Orange County Arrest Records

According to G.S. § 15A-401, an arrest becomes necessary when a law enforcement officer possesses a warrant for a person's arrest or is aware of an existing arrest warrant in the person's name that has not yet been executed. A law enforcement officer can arrest without a warrant:

• If a crime is committed in their presence or
• If they have probable cause to believe that a person has committed a felony or misdemeanor, regardless of whether the officer was present when the crime occurred

After the arrest, the officer will take the arrested person to the Orange County Detention Center for booking. During the booking process, the officer will take the arrestee's mugshot and enter their information into the system. The officer is also responsible for writing an arrest report. The information collected from the arrested individual and the report is used to create an arrest record. Like Orange County court records, this information becomes available to the public after some days. However, the arrested person's family and friends can get basic information about the arrest within 24 hours of the arrest. They can call the Orange County Jail at (919) 245-2940 to ask about the charges, bond amount, and first appearance date.

Are Arrest Records Public in Orange County?

Yes. Per North Carolina Public Records Law, arrests are public records. Therefore, individuals have the right to inspect, examine, and copy arrest records from any law enforcement agency in Orange County during regular business hours. The NC Public Records Law restricts certain arrest records from the public. Confidential arrest records are only open to record holders, immediate family members, legal representatives, and criminal justice agencies. Examples of arrest records deemed confidential in Orange County are:

• Juvenile arrest records
• Criminal investigation and intelligence records
• Medical records of arrested persons
• Arrest records whose disclosure will reveal the identity of a confidential source
• Records that contain particular security information or detailed patterns, plans, or practices relating to prison or local confinement facilities operations.
• Records that contain particular security information or detailed patterns, plans, or practices to prevent or respond to gang, criminal, or organized illegal activity;
• Mobile telephone numbers given to a sworn law enforcement officer or non-sworn public law enforcement agency employee by a local, county, or State government.
• A complaining witness's name or address whose disclosure would likely materially compromise an active or future criminal investigation or intelligence operation or pose a threat to the complaining witness's mental and physical health or personal safety;
• Any arrest record whose disclosure will jeopardize the right to prosecute a defendant, the right of a defendant to receive a fair trial, or undermine an ongoing or future investigation.

What Do Public Arrest Records Contain?

Arrest records are public information in Orange County. Therefore, members of the public can access the following information contained in an arrest record:

• Full name, age, sex, race
• Booking and docket number
• Booking photos, date and time
• Custody status
• Days in custody
• Attorney's name
• Offense and charges
• Arresting agency
• Bond amount

Orange County Crime Rate

The North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (N.C.S.B.I.) provides Annual Summary Reports on all crimes committed in the state. The 2022 report reveals that Orange County had a 2,173.6 index crime rate. About 242.1 were violent crime rates, and 1,931.5 were property crime rates. This increased compared to the 2021 index crime rate of 2,013.4, with 221.4 violent and 1,792.0 property crime rates.

Orange County Arrest Statistics

The total number of arrested persons in The North Carolina Department of Adult Correction (D.A.C.) was 174,275 in F.Y. 2022-2023. About 1,140 of them were from Orange County. This was the same number of arrested persons housed in the state prison the previous fiscal year.

Find Orange County Arrest Records

The North Carolina Department of Adult Correction (D.A.C.) has approximately 30,000 people incarcerated in state prisons and over 84,000 offenders on probation, parole, or post-release supervision. The arrest records of these offenders can be viewed through the Offender Public Information Search / Offender Locator. Users can search by name and offender I.D. Copies of arrest records can be obtained in person at any State Prisons. The record staff will require the arrested person's name, offender number, or birth date to initiate the request.

Interested individuals can also find arrest records of Orange County offenders from federal law enforcement agencies. Most of these agencies publish arrest information on their websites for free, and copies can be obtained at their offices for a small fee. For example:

The Federal Bureau of Prisons (B.O.P.) allows Orange County residents access to arrest records online via the Inmate Locator. A search can be conducted by number (B.O.P. register number, D.C.D.C. number, F.B.I. number, or I.N.S. number) or name (first, middle, or last). Alternatively, requesters can visit any of the B.O.P. facilities to obtain copies of arrest records. All visits should be done during business hours.

