Minnesota County Criminal Court Records

Minnesota has 87 counties, each with its own District Court that handles criminal cases and maintains criminal court records. The state is divided into 10 judicial districts, and every county falls under one of them. The Court Administrator in each county manages case files, handles copy requests, and can help you find specific criminal records. Search options, courthouse hours, and local procedures vary slightly from county to county. Select a county below to find court contact details, addresses, phone numbers, local case search tools, and resources for criminal court records in that area.

Aitkin Anoka Becker Beltrami Benton Big Stone Blue Earth Brown Carlton Carver Cass Chippewa Chisago Clay Clearwater Cook Cottonwood Crow Wing Dakota Dodge Douglas Faribault Fillmore Freeborn Goodhue Grant Hennepin Houston Hubbard Isanti Itasca Jackson Kanabec Kandiyohi Kittson Koochiching Lac qui Parle Lake Lake of the Woods Le Sueur Lincoln Lyon Mahnomen Marshall Martin McLeod Meeker Mille Lacs Morrison Mower Murray Nicollet Nobles Norman Olmsted Otter Tail Pennington Pine Pipestone Polk Pope Ramsey Red Lake Redwood Renville Rice Rock Roseau Scott Sherburne Sibley St. Louis Stearns Steele Stevens Swift Todd Traverse Wabasha Wadena Waseca Washington Watonwan Wilkin Winona Wright Yellow Medicine

How Minnesota County Courts Handle Criminal Records

Minnesota uses a unified court system. There is one District Court for the whole state, but it operates through 10 judicial districts and 87 county courthouses. Each county has a Court Administrator who is responsible for keeping all criminal case files for that county. When a criminal case is filed, it stays at that county courthouse for its entire life, from arraignment through sentencing and any post-conviction proceedings.

The judicial districts group counties together for administrative reasons, but each county still runs its own day-to-day operations. A case filed in Olmsted County stays in Olmsted. A case filed in Hennepin County stays in Hennepin. There is no transfer of records between counties unless a case is moved by court order. This means you need to search in the right county first.

Most counties now participate in the Minnesota Court Records Online (MCRO) system, which gives you free basic case lookups by name, case number, or citation. Not every county has the same level of online access, and documents filed before July 1, 2015 may require an in-person or mail request directly to the Court Administrator's office.

Note: The MCRO system is down for maintenance every Sunday from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM.

Minnesota's 10 Judicial Districts

The 10 judicial districts divide the state's 87 counties. The First District covers counties in the southeast like Carver, Dakota, Goodhue, Le Sueur, McLeod, Scott, and Sibley. The Second District is Ramsey County alone, which includes St. Paul. The Third District covers the southeast region including Dodge, Fillmore, Freeborn, Houston, Mower, Olmsted, Rice, Steele, Wabasha, and Winona counties.

The Fourth District is Hennepin County, home to Minneapolis, and it handles more criminal cases than any other district in the state. The Fifth District covers southwestern Minnesota, including Blue Earth, Brown, Faribault, Jackson, Lincoln, Lyon, Martin, Murray, Nicollet, Nobles, Pipestone, Redwood, Rock, Watonwan, and several other counties. The Sixth District is in northeastern Minnesota, covering Carlton, Cook, Lake, and St. Louis counties.

The Seventh District spans central Minnesota, including Becker, Benton, Clay, Douglas, Mille Lacs, Morrison, Otter Tail, Stearns, Todd, and Wadena. The Eighth District covers the west-central area with counties like Big Stone, Chippewa, Grant, Kandiyohi, Lac qui Parle, Meeker, Pope, Renville, Stevens, Swift, Traverse, Wilkin, and Yellow Medicine. The Ninth District is a large northern district that includes Beltrami, Cass, Clearwater, Hubbard, Itasca, Koochiching, Lake of the Woods, Mahnomen, Marshall, Norman, Pennington, Polk, Red Lake, and Roseau. The Tenth District covers the metro suburbs, including Anoka, Chisago, Isanti, Kanabec, Pine, Sherburne, Washington, and Wright counties.

What You Can Find in County Criminal Court Records

County criminal court records in Minnesota cover a wide range of case types. Felony charges, gross misdemeanor cases, and standard misdemeanor cases all get filed at the county District Court. The public case record typically shows the parties involved, the charges filed, dates of hearings, the assigned judge, and the outcome, including any sentence imposed.

Public documents filed on or after July 1, 2015 are available to view online through MCRO. Older case documents require a direct request to the Court Administrator. Fees for copies are set by state rule and vary slightly by county. Most counties charge around $0.25 per page for paper copies, and some charge a flat fee for certified copies. Each county page on this site lists the local fee schedule and contact information so you know exactly what to expect before you go.

Some records are not public. Cases involving juveniles are generally sealed. Domestic abuse petitions filed before service are restricted. Search warrants and certain pre-trial materials may be withheld. If a case was expunged under Minnesota law, it will not show up in public searches. Each county follows the same state rules on what is public and what is not, but local staff can answer questions about specific cases.

Note: The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) at dps.mn.gov offers a separate criminal history search for $8.00 per name, which pulls conviction data from across all counties statewide.

How to Search for Criminal Court Records by County

Start with the Minnesota Court Records Online portal if you want a quick name or case number search. It covers all 87 counties and is free for basic lookups. If you need copies of documents, you will need to either register for an MCRO account to download them online, or contact the county Court Administrator directly.

Each county has its own courthouse address and phone number. Court Administrators can tell you if a case exists, confirm case numbers, and process copy requests. Some offices allow walk-in requests during business hours; others prefer that you call ahead or submit a written request. If you are not sure which county handled a case, the MCRO name search will scan all counties at once and show you which courthouse the case is in.

For statewide criminal history checks, use the BCA's Public Criminal History Search. This is different from MCRO because it focuses on convictions, not just case filings. It covers felony and gross misdemeanor convictions going back 15 years from the end of the sentence. It does not include arrest records without a conviction or cases where charges were dismissed.

Select any county from the list above to get specific contact information, courthouse address, local search tools, and guidance on requesting criminal court records in that county.