Putnam County Arrest Records

A Putnam County arrest record is an official document detailing all instances of an individual being apprehended and taken into custody in Putnam County. Law enforcement agencies create arrest records, which include information on the arrest and the individual being arrested but not the sentencing information or the disposition of the charge. Therefore, they cannot be used to determine if a person is guilty of a crime.

After a person is arrested in Putnam County, they are taken to the local detention facility, where they are booked into the jail's database. During booking, details of the charges, a description of the arrest, and personal information such as the individual's name, fingerprint, and photograph (mugshot) are taken, which constitutes their arrest record. Their details are also checked for outstanding warrants.

The official custodian of arrest records in Putnam County is the Putnam County Sheriff's Office. As arrest records are classified as public records, interested individuals can contact the records department of the Sheriff's Office by mail, email, phone, or in person to obtain local arrest records.

Are Arrest Records Public in Putnam County?

Yes. As arrest records are classified as public records, Florida Statutes Chapter 119 mandates that Putnam County arrest records be made available for inspection and copying to any interested person unless the record is otherwise restricted by law. Some information contained in arrest records can be exempted from public disclosure to protect privacy, sensitive data, and the integrity of a case.

Restricted information includes the following:

• social security numbers
• driver's license numbers
• medical records
• identifying witness information
• identifying victim information
• information on informants
• records of law enforcement surveillance techniques
• Records of ongoing investigations
• juvenile records
• expunged records

Some government agencies are free from these restrictions and have access to these confidential records. Other individuals or agencies that require access to restricted records need to obtain a court order granting them access.

What Do Public Arrest Records Contain

Publicly available Putnam County arrest records typically have the following information:

• Arrestee's full name
• Arrestee'sDate of birth
• Arrestee's Nationality
• Arrestee's Sex
• Arrestee's physical characteristics (height, weight, et)
• Mugshot
• Fingerprints
• Arrest details (Time, date, location, arresting agency, arresting officer, etc.)
• Charges
• Booking Details (booking number, date, time, etc)

Putnam County Crime Rate

Per the FIBRS 2023 Offense Data by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE), the most popular crimes that occurred in Putnam County for that year included drug offenses (563 Counts), simple assault (446 counts), larceny (158 counts) and burglary (118 counts). Compared to the 2022 Offense Data, there was a decrease in drug offenses (previously 580 counts), a decrease in larceny (previously 196 counts), an increase in burglary (previously 109 counts), and no change in the frequency of simple assaults.

Putnam County Arrest Statistics

According to the 2022 Arrest Data by the Federal Bureau of Investigation's (FBI) Crime Data Explorer, Putnam County recorded a total of 695 arrests in 2022. The most popular arrestable crimes included "all other offenses except traffic" (346 arrests), simple assault (147 arrests), drug abuse violations (87 arrests), and aggravated assault (24 arrests). The Putnam County Sheriff's Office started contributing National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) data to the FBI on the 31st of December 2021.

Find Putnam County Arrest Records

Interested individuals can find Putnam County arrest records with their official custodian, the Putnam County Sheriff's Office. The Inmate Search Tool allows a search of inmate information using their first name, middle name, last name, or booking information. Information on current and released inmates can be retrieved through this resource. A public records request can also be made to the Sheriff's Office for criminal records, which will include arrest records. Individuals who want to obtain this record in person can visit the Sheriff's Office during working hours.

Free Arrest Record Search in Putnam County

The Putnam County Sheriff's Office maintains police records and local arrest records, and as these are public records, they are available to individuals who request public records from them for free. To obtain a free record, a person can contact the public records department of the Sheriff's Office by mail, email, or in person using the following contact details:

The Records Department
Putnam County Sheriff's Office
130 Orie Griffin Blvd.,
Palatka, FL 32177
Phone: (386) 329-0822
Email: records@putnamsheriff.org

In addition to the Sheriff's Office, some third-party databases also offer free access to bookings, recent arrests, and mugshots in Putnam County. Individuals can search for arrest records from these sites using keywords like case numbers or party names. Third-party resources are beneficial as they offer a single resource for obtaining records from multiple counties. Their records are however limited in completeness and accuracy compared to government sources as they are not the official custodians of these records.

Get Putnam County Criminal Records

Putnam County Criminal records are documents relating to criminal cases that occurred in Putnam County, including misdemeanors, felonies, and even traffic violations. They are holistic documentation of an individual's criminal history, from arrest to court proceedings to judgment and sentencing. The custodian of criminal records in Putnam County is the Putnam County Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller.

Individuals interested in accessing criminal court records can contact the clerk's Office by mail, in person, or online using the county's Online Court Records Search Tool (OCRS). For extensive access to criminal records, individuals are required to be registered users of the OCRS and have login details to the platform. To complete registration, an Online Registration Form should be completed, notarized, and emailed to the clerk's Office at courtrecords@putnam-fl.com.

For access to state-level criminal records in Putnam County and the whole of Florida, individuals can contact the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE). They make criminal records available online through their Criminal History Search Tool and by mail.

Putnam County Arrest Records Vs. Criminal Records

An arrest record is a document that shows the circumstances or reasoning behind an individual's arrest. It contains details of the arrestee, the charge, description of the arrest but it does not usually contain the outcome of the case. Criminal records are comprehensive records of all an individual's interactions with law enforcement as they pass through their criminal justice system. They contain arrest records and the verdict of the charge.