The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (I.C.E.) has an Online Detainee Locator System where individuals can view arrest records of Orange County offenders. The search criteria are by A-Number or biographical information. Interested persons can also contact I.C.E. field offices or detention facilities to request arrest records.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (F.B.I.) disseminates copies of their arrest records online, by mail, and through approved channelers. The F.B.I.'s Criminal Justice Information Services Division (C.J.I.S.) charges $18 for this service. Payments can be made by credit card using the Credit Card Payment Form, money order, or certified check. Online requesters must visit a participating U.S. Post Office location to submit their fingerprints electronically as part of electronic requests. Online requests take 15 days to process, while mail requests take 20 days. Mail applicants must submit a completed Applicant Information Form to:

FBI CJIS Division – Summary Request
1000 Custer Hollow Road
Clarksburg, WV 26306

The United States Capitol Police (U.S.C.P.) provides arrest summary reports to members of the public online and by mail. Mail requesters must submit a Request Form to:

United States Capitol Police
Reports Processing Section
119 D Street, Ne
Washington, DC 20510

Free Arrest Record Search in Orange County

The easiest way to find free arrest records in Orange County is through law enforcement agencies' websites. The Orange County Sheriff's Office (O.C.S.O.) provides several portals on its website where individuals can view arrest information at no cost:

• Daily Custody Report: This can be used to find daily arrest information on individuals currently in custody.
• Inmate Listing: This portal shows daily arrest information of inmates in jail.
• Booking photos: This shows mugshots and other arrest information of individuals booked into the jail per day.

Most Orange County residents also conduct arrest record searches through third-party databases. Users enter an arrested person's name in these third-party portals and retrieve information across multiple jurisdictions. Most of these sites provide basic arrest informaton for free, but full arrest reports attract a small fee.

Get Orange County Criminal Records

Record seekers can view or obtain certified and uncertified copies of criminal records at the Orange County Clerk of Superior Court Office. Certified copies can be retrieved by name. The requesters must send a completed Form AOC-CR-314 alongside a fee of $25 to the clerk's office by mail or in person. Mail-in fees should be in the form of a money order or certified check. The clerk does not accept personal checks. In-person requesters can pay by credit card, money order, cash, or certified check. Uncertified copies of criminal records can be obtained online through the public access computers available in the clerk's office or by email at Orange.Criminal@nccourts.org. There is no fee for viewing records on the computers, but printing charges may apply. Interested persons can view criminal records for free using the eCourts Portal. The search criteria are by name or number. The Clerk's Office is located at:

Orange County Courthouse
106 E Margaret Lane
Hillsborough, NC 27278
Phone: (919) 644-4500

Businesses can conduct criminal background checks online through the Remote Public Access Program (R.P.A.) maintained by the N.C. Administrative Office of the Courts (N.C.A.O.C.). This service costs $495 for a one-time connection, $70 for each additional user I.D. needed, and a $0.21 access fee per transaction.

The North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (N.C.S.B.I.) provides statewide criminal records to the public and authorized agencies. Individuals can obtain copies of their personal criminal records by completing the Request for Access to Criminal History Record Information—Right to Review form. They must also obtain a set of their fingerprints on an FD-258 Applicant Fingerprint Card at their local police department or Orange County Sheriff's Office (O.C.S.O.). The Request Form, Fingerprint Card, and a fee of $14 payable by certified check or money order must be sent by U.S. mail to the N.C.S.B.I. at:

N.C. State Bureau of Investigation
Criminal Information and Identification Section
Attention: Civilian Services Unit — Right to Review
Post Office Box 29500
Raleigh, NC 27626-0500

Individuals can check the status of their fingerprint-based criminal history background checks by emailing CIIShelp@ncsbi.gov. The N.C.S.B.I. processes all requests between seven (7) and twenty (20) business days from receipt. The records will be sent to the requester by mail via U.S.P.S.

Orange County Arrest Records Vs. Criminal Records

An arrest record contains information about a person's apprehension, booking, and temporary detention. In contrast, a criminal record is the history of a person's conviction of a crime, whether a misdemeanor or felony (G.S. § 93B-8.1). It reveals the person's identifiable descriptions and annotations of arrests, detentions, indictments, formal charges, and dispositions.

How Long Do Arrests Stay on Your Record?

