booking records, each of Arizona’s 15 county Sheriffs maintains its own jail roster and booking log. The county Clerk of Court holds local case files, filing fees, and certified-copy procedures. The county pages listed below this article carry the specific Clerk name, hours, fees, and phone numbers for each county. Start there for anything that requires a certified copy or an in-person records request.
Are arrest records public in Arizona?
Arizona’s public-records framework is set by A.R.S. §§ 39-121 et seq., which establishes a default-open rule: government records are public unless a specific statute or court order closes them. Arrest records, booking logs, and court dockets generally fall within that default-public category.
Several categories of records are shielded from public view. Juvenile records are confidential under Arizona law and are not accessible through the standard public portals. Victim-identifying information is routinely redacted from publicly released documents. Records sealed under A.R.S. §13-911 are closed to most public view after the sealing order takes effect — though law enforcement retains access.
Booking photographs are public records under Arizona law and can be requested from the agency that holds them. Whether a particular Sheriff’s office posts them online varies by county. Check the county page or call the Sheriff’s office directly rather than assuming a public gallery exists.
An arrest record does not equal a conviction record. An arrest that did not result in charges, or a case that was dismissed or ended in acquittal, still appears in the court docket and in booking logs unless the record is later sealed. Arizona has no general expungement statute — the only Arizona law using the word “expungement” is A.R.S. §36-2862, which covers a closed list of past marijuana offenses only. For everything else, the available relief is a set-aside under A.R.S. §13-905 or a sealing under A.R.S. §13-911.
Open-records requests for documents not available online are submitted to the custodian agency — the Sheriff’s office for booking records, the Clerk of Court for case files. Agencies may charge a reasonable copying fee. If a request is denied, the requester can seek review in Superior Court under A.R.S. §§ 39-121 et seq.
What’s in an Arizona arrest record?
An Arizona arrest record draws from two separate systems, and they show different fields. Understanding which system you’re looking at helps you know what to expect.
On the Sheriff’s side — the county jail booking entry — you will typically see the person’s full name, date of birth, booking date and time, arresting agency, charges as listed at booking, bail or bond amount if set, and current custody status. The charges at booking reflect what the arresting officer wrote; they may differ from what the prosecutor ultimately files in court.
On the court side — the docket in Arizona Judicial Branch’s Public Access to Court Case Information — you will see the case number, the formal charges as filed by the prosecutor, all hearing dates and outcomes, the judge assigned, the attorney of record for both sides, and the final disposition. Dispositions include guilty plea, trial verdict, dismissal, or deferred prosecution. If a case is still pending, the disposition field will be blank or show the next scheduled hearing.
Certified copies of court records are obtained from the Clerk of Court in the county where the case was filed. The county pages below list current fees and request procedures for each county’s Clerk. Certified copies of booking records are requested from the Sheriff’s office that made the arrest.
Mugshot release practice varies across Arizona’s 15 counties. Some Sheriff’s offices release booking photos on request; others do not post them publicly. Call the relevant Sheriff’s office or check the county page for that county’s current practice. Never assume a photo is or is not available without confirming with the holding agency.
How to seal or expunge an arrest record in Arizona
Arizona’s sealing statute, A.R.S. §13-911, took effect in 2023 and is the primary route to closing an arrest or conviction record from public view. It is not expungement — the record still exists and remains visible to law enforcement — but it is removed from public court searches and most background checks after the order is granted.
Eligibility depends on the outcome of the case and, for convictions, on a waiting period tied to the offense class. A case that was dismissed, resulted in acquittal, or was never charged often has a streamlined path to sealing — in many dismissed cases, the waiting period is shorter or waived entirely. For convictions, the waiting period runs from the date of absolute discharge from all supervision, including probation and parole. The length of that period scales with the class of the offense.
Certain offenses are not eligible for sealing under A.R.S. §13-911, including most dangerous offenses and offenses requiring sex-offender registration. Check the statute text or consult an attorney before assuming eligibility.
The petition to seal is filed in the court where the original case was heard — the Superior Court division for the relevant county, or the justice or municipal court for misdemeanor cases. The petition names the case number, the charges, and the grounds for sealing. The court notifies the prosecutor, who may object. A hearing may be set. If the court grants the petition, it issues an order directing all agencies holding records of the case to seal their copies.
Filing fees vary by court. Courts may waive fees for petitioners who qualify as indigent — ask the Clerk of Court about the fee-waiver process when you file. You can file a sealing petition without an attorney. If the case is straightforward and the eligibility criteria are clearly met, self-petition is a realistic option. For cases involving multiple charges, prior records, or prosecutorial objection, attorney assistance is worth considering. The State Bar of Arizona’s Find a Lawyer directory lets you search by practice area and county.
