Checking Criminal History in Pulaski County
No one Pulaski County criminal history source is complete. Begin with the official channel that matches the question. Search ARCourts is best for filed criminal cases, hearings, charges, and dispositions. The Pulaski Circuit and County Clerk supplies certified copies and helps with court documents that are missing online. The sheriff's current roster answers custody questions, while PCSO NextRequest reaches older booking or sheriff-held records. ARCH supplies the state's limited public name-based history.
The Search ARCourts interface shows why a court search works best with a participant name or case number.
Its court filters help separate Pulaski County Circuit Court matters from participating district-court records.
- Search the person's legal name in Search ARCourts, or enter the case number when known.
- Confirm the court, case type, party, charges, and dates before treating a match as the right person.
- Check the PCSO roster when present custody or a recent booking is the main concern.
- Ask the record-holding police agency or sheriff for the incident or booking file when the public portal is not enough.
- Use ARCH for a separate Arkansas-wide public result, then order certified court copies if proof of a filing or disposition is needed.
Spelling and date of birth matter. A name-only match can point to the wrong person, and a current jail list is not an archive. Read the source label and date before drawing a conclusion.
Pulaski County Records Follow Four Tracks
An arrest can create four related files. The arresting police agency writes an incident or arrest report. If the person enters the county jail, the Pulaski County Regional Detention Facility creates a booking record. A district or circuit court creates the case file after charges reach the court. Fingerprinted arrest data and later outcomes may also flow to the Arkansas Crime Information Center. Those files can differ because each custodian records a different event.
| Record track | Official Pulaski County channel | What it answers |
|---|---|---|
| Police report | Arresting agency records unit | What officers reported |
| Booking | PCSO roster or NextRequest | Jail intake and custody |
| Court case | Search ARCourts and County Records | Filed charges and court outcome |
| State history | ACIC and Arkansas State Police | Public statewide repository result |
Flow: police report → county booking → filed court case → disposition reported to ACIC. A gap at one stage does not prove that no other record exists.
Arkansas Official Background Checks
Arkansas Criminal History, known as ARCH, is the official public name-search product created under state law. It costs $24 for each search or selected result, takes debit or credit cards, and does not refund a no-result search. The user enters a legal first name, last name, sex, date of birth, and email before payment. ARCH is Arkansas-only and name based. It is neither certified nor confirmed by fingerprints.
The official ARCH portal sets out the fee, required details, and limits before a Pulaski County criminal records query begins.
That warning matters because each possible match selected after the first can trigger another $24 charge.
| Product | Cost | Scope |
|---|---|---|
| ARCH name search | $24 per search/result | Limited public Arkansas history |
| Certified court document | $5 per document | Clerk-sealed Pulaski court copy |
| Certified state history | Ask ASP | Requested in person or by mail |
For a certified state result, contact the Arkansas State Police Identification Bureau at One State Police Plaza Drive, Little Rock, AR 72209. A person reviewing or challenging their own ACIC history may use the Authorization for Review of Criminal History Information form. If the record is wrong, ACIC directs the person or attorney to obtain correct court documentation and have the court send it to ACIC.
Pulaski County Case Search Fields
Search ARCourts is the public court route for Pulaski County criminal case data. Arkansas Judiciary says all circuit courts provide case statistical information, while some district courts also participate. A result may show parties, the judge, filings, charges and dispositions, future events, judgments, and links to some public documents. Administrative Order 19 restricts confidential details and some online access.
| Field | Use | Search note |
|---|---|---|
| Search by | Participants or case number | Choose one route |
| Participant name | Find a person or party | Try exact legal spelling |
| Case number | Open a known matter | Formats vary by court |
| Court filters | Narrow jurisdiction | Select Pulaski court when available |
The Pulaski County Records Department is the fallback for older, missing, or certified documents. Its direct number is 501-340-8766, and its counter is in Room 103 at 401 West Markham Street, Little Rock. Certified copies cannot be emailed. Mail requests should identify the parties and describe the requested document.
Criminal Record Types
Pulaski County criminal records are grouped by the event and the office that made them. Arrest reports belong to the police or sheriff agency involved. Booking records belong to the county jail. Court files begin when charges reach district or circuit court. ACIC holds repository data, while warrants remain tied to the issuing court and law-enforcement process. Registry and supervision records follow their own state and local rules.