In Orange County, arrests stay permanently on a person's record unless expunged. Individuals or agencies can access expunged arrest records with proper authorization. The North Carolina State Archives provides a County Sheriff's Office Records Retention and Disposition Schedule that shows when certain arrest records are destroyed in Orange County:

• Arrest processing (tracking records) are retained for one (1) year after the arrest date.
• Mugshots of arrested persons are destroyed after three (3) years if not part of a case file.
• Arrest processing (D.W.I. tracking records) are destroyed two (2) years after the arrest date.
• Detention facility physical force records are destroyed in the office after three (3) years.
• If arrest reports are not made part of a case file, they are retained for five (5) years from the arrest date.
• Arrest reports and criminal history records that are part of felony case history files are destroyed after twenty (20) years if the case is solved.
• Arrest reports and criminal history records that are part of misdemeanor case history files are destroyed after three (3) years if the case is solved.
• Juvenile case history files (incident and arrest reports) are destroyed when the juvenile reaches 18 or 21 years of age, depending on the charges.
• Inmate incarceration records (including detainee's arrest sheets) are destroyed for three (3) years after the inmate is released or transferred from the facility.

Expunge Orange County Arrest Records

In Orange County, expungement is used interchangeably with expunction. An expunction is a legal process of sealing or destroying a criminal conviction or charge from a person's arrest record. The N. C. G. S. § 15A-145 to 153 set forth the eligibility criteria for expungement in Orange County. According to N.C. law, some individuals might be able to petition the Orange County court for expunction almost immediately after a case is over, but others require waiting periods. Below are the lists of cases eligible for expunction and links to the petition forms and instruction sheets for each case:

• Gang offenses
• Prostitution offenses
• Nonviolent felony(ies)
• Misdemeanor convictions
• Toxic vapors convictions
• Nonviolent misdemeanor(s)
• A Nonviolent felony under the age of 18
• Conviction after the pardon of innocence
• Drug or drug paraphernalia convictions
• Identity Theft with a not guilty dismissal or charge set aside by court
• Toxic vapors or drug paraphernalia offenses that are dismissed or the defendant was acquitted
• Dismissal of charges resulting from identity theft or mistaken identification
• Drug offenses which are dismissed after conditional discharge under G.S. 90-96(a) or (a1)
• D.N.A. records upon appellate reversal of conviction or upon pardon of innocence
• Toxic vapors offenses which are dismissed after conditional discharge under G.S. 90-113.14(a) or (a1)
• Criminal charges (or alcohol infraction before 12/1/1999), with a finding of not guilty or not responsible
• Criminal charges (or alcohol infraction before 12/1/1999) which are dismissed pursuant to deferred prosecution or conditional discharge (effective 12/1/2014)
• Criminal charges (or alcohol infraction before 12/1/1999) which are dismissed not pursuant to deferred prosecution or conditional discharge (effective 12/1/2014)

Petitioners must download and complete the petition for expunction forms and file them with the Orange County Clerk of Court. This attracts a filing fee of $175, but the expunction of charges dismissed or ended in a "not guilty" verdict is free. Petitioners who cannot afford the filing fee can request a waiver by filing a Petition To Proceed As An Indigent Form with the Clerk. Some expunctions may require a hearing, while others, like expunctions of dismissed charges, do not. The process of deleting a criminal record can take several months, depending on the duration of criminal record checks and the scheduling of a hearing. If a request for an expunction is granted, the judge will sign an expunction order, and the clerk will provide the petitioner with a copy.

Orange County Arrest Warrants

Per N.C.G.S. § 15A-304, an arrest warrant is an official document issued by a judge of the Orange County Superior or District Court based on a showing of probable cause supported by oath or affirmation. It contains a statement of the crime committed by the accused, the issuing date, the accused's name or a detailed description of the person, an order to make an arrest, and the judge's signature. The executing law enforcement officer must take the accused into custody and bring them before a judge without delay.

Orange County Arrest Warrant Search

Individuals can find an arrest warrant record in person at the court where the warrant was issued or at the Orange County Sheriff's Office (O.C.S.O.). Most law enforcement agencies attend to warrant requests Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The record staff will need a name or warrant number to process the request. Requesters can also call the Sheriff's Office Detention Center at (919) 245-2940 to request warrant records. The Sheriff's Office is located at:

Orange County Sheriff's Office
106 E. Margaret Lane
Hillsborough, NC 27278
Phone: (919) 245-2900
Fax: (919) 732-6403
Email: websheriff@orangecountync.gov

Do Orange County Arrest Warrants Expire?

No. Arrest warrants do not have expiry dates like search warrants. Therefore, they remain active until the person named in it is arrested. Sometimes, Orange County judges can quash or recall an arrest warrant, making it inactive.