Louisiana Criminal Record Search: Know Which Database Actually Has the Answer
Louisiana arrest records do not live in one public search box. Parish sheriffs control most live booking information, Louisiana State Police maintains the fingerprint-based statewide criminal-history repository, DPS&C tracks state custody, and parish clerks maintain the court record that shows what happened after an arrest.
This guide explains those systems in one place—including how to find recent arrests, get your own Louisiana rap sheet, locate a state prisoner, read a court disposition, fix missing criminal-history information, request reports, and determine whether an arrest or conviction may qualify for expungement.
Louisiana State Police LACCH.
No. Louisiana is a closed-record state.
Fingerprint-based Right to Review.
LA VINE + 225-383-4580.
Standard statutory total up to $550.
Louisiana uses four different record systems—choose the one that matches your question
Search the sheriff, parish detention center or arresting police department where the arrest occurred. This is normally the fastest path for current custody, recent bookings, mugshots and bond information.
Use the Louisiana State Police Right to Review. The statewide repository is fingerprint based and is not a general public people-search database.
Search the criminal court record for charges filed, bail decisions, hearings, dismissals, guilty findings, sentencing and other minute entries.
Use LA VINE or the DPS&C locator when the person has moved beyond a local booking and is assigned to Louisiana corrections custody or community supervision.
Why there is no single public Louisiana arrest-record search for everyone
Louisiana State Police BCII-LCJIS operates the Louisiana Computerized Criminal History system, or LACCH. It is the statewide criminal-history repository, but Louisiana State Police describes Louisiana as a closed-record state. The repository is therefore not a public name-search database where anyone can purchase another person’s full Louisiana rap sheet.
That is why a search for “Louisiana arrest records” usually needs to be divided by the type of information sought.
| You need | Primary record holder | Search method | Important limitation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Current parish jail inmate | Parish sheriff or detention center | Local inmate or booking search | Coverage normally stops at that parish or facility. |
| Recent booking or mugshot | Booking agency / parish sheriff | Recent arrests, jail roster or booking list | A booking is not a court disposition. |
| Your full Louisiana criminal history | Louisiana State Police BCII-LCJIS | Fingerprint-based Right to Review | Covers Louisiana history, not other states. |
| State-prison location | Louisiana DPS&C | LA VINE or imprisoned-person locator | Not a replacement for the parish booking report. |
| Court outcome | Parish clerk of court | eClerksLA / clerk criminal records | The portal may show minute entries rather than every document image. |
| Police narrative | Arresting law-enforcement agency | Public-record request to that agency | Investigative or confidential material may be restricted. |
| Certified disposition | Clerk of court or district attorney | Certified-copy request | Copy and certification charges vary by parish. |
How to get your own Louisiana criminal history with a Right to Review
Louisiana Revised Statute 15:588 gives an individual a way to inspect, obtain a certified copy of and challenge the accuracy of the person’s own Louisiana criminal-history record. Louisiana State Police calls this a Right to Review.
Mailed Right to Review
A physical criminal-history report stamped “True Copy,” signed by a Louisiana State Police employee and embossed with a raised state seal.
Louisiana State Police recommends this option for official purposes, including situations where an agency requires a paper record with a raised seal.
Electronic Right to Review
The result is delivered through a secure email link with a password phrase.
The secure link expires after 30 days.
Louisiana State Police states the report must be accessed and printed from a computer and cannot be retrieved from a mobile device.
What Louisiana LACCH contains—and what it does not
The Louisiana Computerized Criminal History system is maintained by Louisiana State Police BCII-LCJIS. Criminal and civil entries are created primarily from fingerprint submissions through the Automated Fingerprint Identification System.
Why fingerprint matching is important
Louisiana’s Automated Fingerprint Identification System links new fingerprint submissions with an existing master record when a match exists. If no previous fingerprint-based entry exists, a new LACCH master record can be created.
Fingerprint matching reduces the risk of combining two people who share the same name and birth year.
Louisiana State Police says AFIS supports real-time identification during booking and timely updates to criminal-history, mugshot and fingerprint databases.
