Westchester County Arrest Records

Arrest records are the official documents produced by law enforcement agencies when they make arrests. In Westchester County, there are over 45 local law enforcement agencies capable of apprehending and booking suspects. Most of these agencies have jails for holding arrestees. The Westchester County Department of Public Safety (or Westchester County Police) provides county-wide policing including at parks, parkways, and the county’s airport. The New York State Police also has multiple locations in the county.

Finding a Westchester County arrest record requires knowing which of its law enforcement agencies created the record. While some provide arrest record search tools on their websites, you will have to contact others to request access to specific arrest records. In addition to local law enforcement, the New York Department of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS) also maintains Westchester County criminal records, including arrest records.

Individuals arrested in Westchester County may be charged to court to face trials. In such cases, their arrest records are helpful in preparing Westchester County court records. These records are prepared and maintained by various courts in the county.

Are Arrest Records Public in Westchester County?

Local law enforcement agencies make Westchester County arrest records available to the public in accordance with the New York Freedom of Information Law (FOIL). You can request access to these records by contacting police departments across the country. Local law enforcement sends their arrest and criminal records to the DCJS. However, you cannot submit a FOIL request for arrest and criminal records maintained by the DCJS.

While Westchester County police departments, and other law enforcement agencies, provide public access to their arrest records, certain arrest records are confidential by default or by court order in the State of New York. Law enforcement in the county will not provide the records of arrests involving juveniles or minors. Arrest records containing essential pieces of evidence in ongoing cases and investigations are also excluded from public access. Lastly, Westchester County law enforcement cannot provide expunged arrest records and will not allow anyone to view sealed arrest records without court orders.

What Do Public Arrest Records Contain?

An arrest record prepared in Westchester County would provide the following information

• Arrestee’s identity include their name, age, and gender
• Arrest charge
• Identity of the arresting officer
• Name of the law enforcement agency holding the arrestee
• Booking number
• Where and when the arrest occurred

Westchester County Crime Rate

Crime statistics for Westchester County are provided by the DCJS. This Department obtains crime data from the many police departments and other types of municipal law enforcement in the county. The DCJS crime rate data showed that there were 11,992 crimes reported in Westchester County in 2023. Violent crimes accounted for 1,799 of these while there were 10,193 property crimes. The most prevalent violent crime for the county in 2023 was aggravated assault with 1,216 incidents while larceny accounted for the most common property crimes with 8,225 incidents reported. In that year, Westchester County law enforcement agencies also recorded 11 murders, 107 rapes, and 465 robberies as well as 998 burglaries and 970 motor vehicle thefts.

Westchester County Arrest Statistics

Arrest statistics for Westchester County are also collated by the DCJS. The Department reports adult arrests separately from juvenile arrests. According to its report, there were 3,158 and 3,312 adult felony arrests in the county in 2022 and 2023 respectively. Westchester County also recorded 6,299 and 6,672 adult misdemeanor arrests in 2022 and 2023 respectively. The juvenile arrest number for the county totaled 367 in 2022.

The Westchester County Department of Corrections (DOC) is responsible for overseeing the operations of municipal jails in the county. These include the Jail Division and the Penitentiary Division. According to the DCJS jail population report, there were 446 people in the Westchester Jail and 221 in the maximum security Westchester Penitentiary in 2023. A separate Annex facility, for housing prison overflows, held 48 people.

Find Westchester County Arrest Records

To locate an arrestee in Westchester County, you can contact the various law enforcement agencies in the county. You may find an inmate held in a Westchester County DOC facility with the Westchester Inmate Lookup search tool. Inmates of state-run prisons can be found with the lookup tool provided by the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DCCS). This Incarcerated Lookup search allows anyone to find inmates by their prison ID numbers.

While there are no federal prisons in Westchester County, individuals arrested in the county and remanded in federal prisons can be located using the inmate lookup tool provided by the Federal Bureau of Prisons.

Free Arrest Record Search in Westchester County

Westchester County arrest records are kept by multiple law enforcement and corrections agencies at county, state, and federal levels. Most of these agencies provide free search tools for finding the records of persons held in their facilities. Such free search tools include:

• Westchester Inmate Lookup provided by the Westchester County DOC
• Incarcerated Lookup search provided by the New York DCCS
• Inmate lookup tool provided by the BOP

There are also independent online lookup tools for finding Westchester County arrest records. Some of these offer free search services. However, these third-party lookup services usually have limited reaches and may provide outdated results.

Get Westchester County Criminal Records

Also, known as rap sheets, criminal records are official documents detailing histories of criminal convictions. They include multiple files relating to arrests, charges, sentences, and incarcerations. Westchester County criminal records are prepared by various law enforcement agencies and correctional facilities. These records are usually provided when requesting background checks.

Besides local law enforcement, the DCJS also provides Westchester County criminal records. Employers, professional bodies, and credit reporting organizations usually request these records. However, the DCJS does not provide criminal records to individuals, except when the requester is seeking their own rap sheet.

The DCJS offers two types of criminal records: suppressed and unsuppressed histories. A suppressed criminal history does not include the subject’s sealed criminal records. An unsuppressed record contains all of the individual’s criminal history except expunged records.

