Lee County Criminal Records Lookup
Lee County criminal records are held by the Sheriff's Office and the Circuit Clerk in Marianna, in the eastern Arkansas Delta region. This page covers how to find arrest records, look up an inmate at the county jail, access court case files through CourtConnect, get a background check, and understand the public records rules that apply in Lee County.
Lee County Criminal Records Overview
Arrest Records and Inmate Search
The Lee County Sheriff's Office is the primary law enforcement agency for the county and the main source of arrest records and inmate information. The office operates the county jail in Marianna, serves warrants and civil process, and keeps custody records on all people booked into the facility. Booking records are public under Arkansas FOIA for completed arrests where the investigation is no longer active.
Arrest records include the booking photo, subject name and date of birth, date and time of the arrest, specific charges with statute numbers, bond amount, arresting agency, and the case number assigned by the court. To get copies, contact the Sheriff's Records Division in Marianna during business hours. In-person requests are handled on a walk-in basis for basic information. Copies of reports and larger records files may take up to three business days.
For inmates who have been sentenced and transferred to an Arkansas Department of Corrections facility, use the free ADC Inmate Search online. This statewide tool searches all ADC units by name or ADC number and shows current facility, sentence length, offense, and projected release date. County jail records and ADC records are separate systems.
Marianna Police handles arrests within Marianna city limits and keeps records separate from the Sheriff. Other cities in Lee County, including Marvell and Elaine, may have local police for municipal incidents. For county-wide records and rural areas of Lee County, the Sheriff's Office is the right place to start. All agencies must respond to public records requests within three business days under FOIA.
VINE at 1-800-510-0415 is a free Arkansas statewide notification service. You can use VINE to check an offender's current custody status or register to receive automatic alerts when their status changes. VINE covers the Lee County jail and all state facilities.
Circuit Clerk and Court Records
The Lee County Circuit Clerk maintains all court records for felony criminal cases, civil suits, domestic filings, and probate proceedings in the county. The Clerk's office is at the Lee County Courthouse in Marianna. Office hours run Monday through Friday during regular business hours. The Circuit Clerk does not handle district court misdemeanor cases, which are kept by the district court clerk separately.
Lee County is served by the First Judicial Circuit East. The circuit court in Marianna hears felony criminal cases, circuit-level civil cases, family law and domestic matters, and probate. Case filings, court orders, judgment records, and dockets are maintained by the Circuit Clerk and are open to the public subject to FOIA rules.
The best online starting point for Lee County court records is Arkansas CourtConnect. This free statewide portal lets you search by party name or case number to see docket entries, hearing dates, charges, and dispositions. CourtConnect works well for recent and current cases. For older records that may not have been digitized, a visit or written request to the Circuit Clerk in Marianna is necessary.
Paper copies of court documents cost $0.25 per page. Certified copies carry a separate fee. If you need a certified copy for legal or administrative purposes, allow one to two business days for the Clerk to process the request. For routine docket lookups and case status checks, CourtConnect is faster and free.
Juvenile court records in Lee County are sealed under § 9-27-309 and are not available for public inspection. Adult criminal case records, including conviction records and sentencing orders, are public with limited exceptions for sealed or expunged cases.
FOIA and Public Access
Arkansas FOIA at § 25-19-101 et seq. makes most Lee County criminal records publicly accessible. The law applies to the Sheriff, the Circuit Clerk, Marianna Police, and all other public agencies in the county. Any citizen can request records without providing a reason or a connection to the case. Agencies must respond within three business days.
Conviction records and felony arrest records are explicitly public under § 12-12-1506(d). These records can be released without the subject's consent. Court dockets, case filings, and judgment records in completed adult criminal cases are also generally public. Restricted records include active investigation files, juvenile records under § 9-27-309, records sealed by a judge, and personnel records with certain exemptions.
If a record is withheld, the agency must provide a written denial explaining the specific statute that allows withholding. You can challenge an improper denial in circuit court. The 24-hour eligibility provision under FOIA is narrow and only covers records created in the last 24 hours that are still being processed; it does not justify delays on older records.
Written requests to the Lee County Sheriff should include the subject's full name and date of birth, the type of records you are requesting, the approximate date range, your contact information, and return postage if you want copies mailed back. More specific requests get processed faster than vague ones.