The difference between arrest records and criminal records is that while criminal records can be used as a determinant of guilt since they contain sentencing information, arrest records can not. Arrest records are mostly useful to law enforcement agencies for documentation while criminal records are useful for background checks and can be accessed by landlords, employers, and certification bodies amongst others.

How Long Do Arrests Stay on Your Record?

Indefinitely. In Putnam County and other counties in Florida, arrests stay on a person's criminal record forever unless they are expunged or sealed. Arrest records are a part of a person's criminal history regardless of whether the charge they were accused of had a guilty verdict or not. As criminal histories are public records, arrest records that are still publicly available are accessible to the public through background searches and criminal history checks. The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) however mandates that during background searches, not more than 7 records will show up for arrests and not more than 10 records will show up for convictions.

Expunge Putnam County Arrest Records

An expunction in Putnam County is the legal removal or sealing of an arrest record or case charge from an individual's criminal history. Expunged records are physically destroyed and removed from public access, but the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) keeps a confidential copy along with the accused party's DNA and fingerprint. Individuals and agencies have to be authorized by a court order to access these confidential records.

Although all citizens have the right to petition for an expungement, not all crimes can be expunged. According to Florida Statutes 943.0584, some charges that are not eligible for expunction or sealing include the following:

• Sexual offenses
• Acts of Terrorism
• Homicides
• Murders
• Child abuse
• Assault and battery offenses
• Human and Drug trafficking

An individual is eligible to petition for an expunction if they meet the following criteria, among others:

• An indictment was neither filed nor issued on the case.
• The state attorney dismissed the charge or declared it nolle prosequi
• As of the time of application, the petitioner has never been judged guilty of a criminal offense, felony, or misdemeanor.
• The petitioner is not under court supervision.
• The petitioner has never gotten an expunction or sealing.

The process for getting a record expunged in Putnam County is as follows:

• The petitioner applies for and obtains a Certificate of Eligibility for Court-ordered sealing or expunction from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. A non-refundable fee of $75 is paid along with the application.
• Visit the Putnam County Clerk of Court's website and print the application forms (petition, affidavit, and proposed order)
• Pay the filing fee of $42. It costs $1 per page to make a copy and $2 to certify the order
• File with the petition, a notarized affidavit, the certificate of eligibility, and the proposed order, and 2 self-addressed and stamped envelopes with the Clerk of court

If the expunction petition is successful, the clerk of court sends a signed copy of the expunction order to all law enforcement agencies that have the individual's criminal records on file so that they can be destroyed.

Putnam County Arrest Warrants

An arrest warrant is a legal document authorizing a law enforcement officer to take a person suspected of a crime into custody. Florida arrest warrants must be in writing and are entered into state and national databases upon issue. Florida Statutes Section 901.02 oversees the issuance and enforcement of arrest warrants in Florida.

The process of getting an arrest warrant begins when a law enforcement officer concludes an investigation and then visits the State Attorney's Office to open an arrest warrant file. The officer and the Assistant State attorney then draft an arrest warrant including an affidavit and evidence which is then submitted to a judge.

The arrest warrant is issued after the judge reviews the evidence and finds that there is probable cause in the case. An arrest warrant typically contains the signature of the issuing judge, the reason for arrest and the statute backing the arrest, the name or description of the accused, the issue date, and the jurisdiction of the warrant.

Putnam County Arrest Warrant Search

A Putnam arrest warrant search can be conducted by contacting the Putnam County Sheriff's Office as they are the primary authority for handling warrants in Putnam County. Interested persons who want warrant information can contact them by phone, mail, or in-person visits to their Office.

The Sheriff's Office also maintains an online Want/Warrant Search tool to conduct an active warrants search. The searcher needs to provide the first, middle, or last name of the person they are inquiring about to complete a search. The contact os the Sheriff's Office is as follows:

The Sheriff's Office
130 Orie Griffin Blvd
Palatka, Putnam County 32177
Phone: (386) 329-0800

The court issues all warrants and so the Putnam County Clerk of Circuit Court and Comptroller keeps records of the warrants. An arrest warrant search can be conducted by contacting the Court Clerk's Office or paying them an in-person visit. Their contact address for in-person visits is as follows:

Putnam County Clerk of the Circuit Court & Comptroller
410 St. Johns Avenue
Palatka, Florida 32177

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) also maintains a database of wanted persons and active warrants. Interested individuals can search for local and state arrest warrants online using this resource.

Do Putnam County Arrest Warrants Expire?

No. Once an arrest warrant is issued in Putnam County and all over Florida, it remains outstanding until it is executed. This means that no matter how much time has passed, any individual with an active warrant is at risk of being arrested at any time. Arrest warrants only become inactive when they are recalled, when an arrest is made, or upon the death of the accused.

Some of the reasons why an arrest warrant is issued in Florida include the following:

• When there is irrefutable evidence that the accused committed the crime
• For failure to appear in court after posting bond or being served a summons
• Violation of Probation (VOP)
• Violation of Community Control (VOCC)
• Failure to pay child support and fines

The execution of an arrest warrant may be delayed if the accused moves out of the warrant's jurisdiction, or if declared invalid by a judge.