Walton County Arrest Records

Law enforcement officials in Walton County compile arrest records after taking a person into custody for a criminal offense. This offense could range from a minor infraction, like disorderly conduct, to a more serious offense, such as drug trafficking.

An arrest record encapsulates the events leading to an arrest and identifies the alleged perpetrator, alongside other pertinent details. Within the judicial system, the records are useful for charging or prosecuting offenders and may influence the severity of a defendant's punishment. Beyond the courtroom, arrest records offer valuable insights to parties investigating an individual's background.

Notwithstanding, a Walton County arrest record does not present information about a suspect's determination of guilt. For that reason, it is imperative to review these records in conjunction with the Walton County court records and other påublicly accessible criminal documentation to ascertain the outcome of an arrest.

Are Arrest Records Public in Walton County?

Yes. Arrest records are generally considered open to the public in Walton County. The Florida Public Records Act, codified in Chapter 119 of the Florida Statutes (FS), permits the public inspection of documents and records created, compiled, or preserved by government agencies, including police departments.

Still, this access is not absolute. Certain records are exempt from public scrutiny under the Act and other regulations. Examples include:

• Arrestees' confessions (until the case has been concluded)
• Active criminal investigative and intelligence information
• Certain victim information, such as the identity of a victim of child abuse, victim of a sexual offense, or child human trafficking victim, or the address of a mass violence victim
• Juvenile offender records
• Sealed and expunged arrest records

What Do Public Arrest Records Contain?

Per FS 119.011(3)(c), the following information may be retrieved from a Walton County public arrest record:

• The arrested person's full name and aliases
• The arrestee's address, age, gender, height, and weight
• Arrest time, date, and location
• The crime charged and its description
• The victim's name, sex, age, and address, except as provided in FS 119.071(2) (h) or (o)
• Booking photograph (or mugshot)
• Booking information, such as the time, date, bond amount, housing facility, and release date

Walton County Crime Rate

In 2021, Walton County had a total crime index of 1,066, with 6 murders, 35 rapes, 11 robberies, 120 aggravated assaults, 171 burglaries, 652 larcenies, and 71 motor vehicle thefts reported. The county's crime rate per 100,000 population stood at 1,367.7 that year. (Florida Department of Law Enforcement [FDLE], Annual 2021 Florida Uniform Crime Report.)

Comparatively, Walton County had a total crime index of 984 and a crime rate of 1,316.8 in 2020. These figures represent an 8.3% change in the county's overall crime index and a 3.9% change in the crime rate between 2020 and 2021. Similar to 2021, larceny was Walton County's most recurring crime in 2020, with 616 reported offenses. It was followed by burglary, with 174 offenses.

Walton County Arrest Statistics

According to the FDLE's 2021 County and Municipal Arrest Report, Walton County recorded 2,675 arrests in 2021. This equated to a 3,432.1 arrest rate per 100,000 inhabitants. Adults made up 90.8% (2,429) of all arrests, while juveniles accounted for the remaining 9.2% (246).

In 2021, larceny emerged as the most popular index crime for which more people were apprehended. It resulted in 155 arrests within Walton County.

Find Walton County Arrest Records

The County of Walton has two leading law enforcement agencies that execute arrests locally: the Walton County Sheriff's Office (which has jurisdiction countywide) and the DeFuniak Springs Police Department (which is the primary law enforcement in the City of DeFuniak Springs). Anyone searching for arrest records in Walton County can submit a public records query to either agency, depending on which made the arrest. Generally, requests must contain sufficient information about a record to enable the custodian to find responsive files, such as an involved party's name and the incident's date.

For example, the Walton County Sheriff's Office (WCSO) accepts record inquiries in person or by mail at its public records department:

Walton County Sheriff's Office
37 South 10th Street
DeFuniak Springs, Florida 32433
Phone: (850) 892-8111
Email: wcsopublicrecords@waltonso.org

Documents may also be requested via email by completing the form embedded in the lower section of the WCSO's Records Request website.