To request your own Westchester County criminal record from the DCJS, you must submit your request through IdentoGo. This third-party provider also collects fingerprints, used for background checks, for the DCJS. When requesting your own rap sheet, start by visiting the IdentoGo website to schedule an appointment. Alternatively, you may call (877) 472-6915 to contact them. During this call, you must state whether you are seeking a suppressed or unsuppressed criminal history by providing the code 15464Z or 15465F respectively.

Make sure to bring your ID to the IdentoGo fingerprinting appointment. If you are a minor requesting your Westchester County juvenile criminal record, you must provide a New York Photo ID Waiver for Minors form complete and signed by your parent or legal guardian. IdentoGo charges $14.25 for fingerprint collection and accepts credit cards, money orders, and checks for payment. When paying with a money order or check, make it out to “Idemia”.

It usually takes 3 - 4 weeks to receive your criminal record from the DCJS. If you have no criminal history in the State of New York, you will receive a “no record” response in the mail. The DCJS provides a different set of instructions for anyone requesting their criminal record from outside the State of New York.

Westchester County Arrest Records Vs. Criminal Records

An arrest record is prepared after booking an individual. It describes the event of apprehending and holding a named individual in a jail. A criminal record is a more comprehensive document. It provides the history of an individual’s criminal arrest, conviction or dismissal, and sentencing.

While an arrest record says nothing about whether the arrestee is guilty or not of the offense for which they were booked, it is possible to see from an individual’s criminal record that they are guilty or innocent of any criminal charge brought against them. A criminal record also spells out the severity of each criminal conviction and the punishment passed down by a court for the offense. It also includes a history of incarceration of the named individual. This is why organizations wishing to do background checks on potential applicants seek criminal records rather than arrest records.

How Long Do Arrests Stay on Your Record?

In Westchester County, as in the rest of the State of New York, an arrest stays forever on the record of the arrestee. It is, however, possible to seal or expunge an arrest record with a court order.

Expunge Westchester County Arrest Records

When a court grants a request to expunge a Westchester County arrest record, the record is completely removed as if the arrest never took place. While a sealed arrest record will not show up in a suppressed criminal history check, an expunged arrest record is completely erased and will never show up on any background check.

While it is possible to expunge your Westchester County arrest record, this is unlikely because the State of New York rarely allows the expungement of criminal records. However, it made an exception for certain marijuana offenses involving the possession of up to 16 ounces of marijuana or sale of up to 25 grams of marijuana. When the state fully legalized marijuana, it made it part of its cannabis law to strike out specific marijuana convictions and removed them from the criminal histories of past offenders.

If you wish to seal your Westchester County arrest or criminal record, you must first determine that you are eligible. You only qualify for criminal record sealing if you:

• Were only convicted of no more than two criminal offenses. These can either be two misdemeanors or a felony and a misdemeanor
• Have committed no crime in the last 10 years since your last criminal conviction or after your release from incarceration
• Are not involved in any pending criminal cases
• Are not required to register as a sex offender in the State of New York

If you meet these requirements, you may then ask the appropriate court to seal your arrest or criminal record. First, you must get the court to approve your Criminal Certificate of Disposition. This must be completed and signed for every case/record you wish to seal. The court will charge you $5 to process and approve this certificate. Once approved, fill out a Sealing Application and sign it in front of a notary public. Provide support documents or evidence of your rehabilitation to help convince the court to seal your record.

Make copies of these documents and serve them to the Westchester County District Attorney’s Office by hand or mail. This serves as a notification of your intention to ask the court to seal your records. Let the server complete and sign an Affidavit of Service before a notary public. Compile the original documents along with the Affidavit of Service and file these at the court where the record you want to seal is located. A judge at this court will determine whether to seal your record or not. If successful, the court will make a signed Seal Order to your address. Make a copy of this document and attach a completed Request for Seal Verification form to mail to the DCJS.

Westchester County Arrest Warrants

An arrest warrant is a type of arrest record giving law enforcement the legal authority to apprehend the individual named on the warrant. Law enforcement officers and prosecutors in Westchester County may prepare arrest warrants to apprehend and detain suspected offenders and persons of interest. An arrest warrant can also be issued to apprehend someone who failed to appear in court or individuals known to have violated their parole or probation.

When bringing an arrest warrant before a judge, the officer of the law must provide probable cause to convince the court to approve the warrant. The judge must sign an arrest warrant to make it enforceable. their parole or probation. In addition to the judge’s name and signature, a Westchester County arrest warrant must contain the following information:

• Arrestee’s name and other identifying details such as age and current address
• Cause for arrest or arrest charge
• The court authorizing the warrant
• Date and issue number of the warrant

Westchester County Arrest Warrant Search

The Westchester County Department of Public Safety, in conjunction with the county’s Department of Probation, provides a Warrant Watch search tool for looking up active arrest warrants for anyone intending to provide information leading to the arrest of wanted fugitives. If you know which of the many law enforcement agencies in Westchester County issued an arrest warrant, you may contact them directly to enquire whether an arrest warrant is still active or cleared.

Do Westchester County Arrest Warrants Expire?

No. A Westchester County arrest warrant has no expiration date. To clear a warrant, the named individual must appear in the court, before a judge, where the warrant was issued. An active arrest warrant is also considered cleared if the individual named on it dies.