Search Minneapolis Criminal Records

Minneapolis criminal records are filed and tracked through Hennepin County District Court and the Minneapolis Police Department, which serves Minnesota's largest city with a population near 430,000. If you need to find a criminal case, request a police report, or check someone's conviction history tied to Minneapolis, there are several ways to do it. Free court searches are available online through Minnesota Court Records Online, and the BCA's statewide conviction database lets you run a name search for $8. The MPD also publishes open crime data and dashboards you can access at no cost.

Minneapolis Police Department Criminal Records

The Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) is the primary law enforcement agency for the city. The department is based at City Hall, 350 Fifth St. S., Room 130, Minneapolis, MN 55415. Office hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. For non-emergency matters, call 311 or 612-673-3000. Text-to-911 is also available in Minneapolis for those who cannot make a voice call.

The MPD maintains a wide range of public records. Available data includes police reports, accident reports, incident reports, body camera footage, arrest records, jail roster information, clearance letters, sex offender notifications, and 911 call data. Some records require a formal request under the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act, Chapter 13. The City Clerk's office processes those requests and routes them to the right department. You can submit requests online or by mail to City Hall, Room 370, Minneapolis, MN 55415. The responsible authority is City Clerk Casey Joe Carl. Proof of identity is required for private data requests about yourself. Bring a valid ID, driver's license, military ID, or passport.

For MPD-specific records like police reports and accident reports, contact Minneapolis 311 to get routed to the right office. Some records can be picked up at the Public Service Building. Fees apply for copies, and the amount varies by record type.

The screenshot below is from the Minneapolis Police Department's main page on the city website at minneapolismn.gov.

The MPD page lists department contacts, available data types, and links to records services.

How to Search Minneapolis Criminal Records

There are three main ways to search criminal records tied to Minneapolis. Each one returns different data and has a different cost.

Minnesota Court Records Online (MCRO) is the free public search tool run by the Minnesota Judicial Branch. It covers Hennepin County District Court, which handles all criminal cases filed in Minneapolis. You can search by name, case number, or citation number. Results show party names, charges, docket entries, and case status. Some older records filed before July 1, 2015 may not appear online. Start at publicaccess.courts.state.mn.us. There is no fee to search or view documents.

The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) runs a statewide Public Criminal History Search at bca.dps.mn.gov. It covers felony, gross misdemeanor, and misdemeanor convictions from across the state, not just from Hennepin County. The cost is $8 per search. You need the person's full name and date of birth. The BCA search does not include arrest-only records, juvenile records, federal convictions, or records from other states.

Minneapolis also publishes an open data portal at opendata.minneapolismn.gov. That site includes arrest data, use-of-force reports, police stops, and crime statistics in downloadable formats. It is free and does not require an account. For interactive crime maps and dashboards, visit the city's crime data page on the Minneapolis city website. The screenshot below shows the city's public data request page at minneapolismn.gov.

The data practices page explains how to request records from the City of Minneapolis under Minnesota's data access laws.

Hennepin County Court Records

All criminal cases in Minneapolis go through Hennepin County District Court, the busiest trial court in Minnesota. The main courthouse is at 300 South Sixth Street, Minneapolis, MN 55487. The Court Administrator's office manages all case files, certified copies, and in-person record lookups. You can reach the court at 612-596-1700. Hours are Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Minneapolis is part of Minnesota's Fourth Judicial District, which covers Hennepin County only. The Fourth District handles more criminal filings than any other judicial district in the state. Judges there process felonies, gross misdemeanors, misdemeanors, and petty offenses for all of Hennepin County, including Minneapolis. For case lookups, MCRO is the fastest option. You can search by name or case number without going to the courthouse. For certified copies, in-person visits are often required. Call the court ahead of time to confirm what you need to bring and the current copy fees.

Not every document in a criminal case is available online. Juvenile records and restricted documents require an in-person visit. If a case does not show up in MCRO, it may be sealed or filed under a name variation. Court staff can help with those searches at the public service window.

