How to Conduct a Florida Criminal Records Search

A Florida criminal record search can be done through various record databases in the state. These records are maintained by federal agencies and local law enforcement agencies. These records include basically all of the jail records, prison records, police records, criminal records, incarceration records and inmate records. These criminal record searches are available through various government websites for people to access.

State Criminal Records Repository

The State of Florida permits the private sector and the public to access its criminal records from its state repositories. You can call 904-488-4931 to get all information regarding a criminal records search.

Florida Department of Corrections

The Florida Department of Corrections provides a search for all correction record databases. If you search through the offender databases at http://www.dc.state.fl.us/, you will find that it lists all inmate details like inmate escapes, inmate population, and inmate releases. Due to the differences regarding database information, it only provides criteria that are common.

The Florida Department of Corrections, in the interest of public safety, provides information and photographs of the criminals who are under the care of the Department of Corrections. This information is updated weekly to provide proper information to the public. For more details regarding an offender search you can contact: Department of Corrections, Probation and Parole Field Services at (850) 487-2165 or you can also email at co-supervision@mail.dc.state.fl.us.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE)

The criminal record search information that is available on the website http://offender.fdle.state.fl.us/offender/homepage is directly reported to FDLE by the Department of Corrections. FDLE stores and provide this information directly for the public to access. But the records are not 100 percent accurate and are subject to change. If anyone thinks that the information that is available on this webpage is not correct, they can get in touch with the FDLE Registration & Compliance Unit at 1 (888) 357-7332 or by email at sexpred@fdle.state.fl.us.

A Florida public record is defined broadly and falls under Florida's statute in Chapter 119. The database that is provided by the FDLE contains records of all the offenders who are classified under sexual predators and sexual offenders. The information is of great importance as it helps the public to be aware of the criminals or offenders who have committed serious criminal activities.

These Florida statutes, under Chapter 119 say that public records are available from the Department of Law Enforcement on request. One can also search for criminal records via this site. The information related to sexual predators and sexual offenders is accessible as a part of public records at FDLE.

The FDLE’s sexual predator’s registration list contains the list of all the offenders who are classified as sexual predators under the current law and the list gets updated regularly. Another list is of FDLE’s current sex offender list which includes information of all sex offenders under current Florida law and this list also gets updated regularly.

Victim Assistance Office

The Victim Assistance Office’s primary function is to provide assistance to crime victims committed by inmates in custody or under strict supervision and to provide notification regarding an inmate’s release. This office also provides referral services to a victim’s specific needs like counseling, crime compensation, support groups and crisis intervention. You can call the office for further assistance at (850) 488-9166 or toll-free number 1-877-8-victim (1-877-884-2846). This is a toll-free automated notification and inmate information service which can be accessed 24 hours a day.

Victims will not be notified by the Department of Corrections about an inmate’s custody status unless and until they are registered in the system. Victims can register by using their telephone numbers for notification regarding an inmates escape, transfer, death, release, etc. by simply calling 1-877-VINE-4-FL (1-877-846-3435). To register for the VINE services you will need to fill out a form, call the above mentioned number or register at http://www.vinelink.com. However, registration at vinelink.com is not forwarded to the Department of Corrections. This means you will not receive any notification unless you get registered directly by filling out the form or by calling the toll-free number. You can also get in touch with the Florida Department of Corrections, Victims Assistance Program at the following address:
Florida Department of Corrections – Victim Assistance Program
RE: Conditional Release Supervision Victim Statement
2601 Blair Stone Road
Tallahassee, Florida 32399-2500 you can also fax to (850) 487-7092 or email victims.assistance@mail.dc.state.fl.us.

Florida Department of Law Enforcement

If you want to receive criminal history information then you should visit http://www.fdle.state.fl.us/ . The Florida Department of Law Enforcement, to provide the highest level of public service for criminal history record checks, offers this service at a nominal fee of $24. FDLE’s Division of Criminal Justice Information Services is the center of criminal history information for the State of Florida. Criminal records can be searched from this online site.

Additional places for criminal history information in the State of Florida are Criminal History Services Section (850) 410-8109 – This can be accessed by the general public; a fingerprint card is not required but a nominal fee of $24 is required.
Quality Control Section (850) 410-8880 – This can be accessed by the general public and it requires an additional review form; no charges are required.
VECHS program (850) 410-8161 – This can only be accessed by persons and agencies with statutory authority.