Background Checks
The Arkansas State Police runs official statewide criminal background checks through the CBC portal at cbc.ark.org. An online check costs $22 and searches the ACIC database for criminal history statewide, including Lee County records. Results typically come back within minutes online. The mail-in version using form ASP-122 costs $25 and is sent to Arkansas State Police, 1 State Police Plaza Drive, Little Rock, AR 72209.
The ACIC database includes felony convictions, misdemeanor convictions, sex offender registration status, and other criminal history data from courts across Arkansas. Lee County courts report convictions to ACIC as cases close. The CBC report draws from this database and is the most reliable official source for Arkansas criminal history.
Records expunged under § 16-90-901 are removed from ACIC within 30 days of a court order and will not appear in CBC results. If a record was sealed by court order in Lee County, the subject can legally deny its existence in most contexts outside of criminal proceedings. Standard background checks will not show expunged records.
For a national check, the FBI CJIS Division handles Identity History Summary requests and requires fingerprinting. This is separate from the state CBC. For most Lee County inquiries, the Arkansas CBC is sufficient.
Sex Offender Registry
ACIC maintains the Arkansas Sex Offender Registry at acic.arkansas.gov. The registry is free to search and covers all registered offenders in the state, including Lee County. Each listing includes the offender's name, current address, photo, conviction details, and tier classification under the four-tier system.
Tier assignments reflect assessed risk of re-offense. Tier 4 carries lifetime registration. Lower tiers have shorter registration periods and different notification requirements. Lee County residents can search by name, zip code, or use the map tool to find offenders near a specific address in Marianna or the surrounding area.
Sex offender registration compliance is enforced by the Lee County Sheriff. Offenders must re-register periodically and report any address change. Failing to register is a criminal offense. If a registered offender in Lee County appears to have moved without updating their registration, contact the Sheriff or ACIC.
Record Sealing and Expungement
Arkansas § 16-90-901 allows eligible individuals to petition for expungement of criminal records. When a Lee County court grants an Order to Seal, ACIC removes the record from its database within 30 days. After that, the record will not appear in standard criminal history searches or CBC reports.
Eligibility is limited. Violent offenses, sex crimes requiring registration, and certain other charges are excluded. For eligible cases, the petitioner generally needs to show the sentence was completed and the waiting period has passed. First-time nonviolent offenders who have stayed out of legal trouble are often eligible, but each case is reviewed individually by a judge.
To file in Lee County, get the expungement petition form from the Circuit Clerk in Marianna and file it in the First Judicial Circuit East court. There is a filing fee. If the petition is approved, the order is sent to ACIC. For free legal help with expungement petitions, contact Arkansas Legal Aid at 1-800-952-9243 or the Center for Arkansas Legal Services at 501-376-3423.
Statewide Resources
The key statewide tools for Lee County criminal records searches: Arkansas CourtConnect for free court case lookups; ADC Inmate Search for state prison inmates; cbc.ark.org for $22 official background checks; ACIC for sex offender registry and criminal history; VINE at 1-800-510-0415 for free custody status and notifications. Most of these tools are available online and require no account or registration for basic searches.
The Arkansas Judiciary at arcourts.gov provides court information, circuit listings, and self-help resources for people dealing with Lee County courts. Arkansas Legal Aid at 1-800-952-9243 and the Center for Arkansas Legal Services at 501-376-3423 can help with FOIA disputes, expungements, and understanding criminal records law.
CourtConnect Search Portal
Arkansas CourtConnect provides free online access to Lee County court records. Search by name or case number to find criminal case filings, hearing dates, charges, and dispositions without traveling to the Lee County Courthouse in Marianna.
Arkansas Secretary of State
The Arkansas Secretary of State is an official state resource for public records and business filings. For Lee County residents who need to verify entity information related to fraud or financial cases, the Secretary of State's business search can supplement court record research.
Cities in Lee County
Marianna is the county seat and largest city in Lee County. Other communities include Marvell and Elaine. None of the cities in Lee County meet the population threshold for a dedicated criminal records page. All Lee County residents use the Sheriff and Circuit Clerk offices in Marianna for criminal records access.
Nearby Counties
Lee County shares borders with four other counties in eastern Arkansas. Each has its own Sheriff and Circuit Clerk for criminal records.