However, fees may apply for excessive requests (voluminous requests or those that require extensive staff time). In some cases, the office may also charge a fee to release a copy of a record. Relevant fees are provided on the WCSO's Records Request page, but one can still request an estimate regardless.

Additionally, because the Sheriff's Office serves as the custodian of the county's jail, the office can be queried to find a person arrested by a state or federal agency and booked at the local jail or placed on hold for a federal or state agency.

In cases where an individual was apprehended by a federal agency and cannot be found locally, the inquirer may access the Federal Inmate Locator provided by the Federal Bureau of Prisons. If the agency that performed the arrest is known, inquiries may be made to its local field office.

Free Arrest Record Search in Walton County

Members of the public can conduct free arrest records searches through both government and non-government sources. Because such documents are disseminated under Florida's Sunshine Law (the state's public records law), individuals are not typically charged for inspection requests. That is to say, an agency may not collect fees to search for identifiable records or release information to the requester. For example, the Walton County Sheriff's Office Inmate Inquiry portal is accessible to all who wish to look up certain arrest and custody information.

Notwithstanding, fees may be incurred if one's request is deemed excessive in terms of time or manpower required or if an agency must cover the ordinary costs associated with reproducing or furnishing a copy of a record.

Those seeking to utilize a private aggregator (third-party) website to obtain arrest information online have several options at their disposal. A person's first and last name is usually sufficient to initiate a search on any third-party site. However, the user may be charged for a comprehensive report.

Get Walton County Criminal Records

Criminal records (also called criminal history records or RAP sheets) are a compilation of information about individuals apprehended for, charged with, or convicted of crimes. In Walton County, these records can be obtained from the Sheriff's Office, the local court system, and the Florida Sex Offender Registry, among other places.

The Sheriff's Office provides local background checks free of charge to any interested member of the public. One can submit their request in person or via mail to the Sheriff's Defuniak Springs Office (where the records section is situated). A request can also be submitted via email by filling out the "Background Check" form located at the lower half of the Sheriff's Records Request website.

Regardless of the means used to submit a request, each submission must include the search subject's full legal name and date of birth. Moreover, the search will only cover arrests and charges within Walton County and will not include court dispositions.

To find arrest dispositions, one can submit a records request to the court system through the Walton County Clerk of Courts & Comptroller's Office. The Clerk maintains a Public Records Case Search portal for reviewing court cases, including their outcomes. The portal is free of charge and accessible with various criteria, such as a defendant's name or docket number.

Alternatively, individuals can submit court records requests in writing at the locations below, especially when a record is unavailable online.

Street Addresses
Walton County Courthouse
571 US Highway 90 East
Defuniak Springs, FL 32433
Walton County Coastal Annex
31 Coastal Centre Boulevard
Suite 500
Santa Rosa Beach, FL 32459

Mailing Address
Walton County Clerk of Courts & County Comptroller
P.O. Box 1260
DeFuniak Springs, FL 32435

Requests can also be submitted via fax or email to the Clerk's Office. The Clerk's Records Form can be used to submit such requests. It is available for download on the Clerk's website. Note that service fees apply to obtain copies of records.

Finally, those seeking a statewide or nationwide criminal records check, which may include criminal information reported by Walton County criminal justice agencies, can query the FDLE and FBI, respectively.

Criminal records from the FDLE typically cost around $24 to obtain and are available to the general public. However, the FBI only releases criminal records to the subject of the record. Each national criminal background check costs $18.

Walton County Arrest Records Vs. Criminal Records

While arrest records often form integral components of criminal records in Walton County, they are not identical to criminal records.

Arrest records are generally law enforcement reports that describe the circumstances leading to a person's arrest. Compared to criminal records, the records do not carry arrest dispositions, i.e., the final outcome of an arrest. Thus, they are not sufficient to establish whether a person was ultimately adjudicated guilty or acquitted of a criminal charge.

