To look up a Kentucky charge code, start with the Uniform Offense Report (UOR) code list published by the Administrative Office of the Courts, which pairs every numerical charge code with its Kentucky Revised Statutes section and a short offense description.1Kentucky Court of Justice. UOR Code Descriptions List From there, CourtNet 2.0, Kentucky State Police criminal history records, the Kentucky Online Offender Lookup, and the Legislative Research Commission’s statute database each answer a different piece of the question, depending on whether you have a code, a name, or a statute number in hand.
What a Kentucky Charge Code Actually Is
Charge codes are numerical identifiers the AOC assigns to specific criminal statutes. They show up on citations, indictments, court dockets, and criminal history reports so prosecutors, judges, jail staff, and background-check systems can reference the same offense with a single number.
A single statute often generates more than one code. Assault runs from first-degree (a felony involving serious physical injury) down to fourth-degree (a misdemeanor involving minor physical contact), and each degree has its own code. That is why two entries that look almost identical on a record can carry very different penalties. The code tells you the classification; the underlying statute tells you why the charge landed at that level.
Where to Look Up a Kentucky Charge Code
AOC Uniform Offense Report Code List
The AOC’s UOR Code Descriptions list is the most complete public source. It is a downloadable document that maps every charge code to its corresponding KRS section and offense description, and the AOC updates it periodically on the Kentucky Court of Justice website.1Kentucky Court of Justice. UOR Code Descriptions List If you already have a KRS number or an offense name, this is where the answer lives. Open the PDF and use your browser’s find function to search the file directly.
CourtNet 2.0
CourtNet 2.0 is the Kentucky Court of Justice’s public case search. It pulls up criminal and civil case records filed in Kentucky courts, and each entry typically shows the charge code alongside the KRS citation and offense description.2Kentucky Court of Justice. CourtNet 2.0 Case Search This is the right tool when you know a person’s name and want to see the exact codes filed in their case rather than reading them out of a general list.
Kentucky State Police Criminal History Records
KSP maintains criminal history records that include charge codes tied to arrests and prior convictions. A name-based background check costs $20, payable by check or money order to the Kentucky State Treasurer, and can be submitted by mail or in person at the KSP Records Division in Frankfort. Mail requests take roughly ten business days.3Kentucky State Police. Background Checks Fingerprint-based checks that include both state and FBI records exist too, but those run through an approved vendor and are mainly used for employment and licensing.
Kentucky Online Offender Lookup (KOOL)
The Department of Corrections runs KOOL for people currently under state supervision. The form accepts last name, first name, offense name, and KRS code, so you can search by statute number when you have it.4Kentucky Department of Corrections. Kentucky Offender Search – Offender Online Lookup System KOOL One caveat: KOOL shows generalized offense categories rather than the precise AOC charge code that appears in court records, so it works better for confirming what someone was convicted of than for pinning down the code itself.5Kentucky Department of Corrections. Kentucky Offender Search
VINELink
Kentucky participates in VINE (Victim Information and Notification Everyday), a free service that reports custody status and case information. You can search by name and view charge-related details online or by phone, 24 hours a day.6VINELink. Kentucky VINELink
Kentucky Revised Statutes Database
When you already have a KRS section number and want the full text of the statute, use the Legislative Research Commission’s search tool.7Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. Search Options The natural workflow is: charge code on your document, KRS number from the UOR list, then the full statute text here to see how the offense is defined and what penalties attach.
Searching When You Only Have the Offense Name
If you know what the offense is called in plain language but not the statute, keyword searches work, with one catch. Legal terminology often does not match everyday language. What most people call “shoplifting” is filed in Kentucky as “theft by unlawful taking.” A search for “burglary” returns three separate results because the offense comes in three degrees, each with its own code. When a keyword search comes up empty or gives you too many results, look up the relevant chapter of Kentucky’s Penal Code (KRS 500 through 534) and use the statutory name.
Searching When You Have the KRS Number
Going in from the statute side is faster. Pull up the UOR list, search for the KRS number, and the corresponding charge code, offense description, and classification are right there. If your KRS number returns nothing, the statute may have been renumbered, consolidated, or repealed. The Legislative Research Commission database shows the current text of all statutes and notes when sections have been transferred or repealed, so you can trace what happened to the old section number.7Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. Search Options
What the Classification in the Code Tells You
Every Kentucky offense is a felony, misdemeanor, or violation, and the tier is baked into what the charge code means in practice.