- Arrest and incident reports: describe the officer's account, arrest details, and initial allegations.
- Booking records: document jail intake, custody, bond, and the listed arresting agency.
- Criminal case files: show court events, filed charges, pleas, dispositions, and judgments.
- Warrants: are court orders that may require a direct call to the issuing district court.
- Repository and registry records: show only the information state law permits those systems to release.
The Pulaski County District Court site helps explain its misdemeanor, preliminary felony, warrant, and criminal-traffic work.
A district-court entry marked “PASS TO FILE” means a felony charge awaits circuit filing or possible reduction. It is not a final disposition.
PCSO Keeps Booking Records
The Pulaski County Sheriff's Office sits at the center of county custody records. Its detention staff maintains permanent paper files, census logs, incarceration reports, sealing orders, and booking data. The FOI/Court function also responds to public-record requests and subpoenas, while moving dockets, warrants, and arrest disposition reports among courts, prosecutors, and agencies.
The official PCSO home page identifies the sheriff's public contacts and detention line.
Use the non-emergency number, 501-340-6963, for general sheriff questions and 501-340-7001 for detention questions.
Pulaski County Records
Room 103, 401 West Markham St.
Little Rock, AR 72201
501-340-8766
Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
PCSO and Detention
2900 South Woodrow
Little Rock, AR 72204
501-340-7001
Call to confirm the right custody channel.
Pulaski County District Court
3001 W. Roosevelt Road
Little Rock, AR 72204
501-340-6832
Criminal and traffic department
Inside a Pulaski County Criminal Record
The source determines what a Pulaski County criminal record shows. A booking file reports intake and custody facts. A case file records what the court did. ARCH releases a narrower state result. Comparing those three views prevents a charge from being mistaken for a conviction or an old roster absence from being read as proof that no arrest occurred.
| Name and identifiers | Party name, aliases where released, and identifiers used to distinguish records. |
|---|---|
| Arrest or booking data | Intake date, listed charges, arresting agency, bond, and custody status where public. |
| Charges and statutes | Alleged offenses as filed or entered, often with statute references. |
| Disposition | Current or final outcome, such as dismissal, conviction, or acquittal. |
| Sentence | Fine, custody, probation, restitution, or other court order. |
| Case events | Filings, hearings, future dates, judgments, and some public documents. |
The County Records Department page confirms its role as the Pulaski County court-document repository and copy counter.
Its $5 certified-document service is the direct route when a seal-bearing court copy is required.
Pulaski County Jail Serves Twelve Agencies
The Pulaski County Regional Detention Facility opened in 1994 and is Arkansas's largest county detention facility. PCSO says it houses more than 1,200 detainees each day, supports twelve law-enforcement agencies, and coordinates with thirty-three state and local courts. That scale explains why a Little Rock, North Little Rock, or Sherwood police arrest may lead to a PCSO booking rather than a long-term city jail record.
The PCSO detention page describes the county jail's Court Liaison, inmate records, FOI, classification, release, and court-support work.
Those units preserve the custody trail even after a name drops from the current public roster.
Court Liaison prepares daily court lists, coordinates video arraignment, enters information after book-in, and processes court releases. Inmate Records keeps sealing notices and incarceration reports. The jail's direct-supervision model also classifies detainees by past history and current conduct. None of that makes a booking proof of guilt. It records custody and operations.
Public Access Laws in Arkansas
Arkansas law separates ordinary public records, court records, repository history, sealed matters, and registry data. The Arkansas Freedom of Information Act generally opens public records, subject to exemptions and a specific request. Yet ACIC criminal-history data is not simply released as an ordinary FOIA file. Court access follows Administrative Order 19, which protects confidential and restricted material even when the public case entry remains visible.
Key Arkansas laws:
Ark. Code Ann. § 25-19-101 et seq. governs access to public records, with exemptions.
Ark. Code Ann. § 25-19-105 favors inspection and copying while allowing protected details to be redacted.
Ark. Code Ann. § 12-12-1501 et seq. creates the limited paid ARCH public name check.
Ark. Code Ann. § 12-12-1508 keeps covered criminal-history information outside ordinary FOIA disclosure.
Administrative Order 19 governs public and restricted access to Arkansas court files.
