Connecticut arrest records are public from the moment an arrest is made, and you can search them two main ways: through the Judicial Branch’s free online criminal case lookup for quick information about charges and court dates, or through the State Police Bureau of Identification for a certified criminal history report. The governing statute, CGS § 1-215, requires police to release arrest information without asking why you want it.1Justia. Connecticut Code 1-215 – Record of an Arrest as Public Record If the record you’re looking for is yours, Connecticut also has two separate paths that can wipe it out: automatic erasure and a pardon.
Free Online Search Through the Judicial Branch
The fastest way to check whether someone has been arrested or has a case moving through court is the Connecticut Judicial Branch’s criminal and motor vehicle case lookup at jud.ct.gov/crim.htm. Search by defendant name or docket number. The tool returns three categories of information:2Connecticut Judicial Branch. Criminal / Motor Vehicle Case Look-up
- Convictions, generally within about ten years from sentencing.
- Pending cases that haven’t reached a final disposition.
- Daily dockets showing scheduled court appearances by date and location.
Several things won’t show up here. Youthful offender cases, juvenile matters, infractions, and violations are excluded. Conviction entries drop off earlier than ten years when the Connecticut Practice Book calls for a shorter display period, and erased records disappear entirely.2Connecticut Judicial Branch. Criminal / Motor Vehicle Case Look-up This is also a case-record lookup, not a certified background check. You can’t hand the printout to an employer or licensing board and have it count as official documentation.
Getting a Certified Criminal History Report
For an official report, you go through the State Police Bureau of Identification within the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection (DESPP). Most requests now run through an online portal called the Connecticut Criminal History Request System (CCHRS). Paper request forms are no longer accepted for agencies that use the online system.3Connecticut Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection. State Police Bureau of Identification
Two kinds of searches are available. A name-and-date-of-birth search pulls from the state database and handles most personal and employment-related requests. A fingerprint-based search is more thorough and is required under certain licensing statutes. Fingerprinting is available by appointment at the Bureau of Identification in Middletown or through authorized third-party vendors. Anyone being fingerprinted needs a valid government-issued photo ID, such as a driver’s license, U.S. passport, military ID, or permanent resident card.3Connecticut Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection. State Police Bureau of Identification
If you need to mail something, the address is State Police Bureau of Identification, 1111 Country Club Road, Middletown, CT 06457. DESPP does not accept requests by email or fax.
Fees
The base fee for a state criminal history search is $75.4Connecticut General Assembly. Senate Bill No. 343 Adding a national FBI check and online processing pushes the price higher; one state agency reports a combined cost of $88.25 for the full state-and-federal package. Fingerprinting done at State Police facilities carries a separate $15 fee per card.
Fee waivers are narrow. The Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection waives the $75 fee for anyone requesting a criminal history search in order to apply for a pardon, and third-party fingerprinting vendors cannot charge their convenience fee (up to $30) for pardon-related prints during that same period.4Connecticut General Assembly. Senate Bill No. 343
How Long It Takes
Connecticut does not publish a guaranteed turnaround for criminal history checks. A 2025 news investigation found that FOI requests for State Police reports submitted through the online portal were taking an estimated 12 to 16 months to complete. Name-and-date-of-birth searches through CCHRS may move faster because they draw from a centralized database rather than requiring manual file pulls, but delays stretch during high-volume periods. If you have a licensing deadline or job offer on the line, start early.
What’s in a Connecticut Arrest Record
Under § 1-215, the public arrest record includes the person’s name, race, and address, the date, time, and place of arrest, and the offense charged.1Justia. Connecticut Code 1-215 – Record of an Arrest as Public Record The statute does not list age or date of birth as part of the public arrest record, though that information may appear in related court filings. For warrant arrests, the warrant application and supporting affidavit are also public unless a judge has sealed part of them. For warrantless arrests, the arrest or incident report is public. When something is partially sealed, the unsealed portions still come out, along with a summary of the circumstances leading to the arrest.
