Minneapolis Criminal Records Search

Start with the Hennepin court proceeding

For Minneapolis, Minnesota criminal court records, start with Minnesota Court Records Online, or MCRO, and identify the Hennepin County proceeding. MCRO’s Case Search accepts identifiers such as a person’s name, case number or citation number and opens the Register of Actions and available public documents. This is the court-file route; it is separate from a Minneapolis Police report, local clearance letter or statewide repository history.

Keep the court file number, defendant details, charge and event dates together. Compare possible matches before deciding that a case belongs to the intended person. Then read the case’s Register of Actions for the relevant disposition or sentencing entry. A hearing listing tells you about a scheduled event, while the filed order is the better document for proving what the court decided.

Use a case number for a pending criminal matter

Official guidance is not fully consistent here. Hennepin’s criminal-records page says pre-conviction information is available only at the courthouse or by phone. The Minnesota Judicial Branch’s statewide media guidance says MCRO can show pre-conviction criminal case information when the case number is known. If a name search misses a pending matter, try its known case number; if access still fails, call Hennepin Criminal Court at 612-348-6000 or use courthouse access.

Do not report a failed name search as proof that no case exists. Preserve whether you searched by name or case number and what access message appeared. If you only know a police incident number, ask the responsible court office how to identify the court file rather than entering it as though it were already a court case number.

Download available documents without buying a copy

MCRO documents are free to access and download. Its document coverage includes public major and minor criminal documents filed on or after July 1, 2015. Earlier access is more limited, with certain judgments, orders and court-generated notices from July 1, 2005 through June 30, 2015 available where remotely accessible at filing. A case can therefore appear online without every older document being downloadable.

If the needed filing is available, save that document along with its case number and filing date. A downloaded plain copy and a certified copy have different uses. Ask the recipient which it requires before paying for certification, and identify the specific judgment or order rather than requesting an undifferentiated entire file.

Prepare the Hennepin copy request

Hennepin’s Copy Request Form requires the defendant’s date of birth or the court file number for a criminal request. Enter party names as they appeared when filed, the document title, quantity and requested copy type. If you need an older version rather than the latest filing, include its filing date or index number. The form offers mail, pickup and, for plain nonconfidential copies only, email or fax delivery.

Plain copies carry no fee. A certified copy costs $14 per document; select the number of certified copies before calculating payment. The form requires payment before processing, with checks or money orders payable to District Court Administrator, and provides a box for an existing court fee-waiver order. Include the return address needed for mailed or certified copies.

Allow time for older and stored files

For a case filed before 1970, the Hennepin form asks for a five-year range when it was probably filed. Keep any known case number even if MCRO has little detail. Minnesota’s copy guidance says an off-site record may not be available the same day. Tell the Records Center your deadline and ask whether retrieval, rather than merely printing, is needed.

Use the Records Center for the courthouse record

The current Records Center contact page places walk-in service in Room A250 on the Skyway Level of the Administration Tower, Hennepin County Government Center. It lists a mailing address of 300 South 6th Street, #B-100, Minneapolis, MN 55487. The linked 2023 copy form instead prints Room A260 and ZIP 55487-0332. Confirm the current mailing destination at 612-348-6000 before posting a form; do not confuse the walk-in room with the mailing address.

Courthouse public terminals use MPA Courthouse and can show more detail than MCRO. However, a terminal does not override confidentiality or sealing. Minnesota’s copy guidance requires identity verification for named parties requesting confidential case records, and a judicial-access request for sealed cases or confidential records sought by nonparties. Obtain that permission before ordering a restricted copy.

Follow an incomplete entry back to its court

When an online entry and a copy disagree, retain both versions and ask court administration to check the case number and filing date. The court can identify the official record and explain the procedure for addressing an error; a search result alone cannot amend a court order. No fixed delivery date applies to every copy request, especially archived or restricted material. Leave the outcome unresolved until the relevant filing is obtained.