Arrest Records for Clark County, Indiana

Clark County criminal case records live in two distinct systems: the Indiana statewide court portal MyCase handles docket entries for the Clark County Circuit and Superior Courts, while booking records and Sheriff’s records requests run through the Clark County Sheriff’s Office at (812) 283-4471. The Clark County Clerk of Courts maintains the official court file and accepts public records requests through an online form at Clark County Clerk Public Records Request. Phone calls to the Clerk’s Office may go unanswered during busy periods — the online form is the more reliable channel.

If someone you know was just booked tonight, our Clark County inmate-search page has phone-first contact info.

If you need records outside Clark County

A Clark County name search covers only cases filed in this county’s courts and booked into the Clark County Jail. Records from neighboring Floyd, Scott, or Jefferson counties, federal cases handled in the Southern District of Indiana, or arrests that pre-date the portal’s online window won’t appear in local results. A nationwide search may help fill gaps that local portals often leave — the preliminary scan is free, but a full report requires creating an account.

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This tool is not a consumer reporting agency under the FCRA and may not be used to screen anyone for employment, housing, credit, or any other purpose covered by that law.

How to look up arrest records in Clark County

MyCase, Indiana’s public court-access portal, covers case filings for Clark County going back to roughly the early 2000s — cases from before that window exist only on paper at the Clark County Courthouse and require an in-person or written request. For anything in the online era, MyCase is the fastest path: search by name or case number, and you’ll see charges, hearing dates, dispositions, and attorney of record for Clark County Circuit and Superior Court cases at no cost.

The Clark County Clerk of Courts: Sheriff’s Office page is the county-official resource for booking-side records. The Clark County Sheriff’s Office handles records requests for arrest reports and booking information — reach them at (812) 283-4471. The Sheriff’s Office directs most court-record questions to the state portal rather than fielding them directly, so MyCase should be your first stop for case history.

For a formal written request — certified copies of court documents, complete case files, or records that predate MyCase’s coverage — submit through the Clark County Clerk Public Records Request form. The Clerk’s Office is located at the Clark County Courthouse in Jeffersonville; access is generally restricted to people with court business, so the online form is the practical route for most records-checkers. Confirm current fees and turnaround before submitting — the Clerk’s phone lines can be congested, so the online form tends to get faster responses.

For older paper records that never made it into MyCase, you can also consult the Clark County Indiana Courts and Law resource page, which links to the Indiana Judicial Branch self-service center and the Indiana Courts Public Access Handbook — useful if you need to understand exactly what the Clerk is required to release.

The Indiana Department of Correction’s offender search at IDOC Offender Search covers people currently or previously incarcerated in state prison — it won’t show county jail bookings, but it’s the right tool if the case resulted in a state sentence. Federal charges filed in the Southern District of Indiana are not in any state system; use PACER for federal case lookups.

Are Clark County arrest records public?

Nearly all adult arrest records in Clark County carry default-public status under Indiana law. The governing statute is Ind. Code § 5-14-3, Indiana’s Access to Public Records Act, which makes booking records — including booking photos — open to the public. That means a name, arrest date, charges, and booking photo are generally accessible to anyone who asks, without needing to show a reason.

The default-public rule has narrow exceptions. Sealed or expunged records are removed from public view after a court order takes effect — the public cannot see them, though law enforcement retains access. Juvenile records are handled separately under Indiana’s juvenile code and are not open to the public in the same way adult records are. Victim-identifying information in certain case types — domestic violence, sexual assault — may be redacted from documents the Clerk releases.

Federal arrest records are not in any Indiana state system. An arrest made by a federal agency — the FBI, DEA, or U.S. Marshals — and prosecuted in federal court will not appear on MyCase or in the Clark County Clerk’s records. To check for federal cases tied to a Clark County address, search PACER, the federal courts’ public access system.

A practical note: MyCase shows what the court has entered into its docket. Booking records held by the Clark County Sheriff’s Office are a separate dataset. An arrest that didn’t result in charges being filed may appear in Sheriff’s booking records but show no corresponding court case in MyCase. If you’re doing a thorough check, pull both sources.

What’s in a Clark County arrest record?

What you actually see depends on which system you’re looking at — the court docket and the Sheriff’s booking record are maintained separately and contain different fields. If the record you need goes back more than roughly two decades, the Clark County Courthouse holds the paper file; older records are still retrievable, but you’ll need to request them in writing through the Clerk rather than pulling them from MyCase.

On the court side — what MyCase shows for Clark County Circuit and Superior Court cases — you’ll typically find: case number, filing date, charge descriptions and statute citations, hearing dates and outcomes, bond amounts, attorney of record (if one was entered), and final disposition (guilty plea, dismissal, acquittal, or conviction with sentence). Docket entries are added as the case moves through the court, so a recent arrest may show only an initial filing with no disposition yet.