The state system includes more than 100 livescan booking sites plus remote sites that support criminal-justice agencies.
How to read a Louisiana arrest and criminal-history entry
| Field | What it means | Common mistake | What to do next |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arrest / booking date | The date associated with fingerprinting or booking. | Assuming it always matches the offense date. | Use the exact LACCH booking date for corrections or expungement paperwork. |
| Arresting agency | The sheriff, police department or State Police unit responsible for the arrest. | Requesting the report from the court. | Request the incident or arrest report from this agency. |
| Original charge | The charge recorded at the time of booking. | Replacing it with an amended court charge on expungement paperwork. | Keep the original booking charge and separately record later amendments. |
| Amended or reduced charge | A later prosecutor or court change to the original allegation. | Assuming the original arrest entry automatically updates itself. | Obtain the complete certified disposition if LACCH is incomplete. |
| Disposition | The final reported outcome of a criminal charge. | Treating a blank disposition as a conviction. | Check the clerk or district attorney for the final certified outcome. |
| Dismissed / nolle prosequi | The prosecution did not result in a conviction on that charge under the recorded disposition. | Assuming the arrest record automatically disappears. | Review expungement eligibility if public removal is important. |
| Sentence | The punishment or supervision ordered after conviction. | Ignoring probation or parole completion dates when calculating expungement eligibility. | Save completion documentation and final court minutes. |
| Case number | The court identifier used by the parish court. | Confusing it with a sheriff booking number. | Use the case number for eClerksLA and clerk requests. |
No Louisiana arrest record found? Use this decision path
How to locate a person in Louisiana DPS&C custody
Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections directs families to LA VINE to locate people assigned to state custody. The system is updated every 24 hours.
Use the incarcerated person’s legal name and compare identifiers before relying on a result.
When a DPS&C identifier or case number is known, it can reduce same-name confusion.
LA VINE also includes people under Louisiana probation or parole supervision.
Louisiana Imprisoned Person Locator phone
Prepare either the person’s DPS&C number or the person’s name and date of birth.
Information the phone locator can provide
If the person is in a Louisiana state correctional facility
Parish jail rules and state-prison rules are not interchangeable. Once a person enters DPS&C custody, use the state facility’s visitation and account requirements.
Core DPS&C visitation rules
Accepted adult identification listed by DPS&C
- Valid driver’s license from the visitor’s state of residence.
- Valid state photo identification card.
- Valid active-duty military photo identification.
- Valid passport.
Louisiana eClerksLA makes court outcomes more useful statewide in 2026
Louisiana created the Louisiana Clerks Remote Access Authority as a state entity to operate a statewide portal for records maintained by parish clerks of court.
State law requires every district clerk of court to facilitate electronic filing, recording and remote access through the LCRAA portal by January 1, 2026. A separate criminal-justice transparency law requires district clerks to provide public electronic access to qualifying criminal minute entries.
For covered criminal cases filed on or after January 1, 2020, minute entries can include
How to use a Louisiana court record after finding an arrest
How to request the actual report behind a Louisiana arrest
A criminal-history entry and a police report answer different questions. LACCH identifies an arrest and reported outcome. The arresting agency’s incident or arrest report contains the agency’s record of the underlying event.
| Who made the arrest? | Likely report holder | Useful identifiers |
|---|---|---|
| Parish sheriff deputy | Sheriff’s records or public-records unit | Name, arrest date, report number, location. |
| City police officer | Municipal police records division | Police report number, date, incident location. |
| Louisiana State Police trooper | Louisiana State Police / Department of Public Safety records process | Troop, incident number, date and location. |
| Court disposition needed | Parish clerk of court or district attorney | Court case number, defendant name, arrest date. |
Prepare these facts before requesting records
How to fix a missing or incorrect Louisiana criminal-history disposition
One of the most important uses of the Right to Review is identifying an arrest that has no final disposition or contains incomplete charge information.