Criminal records, in contrast, delve deeper into a person's criminal activities, extending beyond the initial arrest and charges to include any sentence(s) a court may have imposed on a defendant. On job, housing, licensing, and other official applications, it is often a person's criminal record that is scrutinized to determine a person's eligibility.

How Long Do Arrests Stay on Your Record?

Arrests remain on an individual's criminal record permanently until they acquire a sealing or expungement order from a court. Nonetheless, a person may qualify for automatic sealing or expungement under Florida law. In such instances, the records are withdrawn from the public domain once a particular time frame or condition is satisfied (FS 943.0595 and 943.0515).

Expunge Walton County Arrest Records

Florida law offers "sealing" and "expungement" as forms of relief to people who were arrested or convicted in the state. Both legal procedures limit criminal information, including records of arrests, from public dissemination. However, while an expungement physically obliterates a record, sealing makes it confidential and releasable only to entities mentioned in FS 943.0585(6).

The general effect of sealing or expungement in Walton County is that the subject of the record can lawfully deny or refuse to acknowledge an arrest, except in certain situations. For example, when the person becomes a defendant in a criminal proceeding or applies for a job with a criminal justice agency.

There are several statutes under which a person can restrict arrest records in Walton County. However, anyone who wants to seal or expunge an arrest record (adult or juvenile) through the court system must first obtain a Certificate of Eligibility from the FDLE. The process involves:

• Completing the FDLE's application packet (which includes a legible fingerprint card);
• Obtaining a certified case disposition from the Walton County Clerk of Courts Office;
• Enclosing a $75 check or money order; and
• Sending all to the FDLE's mailing address for review.

Florida Department of Law Enforcement
ATTN: Seal & Expunge Section
P.O. Box 1489
Tallahassee, FL 32302-1489

The FDLE typically responds within 12 weeks of receiving a request.

If the FDLE returns a Certificate of Eligibility, the petitioner should take the document to the Walton County Clerk of Courts to complete other forms required for the sealing/expungement petition. Admittedly, the Clerk's website features a forms packet that petitioners can download and complete before coming to the courthouse. Individuals can also contact the Walton Clerk of Courts for more information.

Walton County Arrest Warrants

An arrest warrant constitutes a written command ("writ") that courts use to compel an accused person's appearance for a legal proceeding. The warrant empowers law enforcement officers to apprehend the suspect and promptly deliver them to a judge.

In Walton County, warrants of arrest are issued upon the formal request of a police officer or prosecuting attorney. However, these writs do not attach to a subject unless a determination of "probable cause" has been made—which simply means that the affiant (the requester) must demonstrate the necessity and lawfulness of the arrest. Otherwise, the warrant is, on its face, unconstitutional.

Under Rule 3.121, Florida Rules of Criminal Procedure, Walton County arrest warrants contain these details:

• The full name of the person to be apprehended or a sufficient physical description
• The alleged crime
• The issuing county and date
• The issuing judge's signature plus the title of office
• The bail amount, if applicable

Walton County Arrest Warrant Search

Individuals seeking Walton County arrest warrants may inquire at a local police department, such as the Sheriff's Office. Additionally, they can access the Wanted Persons website to view warrants disclosed to the FDLE by local authorities. The system can be searched with a person's name, date of birth, race, or gender.

Furthermore, a person can look up court records maintained by the Walton County Clerk of Courts Office. If a warrant were issued in a case, it would normally be indicated in the court record. As mentioned, the Clerk's Office offers multiple avenues to inspect or copy court records, including through the Online Case Search System and in person at the courthouse.

Do Walton County Arrest Warrants Expire?

No, Walton County arrest warrants do not expire. These writs stay outstanding until executed by the suspect's arrest. An arrest warrant can also be deemed executed when the subject surrenders to law enforcement.