On the Sheriff’s booking side, a Clark County arrest record typically includes: the arrestee’s name and date of birth, booking date and time, arresting agency, charge or charges at the time of booking, and a booking photo. The booking record reflects what was entered at the time of arrest — charges can change as the case proceeds through the Clark County Circuit or Superior Court, so the booking record and the court docket may show different charge descriptions for the same event.

Booking photos for Clark County are generally public under Ind. Code § 5-14-3. For the current release policy, call the Clark County Sheriff’s Office at (812) 283-4471 — the Sheriff’s Office handles photo requests directly. The jail lobby is open Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. if you need to visit in person.

One gap worth knowing: arrests made by municipal departments — Jeffersonville Police, Clarksville Police, Charlestown Police — are booked into the Clark County Jail, so the booking record ends up in the Sheriff’s system. But the arresting agency’s incident report is a separate document held by that department, not the Sheriff. Jeffersonville Police Department is open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. for most services if you need an incident report from that agency.

How to expunge an arrest record in Clark County

Ask the Clark County Circuit or Superior Court clerk about expungement timing before you file — Indiana gives you effectively one petition per lifetime, so getting the eligibility window right matters more here than in most states. The controlling law is Ind. Code § 35-38-9 (Indiana “Second Chance Law”), and all petitions for Clark County cases must be filed together in the county where the arrest or conviction occurred.

Juvenile records in Clark County follow a separate, generally more accessible sealing process under Indiana’s juvenile code — that path is distinct from the adult Second Chance Law and typically has shorter waiting periods. If the record you’re dealing with involves a juvenile case, ask the Clark County Clerk specifically about the juvenile sealing procedure rather than the adult expungement track.

For adult records, the waiting period depends on the outcome of the case. An arrest that never resulted in a conviction can be petitioned for expungement one year after the arrest date. A dismissal or acquittal is expunged automatically once the court enters the order — that order takes effect no sooner than 60 days after it’s entered. These non-conviction paths are the most straightforward, and many people handle them without an attorney.

Conviction-based expungements have longer waits. A misdemeanor conviction becomes eligible five years after the conviction date. A Class D or Level 6 felony becomes eligible eight years after conviction. For both of those tiers, the court must grant the petition if you meet the eligibility criteria — there’s no judicial discretion to deny a qualifying petition. More serious felonies are eligible after the later of eight years from conviction or three years from completing the sentence, and the court has discretion on those. The most serious felonies — which also require the prosecutor’s written consent — become eligible after the later of ten years from conviction or five years from finishing the sentence.

Sex offenses, violent offenses, and official-misconduct offenses are excluded from Indiana’s Second Chance Law entirely. If the conviction falls into one of those categories, the statute does not provide an expungement path — confirm the current exclusion list with the Clark County Clerk or a licensed Indiana attorney before filing.

To file in Clark County, prepare a verified petition and submit it to the Clark County Circuit or Superior Court — the same court where the case was heard. The Clark County Clerk of Courts can tell you the current filing fee and whether a fee waiver is available for indigent petitioners. Self-represented filers can find general guidance through the Indiana Judicial Branch Self-Service Legal Center. If your situation involves multiple cases across different charge levels, an attorney can help you sequence the petitions correctly — the Indiana attorney roll is searchable at Indiana Roll of Attorneys, and the public defender locator is at Indiana Public Defender Commission.

After a successful expungement, the Clark County Clerk seals the record from public view. Background checks run through public court portals will no longer show the case. Law enforcement agencies retain access to sealed records, but members of the public — and most private database searches — will not see them.

Frequently asked questions about Clark County arrest records

What is the fastest way to find a Clark County arrest record by name?

Search MyCase by the person’s full name — it covers Clark County Circuit and Superior Court cases at no cost and requires no login. MyCase shows charges, hearing dates, and dispositions for cases filed roughly since the early 2000s. For booking records that may not have a corresponding court case, call the Clark County Sheriff’s Office at (812) 283-4471. For records that predate MyCase’s online window, submit a written request through the Clark County Clerk Public Records Request form.

How do I get a Clark County arrest record expunged under Indiana law?

Indiana’s Second Chance Law — Ind. Code § 35-38-9 — governs expungement for Clark County cases. An arrest with no conviction can be petitioned one year after the arrest date. A misdemeanor conviction becomes eligible five years after conviction; a Class D or Level 6 felony after eight years. File a verified petition at the Clark County Circuit or Superior Court where the case was heard — all Clark County petitions must be filed together. Contact the Clark County Clerk of Courts to confirm the current filing fee and fee-waiver options. Sex offenses, violent offenses, and official-misconduct convictions are excluded from the statute entirely.