Union County Arrest Records

Union County arrest records are official records prepared by law enforcement officers upon making arrests in the county. Most arrests in Union County are conducted by the officers of the Sheriff’s Office and the various police departments in the county. However, state and federal law enforcement agencies may also arrest individuals in the county. Arrests usually occur when officers of the law observe crimes, apprehending individuals suspected of committing crimes, or when executing arrest warrants.

In Union County, most arrestees are held at the Tri-County Regional Jail. Individuals arrested by the Ohio State Highway Patrol may be held at state prisons. The records of arrests conducted in the county become part of Union County court records when arrestees appear in court.

Are Arrest Records Public in Union County?

Yes. The Ohio Open Records Act keeps Union County arrest records publicly accessible. In accordance with this Act, law enforcement agencies must make all of their arrest records available to the public. However, there are exceptions to this rule. For example, expunged arrest records are not available at all. Arrest records sealed by court orders are not publicly accessible. State and federal laws also make some arrest records confidential. These include those providing identifying details about minors and victims of abuse.

What Do Public Arrest Records Contain?

A Union County arrest record must fully describe an arrest event. This means that it must identify both the arrestee and arresting officer and also state the reason for the arrest. A complete arrest record must provide the following details:

• Name, gender, age, and other identifying details of the arrestee
• Arrestee’s mugshot taken while booking them
• Date, time, and location of the arrest
• Name of the arresting officer and the law enforcement agency they represent
• Arrest charge

Union County Arrest Statistics

Local and state criminal justice and law enforcement agencies do not provide arrest data for Ohio counties. However, the state’s Office of Criminal Justice Services (OCJS) publishes crime figures for each county. Its 2023 report shows that there are 66 violent crimes and 530 property crimes reported in Union County in 2023. The Tri-County Regional Jail serving the county (as well as Madison and Champaign counties) has a population of 128 as of October 2024.

Find Union County Arrest Records

Individuals arrested in Union County by local law enforcement are remanded at the Tri-County Regional Jail. You can find a Union County arrest record locating a detainee in this facility by viewing the jail’s roster of arrestees currently in custody. To find an offender in a state prison, you may use the Offender Search tool provided by the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction. Union County arrestees in federal prisons can be located with the inmate locator tool provided by the federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP).

Free Arrest Record Search in Union County

Free Union County arrest record searches are available if you are trying to locate an arrestee. These search tools are provided at county, state, and federal levels. Besides such official locator tools, there are also third-party websites offering free searches for arrestees’ records. These independent resources can query multiple databases at once and are especially useful if you do not know the detention facility where an arrestee is being held.

Union County Arrest Records Vs. Criminal Records

A Union County arrest record only documents an arrest while a criminal record documents an individual’s history of criminal arrests as well as charge, trials, and sentencing associated with each arrest. Therefore, an arrest record does not indicate that the arrestee is guilty of the charge for which they were arrested. A criminal record, on the other hand, specifies the outcome of each arrest and can be used to determine whether the subject was found guilty of the charge resulting from an arrest.

While law enforcement agencies can provide Union County arrest records, only the Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI) of the Ohio Attorney General’s Office can provide criminal records. Unlike arrest records, criminal records are not public records. You can only request your own criminal records in Ohio, and not those of other people.

How Long Do Arrests Stay on Your Record?

In Ohio, an arrest remains on your record unless expunged by a court order. Local law enforcement agencies do have different record retention timelines. Therefore, your arrest record with the Union County Sheriff’s Office may be lost after its retention duration. However, the copy maintained with the Ohio BCI may still be available.

Expunge Union County Arrest Records

Ohio allows the expungement of certain criminal records, including arrest records, as long as they meet the criteria set forth. Section 2953.36 of the Ohio Revised Code only allows expungement for anyone convicted of a misdemeanor or a felony of the fourth or fifth degree. Section 2953.32 allows the expungement of certain felonies of the third degree and also specifies a waiting period of 3 years after the conclusion of such cases before seeking expungement. The waiting period for a record arising from a conviction for a misdemeanor or a felony of fourth or fifth degree is 1 year. The arrest record for a criminal charge resulting in an acquittal has no waiting period.

Besides eligibility, expunging a Union County arrest record requires petitioning the court where the resulting charge was filed. Contact the court to obtain the required form and inquire about the application fee. Complete and submit this application to the court along with any evidence to convince the court to expunge the record in question. If the court agrees to expunge your arrest record, it will provide a signed order directing court officials and law enforcement agencies to destroy their copies of the record. Lastly, you should send a copy of this court order as well as a completed Expungement Form to the Office of the Ohio Attorney General.

Union County Arrest Warrants

An arrest warrant is a legal document signed by a judge, authorizing law enforcement officers to apprehend and detain a named individual. Typically, a court issues an arrest warrant after local law enforcement brings an affidavit before a judge providing probable cause to arrest a person suspected of committing a crime or a person of interest in an investigation. An approved Union County arrest warrant has the following details:

• Name and other identifying details of the subject of the arrest
• Probable cause or charge for the arrest
• Name of the authorizing judge and their signature
• Court represented by the judge
• Date of issue

Do Union County Arrest Warrants Expire?

No, Union County arrest warrants remain active until the individuals named on them are arrested or the warrants cleared. Clearing a warrant requires submitting to authorities by turning oneself to local law enforcement or appearing in court as directed. It is also possible to clear a warrant by asking your attorney to file a motion to quash the warrant. The court may approve this motion if your attorney can successfully argue that the arrest warrant is unlawful or incomplete or that the statute of limitation on the offense named in the warrant has passed.