Louisiana State Police requirements for adding a disposition
| Required item | What to provide |
|---|---|
| Disposition document | Original, unaltered certified copy from the court or district attorney. |
| Identity | Name and date of birth matching the criminal-history record. |
| Date of arrest | The arrest/booking date must match within one day of the entry on the criminal-history record. |
| Original charges | The charges recorded at booking. |
| Amended charges | Any later reduction or amendment together with the full disposition. |
| Multiple counts | Disposition information for every charge when multiple charges were booked. |
| Final outcome | Guilty, no contest, dismissal or other final result. |
| Sentence | Sentence length and whether it involved parish jail/prison, probation or another disposition. |
Personal review, employment screening and public court searching are not the same thing
| Purpose | Correct process | Key rule |
|---|---|---|
| Review my own Louisiana record | LSP Right to Review | Fingerprint based and available to the individual. |
| Employment / licensing fingerprint check | LAPS using the service code from the hiring or licensing agency | Do not guess the service code. |
| Research another person’s public court cases | eClerksLA / parish clerk records | Court records are not the same as the confidential LACCH repository. |
| Need a national history | Use the fingerprint/background process required by the requesting organization | Louisiana LACCH does not contain other states’ arrest/conviction information. |
How to approach a Louisiana warrant search safely
Warrant information is maintained within criminal-justice systems and local agencies. Public warrant-search availability varies by parish and agency.
Before using any Louisiana arrest record, perform this identity check
When a Louisiana arrest or conviction may be removed from public access
Louisiana defines expungement as removing the arrest or conviction record—including qualifying photographs, fingerprints, dispositions and related information—from public access. Expungement does not mean the record is destroyed.
Arrest that did not result in a conviction — Article 976
An arrest may potentially qualify when statutory conditions are met, including situations where:
- The person was not prosecuted and the time for instituting prosecution has expired.
- The district attorney declined to prosecute offenses arising from the arrest.
- The person successfully completed a qualifying pretrial diversion and the prosecutor declined prosecution.
- The prosecution ended through dismissal.
- A motion to quash was sustained and the proceeding was finally disposed of.
- The defendant was acquitted.
- Other specific statutory grounds apply.
Misdemeanor conviction — Article 977
A qualifying conviction set aside with prosecution dismissed under Article 894(B) may be eligible.
Another route generally requires more than five years since completion of sentence, deferred adjudication, probation or parole, with no felony conviction during that period and no pending felony charge.
Felony conviction — Article 978
A qualifying conviction that was set aside and dismissed under Article 893(E) may fit one statutory path.
Another path generally requires more than ten years after completion of the sentence or supervision, no other criminal conviction during the relevant ten-year period and no pending criminal charge.
Expedited no-cost rule for certain 17-year-olds — Article 999
Louisiana added an expedited process for a person who was 17 at the time of arrest or charge and meets the statutory conditions, including a qualifying declined prosecution, dismissal, sustained motion to quash or acquittal and no misdemeanor or felony conviction arising from the incident. When Article 999 applies, the expedited expungement is at no cost to the person.
Automated-expungement warning
What Louisiana State Police recommends before filing
Louisiana criminal-record and expungement costs to know
| Service | Published rule | What the payment covers |
|---|---|---|
| Background-check technology fee | $5 added by LSP effective December 1, 2024 | Applies to background-check requests under the State Police notice. |
| Standard expungement total | Cannot exceed $550 under Article 983, subject to exceptions | Combined processing through the agencies involved in the court-ordered expungement. |
| Louisiana State Police expungement component | $250 | BCII processing of the court-ordered criminal-history modification. |
| Sheriff component | $50 | Sheriff processing of the court order. |
| District attorney component | $50 | District attorney processing. |
| Clerk component | Up to $200 | Clerk processing costs. |
Common Louisiana expungement mistakes identified by State Police
Louisiana State Police criminal-record contact information
Baton Rouge, LA 70806
Main number: 225-925-6006
BCII-LCJIS
P.O. Box 66614, Box A-6
Baton Rouge, LA 70896
Use for Louisiana State Police criminal-record questions rather than parish jail custody questions.