Police can redact only in narrow situations: witness identities, details that would compromise an active investigation, and anything a judge has ordered sealed. Records erased under Chapter 961a are excluded from the definition of an arrest record entirely, so they won’t appear in a public search.
When Arrest Records Erase Automatically After a Case
Connecticut automatically erases certain arrest records when a case ends without a conviction. The timing under CGS § 54-142a depends on how the case closed:5Justia. Connecticut Code 54-142a – Erasure of Criminal Records
- Not guilty verdicts and dismissals erase once the time to appeal runs out, which is typically a matter of weeks. If an appeal is filed, erasure happens after the appeal upholds the acquittal or dismissal.
- Nolled charges erase thirteen months after the nolle is entered, as long as prosecution doesn’t resume during that window.
- If a case has been continued at the prosecutor’s request and thirteen months pass with no action, the accused can move to have the charge nolled, which starts the same thirteen-month erasure clock.
People often confuse dismissals with nolles. A dismissal clears quickly; a nolle takes over a year. That difference explains why a search sometimes returns nothing for an arrest that happened in the last year or two: it may already be gone. Once a record is erased, you can swear under oath that you were never arrested for that charge.
Clean Slate: Automatic Erasure of Convictions
Public Act 21-32, known as Clean Slate, goes beyond the older erasure rules by wiping certain convictions automatically after a waiting period. Three categories qualify:6State of Connecticut. Clean Slate Eligibility
- Classified and unclassified misdemeanors erase seven years after the person’s most recent conviction.
- Class D and E felonies, plus unclassified felonies carrying a maximum of five years, erase ten years after the most recent conviction.
- Operating under the influence under § 14-227a follows the ten-year felony timeline. A second DUI within ten years of the first disqualifies both from automatic erasure.
The conviction must have occurred on or after January 1, 2000, and the person must have completed every part of the sentence, including prison, parole, special parole, and probation. No new charges can arise during the waiting period.
Several categories are excluded entirely: family violence crimes, sexual offenses (both violent and nonviolent) under the sex offender registration statutes, and specific offenses including certain weapons charges and stalking. If your conviction falls into an excluded category, Clean Slate won’t help, but a pardon still might.
Pardons When Nothing Erases Automatically
For records that don’t qualify for automatic erasure, the route is the Board of Pardons and Paroles. An absolute pardon fully erases the record. The waiting periods run from the disposition date of the most recent conviction:7State of Connecticut Board of Pardons and Paroles. Eligibility
- Three years for misdemeanors.
- Five years for felonies.
The Board reviews your entire criminal history, so you can’t pick one offense and leave the rest alone. You also can’t apply while on any form of supervision or while any charges are pending in any jurisdiction. If your case was nolled, you’re ineligible until the thirteen-month erasure period has passed, since the record erases automatically at that point.
What Erasure Means for Employment and Background Checks
Connecticut’s employment statute, CGS § 31-51i, bars employers from asking about prior arrests, criminal charges, or convictions on an initial employment application. Exceptions apply when the position requires a security bond or when federal or state law requires the inquiry.8Justia. Connecticut Code 31-51i – Employer Inquiries Re Arrests and Criminal History Record Information After the initial application, an employer can run a background check and ask about convictions before deciding.
Erased records get stronger protection. An employer cannot require you to disclose erased records at any stage, and any application that asks about criminal history must include a notice telling applicants they are not required to disclose erased records, that erased records include dismissed charges, nolled charges, acquittals, pardoned convictions, and records erased by operation of law, and that anyone with erased records is legally considered never to have been arrested for those charges.
Firing or refusing to hire someone solely because of erased records or a pardoned conviction violates state law. That’s the practical value of erasure in Connecticut: a successfully erased record doesn’t just disappear from a database. It gives you the legal right to say, truthfully and under oath, that the arrest never happened.