Michigan Criminal Records

Michigan Criminal Records

The State of Michigan keeps several different major repositories of information on criminal records. Most of these sources of information deal mostly with Michigan convictions. There are other types of criminal records that do not necessarily result in convictions. And for this reason, the sources listed below may not contain all the information you want on Michigan criminal records. However, if you're looking for a place to start, then these sites are excellent ways to jumpstart your search for Michigan criminal records.

But before we go on and give you the list of sites to visit, let us define some terms first. As mentioned earlier, Michigan criminal records do not necessarily mean a record of a conviction. Arrest records without convictions may still be considered as Michigan criminal records. The same can be said in most states. There are instances wherein an arrest is made but it is soon dismissed with the discovery of new evidence. But what then is a conviction?

A conviction is when a judgment is handed down from a court indicating that the person in question was found guilty. A conviction may also be due to the fact that the defendant pleaded guilty to the crime in question. In America, and other democratic countries, everyone is considered innocent until found guilty. However, this does not mean that people are not interested to know that someone was arrested for rape and acquitted at trial due to lack of evidence, etc. etc. In most cases, Michigan criminal records checks are done for employment purposes. If you're an employer seeking to research about the Michigan criminal records of a prospective hire, it is important to know that you should only search for convictions with a signed release from the applicant or employee.

The Four Levels of Michigan Criminal Records

There are actually four types of Michigan criminal records. Often, they are also referred to as levels of Michigan criminal records. These are the following:

- Court Records - Court records are Michigan criminal records that have been filed at court after an arrest. These are often the best way to verify if a Michigan criminal action has been initiated against someone. However, one of the downsides of searching court documents for Michigan criminal records is the cost. - Michigan State Police - The Michigan State Police keeps an archive of all Michigan criminal records. They store this in a large searchable database which anyone can access. The only problem with searching through the State Police database is that it gets its Michigan criminal records from reports filed to them by courts and municipal departments. Accuracy might be a problem so it is recommended that this be not used as the main source of Michigan criminal records. - Michigan Department of Corrections - The Department of Corrections keeps a database of Michigan criminal records of everyone who has served time in prison. The Michigan criminal records stored here contain good details about the crime and the database even includes pictures of the criminal that could help minimize false negatives. Understand that this database contains only Michigan criminal records of imprisonment and criminals who have not been sentenced to prison do not show up here. - Arrests - Michigan criminal records of arrests at the county jail level are excellent sources, too, but they may not be as readily available as the others. However, there are some private sources which can legally provide you with these.