Monday–Friday
7:30 a.m.–3:30 p.m.
Subject to early closure based on customer volume; closed on Louisiana state holidays.
Louisiana State Police BCII-LCJIS headquarters
Louisiana State Police Headquarters is at 7919 Independence Boulevard in Baton Rouge. The location is useful for identifying the state criminal-history agency, but routine fingerprint appointments should be scheduled through LAPS/IdentoGO rather than treated as walk-in service.
What should you do next?
Identify the parish and arresting agency. Search that sheriff or detention center first rather than LSP criminal history.
Schedule a fingerprint-based Right to Review through Louisiana State Police LAPS.
Use the case number in eClerksLA or contact the parish clerk for the certified disposition.
Search LA VINE or call 225-383-4580 with the DPS&C number or name and date of birth.
Get the certified disposition and submit the complete event information needed by BCII-LCJIS.
Get the Right to Review, determine the correct expungement statute and file the required forms with the proper parish clerk.
How this Louisiana arrest-record guide was built
Static procedures were extracted from Louisiana State Police BCII-LCJIS guidance, Louisiana DPS&C inmate information, the Louisiana Clerks Remote Access Authority, and current Louisiana statutes rather than leaving readers to discover the rules themselves.
Right to Review, LAPS, LACCH content, closed-record status, criminal-history corrections, expungement processing, fees and BCII contacts.
LA VINE, the 225-383-4580 imprisoned-person locator, state-custody information and visitation rules.
eClerksLA statewide access, criminal minute-entry requirements, expungement eligibility, confidentiality, service, hearings and fee rules.
Louisiana arrest and criminal-record questions answered
Is there a free statewide Louisiana arrest search?
There is no general public LSP name search that exposes everyone’s complete Louisiana criminal history. Louisiana is a closed-record state. For recent arrests, search the parish sheriff or jail where the booking occurred; for court outcomes, use the parish court record.
Can I get my own Louisiana criminal history?
Yes. Use Louisiana State Police Right to Review, which is fingerprint based and available through the LAPS/IdentoGO appointment system.
Does the Louisiana criminal history include other states?
No. Louisiana State Police states that LACCH does not maintain arrest or conviction records from other states.
What is the difference between a mailed and electronic Right to Review?
The mailed version is a physical True Copy signed by an LSP employee and embossed with a state seal. The electronic version uses a secure one-time link, is available for 30 days and must be accessed from a computer.
How do I find a Louisiana state prisoner?
Use LA VINE or call the DPS&C Imprisoned Person Locator at 225-383-4580. Have the DPS&C number or the person’s name and date of birth ready.
Can I buy a complete Louisiana prisoner file from DPS&C?
No. DPS&C states that records of people in its custody are confidential under Louisiana law while held by Corrections Services, although some information may be public when maintained by another government agency.
How do I find the final outcome of an arrest?
Search eClerksLA or the clerk of court in the parish where the criminal case was filed. Look for dismissal, amendment, guilty finding, acquittal, sentence or another final disposition.
What if my Louisiana rap sheet does not show a dismissal?
Obtain an original unaltered certified disposition from the clerk of court or district attorney and provide the required arrest, charge and outcome information to BCII-LCJIS so the criminal-history event can be updated.
How much does Louisiana expungement cost?
The standard statutory total cannot exceed $550 under Article 983, subject to fee exemptions and special no-cost categories. The published components include $250 for LSP, $50 for the sheriff, $50 for the district attorney and up to $200 for the clerk.
Can a dismissed Louisiana arrest be expunged?
Potentially. Article 976 includes arrests where prosecution was declined or a case ended in dismissal, a sustained motion to quash or acquittal, subject to the complete statutory eligibility requirements.
Does expungement erase the record forever?
No. Louisiana law says expungement removes the record from public access but does not destroy it. Certain law-enforcement, criminal-justice and legally authorized entities may still access it.
Should I get my Right to Review before filing expungement?
Yes. Louisiana State Police strongly recommends it because the motion should match the arrest date, original charges and other information shown on the state criminal-history record.