Felonies come in four classes:8Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. Kentucky Revised Statutes 532.060 – Sentence of Imprisonment for Felony
- Class A: 20 to 50 years, or life. Murder and first-degree rape sit here.
- Class B: 10 to 20 years.
- Class C: 5 to 10 years.
- Class D: 1 to 5 years. The most common felony class and the one broadly eligible for expungement.
Every felony conviction also carries a mandatory fine of $1,000 to $10,000, or double the defendant’s gain from the offense if that is higher.9Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. Kentucky Revised Statutes 534.030 – Fines for Felonies
Misdemeanors split into two classes:10Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. Kentucky Revised Statutes 532.020 – Designation of Offenses Class A carries up to 12 months in jail and a fine up to $500; Class B carries up to 90 days and a fine up to $250.11Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. Kentucky Revised Statutes 534.040 – Fines for Misdemeanors and Violations Violations sit below both, carry no jail time, and typically involve only a fine, but they still have their own codes in the system.
Some offenses can be charged at more than one level depending on facts like the value of property taken or the degree of injury caused. That is a second reason to pull the underlying statute after finding the code: the code tells you the classification you were charged under, and the statute explains the threshold that put it there.
Using a Charge Code to Check Expungement Eligibility
Checking whether an old conviction can be expunged is one of the most common reasons people run a charge code lookup, and eligibility turns on the specific statute and classification the code points to.
Kentucky allows expungement of most Class D felony convictions. The statute lists specific eligible offenses, including third-degree burglary, theft by unlawful taking, first-degree drug possession, and many fraud-related crimes. A separate provision also opens up Class D felonies generally, as long as the offense did not involve a sex offense, an offense against a child, DUI, abuse of public office, or serious bodily injury or death.12Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. Kentucky Revised Statutes 431.073 – Certain Felony Convictions May Be Vacated
The waiting period is five years after you complete your sentence, probation, or parole, whichever is latest. During those five years and at the time you file, you cannot have any new felony or misdemeanor convictions, and no criminal charges can be pending.12Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. Kentucky Revised Statutes 431.073 – Certain Felony Convictions May Be Vacated The AOC maintains guidance on the certification process and which codes qualify.13Kentucky Court of Justice. Expungement Certification Process
The workflow: find the charge code on your court record, match it to the KRS number on the UOR list, then check that KRS number against the eligible offenses in KRS 431.073. Working from the wrong code or an outdated statute number can leave you thinking a conviction is off-limits when it qualifies, or the other way around.
Common Lookup Problems
The most frequent snag is terminology. Arrest records, court dockets, and corrections databases sometimes describe the same offense a little differently, and everyday names rarely match statutory names. When a keyword search misses, switch to the KRS chapter and use the offense name the statute uses.
Statute changes create the next layer of trouble. Kentucky has revised its criminal code multiple times in recent years, including significant changes to drug offense classifications. When the legislature renumbers or repeals a section, older charge codes may no longer line up with the current UOR list. If you are reading a record from several years back and the code seems to have disappeared, the LRC database will show what happened to the old section.
Third-party background check services do not always update immediately when Kentucky changes its statutes, so a code on a commercial report can mismatch current records. Pulling the actual court file through CourtNet is the most reliable check when something looks off.
When to Bring in a Lawyer
For a straight lookup, the resources above will get you there. Legal help earns its cost when the stakes of getting a code wrong are high.
Expungement petitions are the clearest case. Eligibility requires matching your code to a specific list of qualifying statutes, accounting for amendments since the conviction, and verifying the waiting period and clean-record requirements. An attorney who handles these regularly can catch things the code alone will not show, such as a prior conviction that was reclassified in a way that now makes it eligible.
Charge code errors are the other situation worth an attorney’s attention. If the code on a court record or criminal history report does not match the offense you were actually charged with, the discrepancy can affect sentencing, plea negotiations, and future background checks. A lawyer can move to correct the record. Misreading a code on your own could mean pleading to a more serious offense than you needed to, or missing a diversion option.
One boundary worth flagging: some convictions carry consequences beyond Kentucky’s system that a charge code alone will not surface. A misdemeanor domestic violence conviction triggers a federal prohibition on possessing firearms or ammunition, even when the Kentucky offense is not labeled “domestic violence” by name.14Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. Misdemeanor Crimes of Domestic Violence Prohibitions Federal background-check rules also treat arrests and convictions differently under the Fair Credit Reporting Act: arrests fall off after seven years, convictions can be reported indefinitely.15Federal Register. Fair Credit Reporting – Background Screening If any of those downstream effects are on the table, get advice before relying on a code lookup alone.