The screenshot below is from the Minneapolis crime maps and dashboards page, which shows public safety data the city publishes online at minneapolismn.gov.

The dashboards include arrest data, crime by category, and settlement agreement tracking for the Minneapolis Police Department.

Criminal Background Checks

The BCA is the main source for criminal background checks in Minnesota. Online searches cost $8 per search through bca.dps.mn.gov. You need the subject's full name and date of birth. Results show felony, gross misdemeanor, and misdemeanor convictions from across the state. The BCA does not show arrest-only records, dismissed charges, juvenile cases, or out-of-state offenses.

Under Minn. Stat. section 13.87, criminal conviction data is public for 15 years following the discharge of the sentence. Once that window closes, the conviction no longer appears on public searches. That 15-year rule applies to all BCA public searches, regardless of offense type. If you need older conviction data, you may have to contact the court directly or work through a licensed data broker. For many standard needs, though, the $8 BCA search covers it.

The BCA also allows free in-person inspection of public conviction records at its main office at 1430 Maryland Avenue East, St. Paul, MN 55106. Office hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. No appointment is needed for basic records inspection. For licensed positions in human services or child care, the Minnesota Department of Human Services handles background checks separately under Chapter 245C. Those require fingerprints and a different process than the standard name search.

Minneapolis Open Data at opendata.minneapolismn.gov also includes downloadable arrest data. That is not a formal background check, but it can help you review crime patterns and incidents linked to a specific address or time period.

Expungement in Minneapolis

Minnesota law allows people to seek expungement under Minn. Stat. section 609A.03. When a court grants a petition, the records are sealed rather than destroyed. Courts and law enforcement still have access for some purposes, but the record does not show up on most public searches or background checks. Petitions for Minneapolis cases go through Hennepin County District Court.

The process requires filling out a petition form, serving it on all agencies that hold the records, and attending a hearing. The court weighs the nature of the offense, how much time has passed, and what the petitioner has done since the case closed. More serious offenses face a higher bar. Some offenses cannot be expunged at all. If you are not sure whether your record qualifies, contact a legal aid organization or an attorney before you file.

Minnesota also has automatic expungement for certain records under Minn. Stat. section 609A.015, expanded in 2023. Records that qualify may be sealed by the BCA without a petition. This applies to cases where charges were dismissed, where the person was acquitted, or where no charges were filed after an arrest. Cannabis-related expungements follow a separate process within Chapter 609A. Check with the BCA or a legal aid attorney to confirm whether your record qualifies for automatic sealing.

Legal aid for Minneapolis residents is available through Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid at mylegalaid.org. Call 612-334-5970 for the Minneapolis office. They handle some expungement cases for income-eligible clients at no cost.

Predatory Offender Registry

Minnesota's predatory offender registry is managed by the BCA under Minn. Stat. section 243.166. People convicted of qualifying sex offenses and certain violent crimes must register with the state. They report their address, employment, and vehicle information and must verify that data in person each year during their birth month. Address changes must be reported within five days of moving.

Community notification rules are set by Minn. Stat. section 244.052. Offenders are classified as Level I, II, or III based on their assessed risk. Level III offenders pose the highest risk. Their information is posted publicly through the Minnesota Department of Corrections Offender Locator at coms.doc.state.mn.us/PublicViewer. You can search by name or address to find Level III offenders in Minneapolis. The search is free. Level I and II offender data is shared with law enforcement and certain organizations like schools and daycares but is not available to the general public online. If you have a concern about a specific person in Minneapolis, contact the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office or the Minneapolis Police Department. They can point you to the right resource based on the risk level assigned to that individual.

The DOC Offender Locator also shows current inmates and people on supervised release, which can be useful for tracking someone connected to a Minneapolis criminal case.

Nearby Cities

These cities are near Minneapolis and have their own criminal records pages.

Hennepin County Criminal Records

Minneapolis sits in Hennepin County, and all criminal court cases in the city are filed through Hennepin County District Court. For county-level resources, search options, and court procedures, visit the Hennepin County criminal records page.

View Hennepin County Criminal Records