A separate path exists under A.R.S. §13-905, the set-aside statute. A set-aside dismisses the judgment of guilt and lifts most collateral penalties, but it does not seal the record — the case remains publicly visible with a notation that the judgment was set aside. Many people pursue a set-aside first because it has no waiting period tied to offense class, then later pursue sealing once the waiting period is met.
For past marijuana offenses specifically, A.R.S. §36-2862 provides expungement — the only Arizona statute that uses that word — for a defined list of offenses that were legal under Proposition 207. That process is separate from A.R.S. §13-911 and has its own eligibility criteria.
| Resource | What it confirms | What it cannot confirm | Next step |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arizona Judicial Branch’s Public Access to Court Case Information | Case filings, docket entries, dispositions, attorney of record across most Arizona courts | Booking-side data; some justice and municipal court records not yet integrated | Search by name or case number; then check the county page for local court supplements |
| Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry | Current state prison inmates, sentence length, facility location | County jail detainees; pre-trial detainees; federal or tribal custody | Use the inmate data search at the agency’s website; for county jail, go to the county page |
| Arizona Department of Public Safety | Certified statewide criminal-history records for employment, licensing, or court use | Real-time booking status; court docket details | Submit a criminal-history request through the agency’s official request process |
| A.R.S. §§ 39-121 et seq. | Arizona’s public-records law — default-open rule, request procedures, denial remedies | Does not itself provide records; governs access rights only | Cite this statute when submitting a formal public-records request to any Arizona agency |
| A.R.S. §13-911 (Sealing statute) | Eligibility criteria, waiting periods, and petition process for sealing Arizona records | Does not itself seal records; a court order is required | File a petition in the court where the original case was heard; check fee-waiver eligibility with the Clerk |
| Nationwide Criminal Background Check | Preliminary name-based scan across multiple states, useful for multi-state searches | Not a certified record; does not replace official Arizona court or agency records | Run the name search above |
Related Arizona record searches
Two sibling searches cover related ground at the statewide level:
- Arizona warrant search — to check for an active warrant statewide.
- Arizona inmate search — to locate someone in custody.
Arrest pages for each of Arizona’s 15 counties — with county-specific Clerk contacts, Sheriff booking lines, fees, and hours — are listed in the county index below this article.
Sources & official Arizona records systems
This page was verified 2026-09-01 against the official sources listed below.
- Arizona Judicial Branch’s Public Access to Court Case Information — statewide case and docket search for Superior, justice, and municipal courts.
- Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry — Inmate Data Search — current state prison population, sentence, and facility data.
- Arizona Department of Public Safety — statewide criminal-history repository and certified-record request procedures.
- A.R.S. §§ 39-121 et seq. — Arizona Public Records Law — default-open rule, request rights, and denial remedies.
- A.R.S. §13-911 — Sealing of Case Records — eligibility, waiting periods, and petition process; effective 2023.
- A.R.S. §13-905 — Setting Aside Judgment of Guilt — set-aside procedure and effect on collateral penalties.
- A.R.S. §36-2862 — Marijuana Expungement — the only Arizona statute providing expungement; covers a defined list of past marijuana offenses under Proposition 207.
- State Bar of Arizona’s Find a Lawyer directory — searchable by practice area and county for attorney referrals.
If you find an error or outdated information on this page, please submit a correction. Verified corrections are reflected within 48 hours.
Frequently asked questions
How do I look up an arrest record in Arizona?
Search the Arizona Judicial Branch’s Public Access to Court Case Information by name or case number to find court-side docket entries across most Arizona courts. For booking-side data — jail roster, booking date, charges as written at arrest — go to the county page for the county where the arrest occurred; each of Arizona’s 15 county Sheriffs maintains its own booking system. If the person is in state prison rather than a county jail, search the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry inmate lookup directly.
How do I get an Arizona arrest record sealed or expunged?
Arizona has no general expungement law. The main route to closing a record from public view is sealing under A.R.S. §13-911, available since 2023. File a petition in the court where the original case was heard — Superior Court for felonies, justice or municipal court for most misdemeanors. The court notifies the prosecutor, may hold a hearing, and issues a sealing order if eligibility is met. Waiting periods depend on offense class and run from the end of all supervision. For a dismissed or acquitted case, the path is often shorter. The State Bar of Arizona’s Find a Lawyer directory can connect you with an attorney if the case is complex.
Are Arizona arrest records free to search?
The Arizona Judicial Branch’s Public Access to Court Case Information is free to search online. County Sheriff booking rosters are generally free to view online where posted. Certified copies of court records or booking documents carry a fee set by the Clerk of Court or the Sheriff’s office — check the county page for current amounts. The nationwide name search above provides a free preliminary scan; a full compiled report requires payment.