To run a Connecticut criminal case lookup, start with the Judicial Branch’s free online Criminal/Motor Vehicle Case Look-up at jud.ct.gov, which lets you search Superior Court cases by defendant name, date of birth, or docket number.1CT Judicial Branch. Criminal / Motor Vehicle Case Look-up That portal is the right tool for basic case information, pending matters, and recent convictions. If you need an official criminal history for a job, license, or legal filing, you have to request it from the Connecticut State Police instead.
How to Use the Judicial Branch Case Look-Up
The portal offers several search paths. You can pull up convictions by defendant or docket number, check arrest warrants, view daily court dockets by location or defendant name, look at sentence review dockets, and check motions to seal or close records.1CT Judicial Branch. Criminal / Motor Vehicle Case Look-up
Convictions stay on the site for up to ten years after sentencing. The portal shows convictions from unvacated bail forfeitures in motor vehicle cases, but not bail forfeitures in other cases. It also leaves out youthful offender cases, juvenile matters, and infractions or violations.1CT Judicial Branch. Criminal / Motor Vehicle Case Look-up
One caveat matters. The Judicial Branch warns that its data can change daily because of erasures, corrections, and pardons, and it does not guarantee accuracy past the moment of your search. Treat the results as a starting point, not a certified record.
When You Need to Visit the Courthouse
Records older than ten years, documents that don’t appear online, and full case files require a trip to the Superior Court where the case was heard. Courthouses have public access terminals that sometimes carry more detailed or historical data than the website, and the Clerk’s Office can direct you to the right terminal and pull physical files.
A physical case file usually contains far more than the online summary. You may find original charging documents, plea agreements, sentencing transcripts, motions from either side, and the judge’s orders. Court staff won’t interpret anything for you, but they can walk you through requesting and reviewing files.
If you need a certified copy for employment verification, licensing, or immigration, the Clerk’s Office is the only place to get one. A certified copy is a court-issued duplicate that the Clerk attests is a true reproduction of the original. You’ll need the docket number, defendant name, and the specific document. Standard copies cost $1 per page, certification under seal costs $2, and exemplified copies cost $20, payable by check or money order to the “Clerk of the Superior Court.”2CT Judicial Branch. Court Fees
How to Get an Official Criminal History Report
The case look-up and a criminal history check are not the same thing. The Judicial Branch portal summarizes court proceedings. The Connecticut State Police, through the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection, maintains the actual criminal history database and processes formal record checks.3CT.gov. Criminal Records For anything official, the State Police version is what you need.
Paper forms are no longer accepted. All requests run through an online portal.4CT.gov. Criminal History Request Process The State Police offers three tiers:
- A name and date-of-birth search for $36 tells you only whether a record exists. It does not include the record itself.
- A conviction history by name and date of birth costs $75 and includes a copy of the conviction history if one exists.
- A conviction history by fingerprint also costs $75, plus $15 for fingerprinting at a State Police location. This is the most reliable option because it matches identity biometrically rather than by name.
Fingerprinting is worth the extra step when accuracy matters. Name searches can miss records filed under aliases or misspellings and can return hits for someone else with a similar name. The FBI requires fingerprints for its identity history checks for that reason and does not perform name-based searches at all.5Federal Bureau of Investigation. Identity History Summary Checks Frequently Asked Questions If you also need a federal-level check, a separate federal fee of $11.25 to $13.25 applies on top of the $75 state fee, and the State Police has to complete the state search before running a federal one.6CT.gov. State Police Guide to Processing Fees
Why a Search May Turn Up Nothing
Not every criminal record shows up in a search. Connecticut has several legal mechanisms that remove or restrict access to records. If your search comes back empty on someone you expected to find, one of these is likely why.
Automatic Erasure for Non-Convictions
When a criminal case ends without a conviction, the records are erased automatically. That covers dismissals, acquittals, and cases where the prosecutor enters a nolle prosequi. A nolle doesn’t erase immediately. The 13-month waiting period runs from the date the nolle is entered, and the record is erased after that.7CT.gov. Links to Pardon Applications Once erased, the records are pulled from public databases, and the state cannot share them with anyone, including law enforcement.
Clean Slate Erasure for Old Convictions
Connecticut’s Clean Slate law, signed in 2021, automatically erases certain old convictions. Eligible misdemeanor convictions are erased after seven years, and eligible felony convictions after ten.8Connecticut Public. CT Explores How to Notify People Convictions Were Erased Under Clean Slate Law Not everything qualifies. Sex offenses, family violence crimes, and firearms charges are excluded from automatic erasure.9Clean Slate Connecticut. Clean Slate Connecticut A conviction in one of those categories stays on the record no matter how much time has passed, unless the person pursues a pardon separately.
Sealed and Juvenile Records
A court can also order a record sealed, which restricts access without destroying the file. Sealed records don’t show up in public searches but may still be available to certain criminal justice officials. Juvenile records are confidential by statute and never appear in the public case look-up. Access requires a Superior Court order, with narrow exceptions for the child’s attorney, parents, and specific state agencies.10Justia Law. Connecticut General Statutes 46b-124 – Confidentiality of Records of Juvenile Matters
If Your Own Record Is the One Showing Up
If your convictions don’t qualify for automatic erasure under Clean Slate, the Connecticut Board of Pardons and Paroles offers two paths, and they do very different things.
An absolute pardon results in complete erasure of your Connecticut adult criminal record. Every offense is wiped from the criminal record database. You can apply three years after the disposition of your most recent misdemeanor conviction, or five years after your most recent felony conviction. You can’t have pending charges, open cases in any jurisdiction, or be on any form of supervision. If a nolle was entered, the 13-month nolle period must also have cleared. The Board considers your entire criminal history at once; you can’t ask for erasure of selected offenses while keeping others.7CT.gov. Links to Pardon Applications
A certificate of employability, sometimes called a provisional pardon, takes a different approach. It doesn’t erase anything. It’s an official state document certifying that your criminal history alone should not keep you from getting a job or professional license, and it makes it illegal for an employer to deny you employment based solely on the convictions the certificate covers.11CT.gov. Pardon FAQs For many people, this is the faster and more practical route since it doesn’t require the longer waiting periods or the all-or-nothing approach of an absolute pardon.