An Arkansas FOIA requester should name the custodian and describe the file with enough detail to locate it. Agencies may seek prepayment when reproduction costs exceed $25. A broad criminal-history request sent to the wrong office can fail even though a narrower incident, booking, or court record is public.
Pulaski County Sheriff Request Fallback
Use PCSO NextRequest when a released person no longer appears on the current roster or when the needed item is a sheriff incident, jail, or booking record. The portal also displays prior requests and responsive documents, so a record may already be available. Accident reports are routed to the separate Arkansas crash-report system. County records not held by PCSO go through Pulaski County Government NextRequest.
The PCSO public-records portal provides the official request and response channel.
A focused description should name the person, approximate date, agency, incident type, and desired document when those facts are known.
The form offers categories such as Documents Request and Incident Reports, a description field, contact details, and possible attachments. PCSO does not publish a general copy-fee schedule in the inspected source. Call the office rather than guessing at cost or timing.
Sealed, Expunged, and Restricted Records
Arkansas now calls its main public-record relief process sealing, although older sources may say expungement. Juvenile files, dismissed and not-guilty charges, unresolved misdemeanor arrests, old open felony arrests, active warrants, sealed matters, and pardoned convictions do not appear in ARCH public results. Administrative Order 19 can also limit online court material, and victim, minor, or private identifiers may be redacted.
A person seeking to seal their own Pulaski County record files a uniform petition in the court where the case ended. After a judge approves and the clerk files the order, the clerk forwards it to ACIC. The person may also send the completed order to ACIC. State guidance allows ACIC 30 days from receipt to process an Order to Seal.
The ACIC criminal-history forms page supplies felony and misdemeanor petitions, orders, and the personal record-review authorization.
Note: A sealed Pulaski County record may take time to disappear from every public system after ACIC receives the completed order.
County Jail and State Prison Differ
PCSO's roster covers current county custody. It is not the Arkansas prison index. Once a sentenced person transfers to state custody, use the Arkansas Department of Corrections Inmate Search. The state form accepts an ADC number, county, first and last name, or facility. It includes Pulaski County and many prison, work-release, and special-facility filters.
The PCSO inmate roster is the official current county-custody view linked by the sheriff and local courts.
If a person has been released or transferred, a blank current-roster search does not erase the past booking.
Pulaski County State Custody Search
A state-prison search answers a later custody question than the PCSO roster. Use it after a transfer, when an ADC number is known, or when the expected placement is an Arkansas correctional facility rather than the county jail.
The Arkansas Department of Corrections search takes over when the custody question concerns state prison.
Its county and facility filters make it possible to distinguish a Pulaski County connection from the person's present state placement.
Pulaski County Record Terms
Short court and custody labels can change the meaning of a Pulaski County criminal history result. Read the disposition and status, not just the charge title.
- Booking
- Jail intake that creates a custody record, fingerprints, and charge entries.
- Disposition
- The current or final outcome of a charge.
- Nolle prosequi
- A prosecutor's decision not to proceed with a charge.
- Bench warrant
- A court-issued order, often tied to a missed court date.
- Pass to file
- A Pulaski District Court docket note for a felony awaiting circuit filing or reduction.
- Sealing
- Arkansas's process for restricting public access to a qualifying record.
The Sixth Judicial District Prosecuting Attorney decides how many Pulaski County matters move from referral into filed charges and also lists Mental Health Court among its divisions.
The prosecuting attorney's official page identifies the office that handles those charging functions.
A police allegation and a prosecutor-filed count are separate steps, and the court disposition remains the key outcome.
Pulaski County Criminal Records by City
City police departments create their own incident and arrest reports, and city district courts handle local matters. Long-term custody, circuit-court cases, and state history then move through county or Arkansas systems. Pulaski County's three largest cities therefore need distinct local starting points.
Little Rock Criminal Records
Population estimate 206,427 · LRPD reports and Little Rock District Court
North Little Rock Criminal Records
Population estimate 65,120 · Police and criminal court at Justice Center Drive
Sherwood Criminal Records
Population estimate 33,620 · Police, warrants division, and district court
Little Rock reports that require long-term jail custody generally reach the county detention facility. North Little Rock combines police and court contacts at its Justice Center. Sherwood maintains a separate warrants number and a district court at the Barbara Collier Municipal Complex.