Free Mecklenburg County Warrant Search: Resource

Perform a free Mecklenburg County warrant search to find out if you or someone else has a summons for arrest. Record custodians for warrants are courts of law or law enforcement agencies. Although courts issue warrants, only a law enforcement officer may execute them.

These officials typically provide the public with free online databases and search tools to review warrants or information contained in them. Run a free warrant search in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, today by following the steps and links provided throughout this resource.

A Look at What’s Needed To Check Warrants in Mecklenburg County for Free

Interested persons seeking to conduct a warrant search in Mecklenburg County should know some basic information about public records law in North Carolina.

Warrants are generated by courts of law and law enforcement agencies, both of which are public offices of the state. Therefore, all documents, recordings, and other materials made or received by these offices are public records.

The North Carolina Public Records Law states that records compiled by government agencies in the state are the property of the people.¹ The people may obtain copies of public records for the actual cost of reproducing the record.

However, some documents in the control of a public office are not public records as defined by the law. Under section 132-1.4(b), records of criminal investigations by law enforcement agencies are exempt from public disclosure.² This would exempt search warrants from being disclosed as they are only created to further a criminal investigation.

Under section 132-1.4(c), information concerning the time, date, location, offense, name, and physical characteristics of a person to be arrested or charged is not exempt from disclosure.² Therefore, arrest warrants, and the information contained in them, are generally publicly available to the public for inspection and copying.

When searching for warrants you should know some information about the person named on the record. For starters, you should know their first and last name, as well as the county they live in. It can help you figure out which government office issued the warrant.

Courts will generally issue bench warrants when a defendant fails to appear for their appointed court hearing. A failure to appear is usually a standalone criminal offense. So if a person is arrested for failing to appear, they will have to face that offense and the charge they were originally arrested for.

Some courts will post lists online for individuals who have missed court appearances. Generally, they are municipal courts that have jurisdiction over low level misdemeanors and traffic offenses. They will usually allow a person to pay a fine and have the warrant quashed.

If a county court issued the bench warrant, a defendant would likely be arrested when they finally show up to court or are found by law enforcement.

Information from criminal cases can tell you about the charge from the warrant that led to the case. This information is usually available in online case search tools at no cost to the public. You just need to know where to look.

Law enforcement agencies may also provide details of warrants for free. Most wanted lists are common from sheriff’s offices and other police departments. They display the names and characteristics of individuals who have committed serious crimes and now have outstanding arrest warrants.

Some law enforcement agencies also provide warrant search tools that any member of the public can use at no cost. There are several different types of warrants which will be explained in further detail in subsequent sections. Find out how you can perform a warrant search for free using the details below.

How To Run a Mecklenburg County Warrant Search & See if You or Someone Else Is Wanted

If you want to find out if you or someone you know has a warrant in Mecklenburg County, you should start by checking with the county-wide government agencies. The Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office issues and executes warrants.³ They also provide the public with a free warrant inquiry search.⁴

Interested parties can use this tool to find out who has an active warrant out for an arrest in their name. The search is name based and requires the user to enter a first and last name. There is no way to narrow results by other identifiers, so you may have to sift through several names until you locate the person you are searching for.

Once results are generated you can identify the person you are looking for by reviewing the provided date of birth, race, and sex. You can click on a warrant to view the case number and a description of the charge. There is also an option to print the warrant summary.

If you have questions concerning a person found in the warrant inquiry search, you may contact the Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office.⁶ If you find out that you have an outstanding arrest warrant, you will likely be asked to turn yourself in at the sheriff’s office immediately. When you turn yourself in you will be arrested and booked.

Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office
700 East 4th Street
Charlotte, North Carolina 28202

Phone: 704.336.8100

In North Carolina, arrest warrants that lead to criminal cases are filed in criminal courts. Serious offenses, like felonies, are filed in a superior court. The Mecklenburg County Courthouse is where you will find the superior court and clerk.⁷

Criminal case files from the circuit court can be reviewed online for free through the eCourts Portal.⁸ Mecklenburg County is one of six that share this portal, so users must use the ‘Advanced Filtering Options’ to narrow the search to the appropriate county. Users can further narrow the search by selecting ‘Criminal and Infraction’ under the ‘Filter by Case Type’ option.

The search limits results to 200 cases, so you should narrow the search as much as possible by providing distinguishing information.

Once results are generated, you can click on the case number to view the offense. Under the ‘Case Information’ heading you will find the offense with the corresponding statute number and description. Under the ‘Case Events’ you will also find the date when the warrant was issued.

The Mecklenburg County Clerk of the Superior Court Office is the records custodian for felony criminal case files.¹¹ Interested persons looking to gain access to criminal case files can submit a request by email that includes the name of the case file, the defendant’s name, and file number if possible. The office is also open to the public from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Mecklenburg County Clerk of the Superior Court
832 E. 4th Street
Charlotte, North Carolina 28202

Phone: 704.686.0400
Email: [email protected]

What Types of Warrants Are There & What Does Each Mean?

Warrants may be issued for various reasons and have different names, but they are fundamentally executed for the same reasons. Warrants are either executed to effectuate an arrest of a person or a search of a thing.

They are legal documents, sworn by an officer and signed by a judge. The government has to take these precautions because citizens are protected by the 4th Amendment against unreasonable searches and seizures. A warrant is proof that a seizure, or arrest, or a person or search is reasonable.

Any of these can be referred to as an ‘active warrant’, which means its outstanding, hasn’t been executed, or carried out, or resolved. Find out what the different types of warrants are in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina.

Arrest Warrants: issued by a law enforcement agency when it has probable cause that an individual has committed a violation of the North Carolina criminal code.

Bench Warrants: Issued by a judge in the event that a defendant fails to appear for a scheduled court hearing.

Probation & Parole Violation Warrants: Issued in one of two circumstances – a defendant on probation fails to comply with the terms of the probation, or an inmate released on parole fails to comply with the terms of parole.

Traffic Warrants: also known as traffic citations, they are issued to drivers in Mecklenburg County who violate North Carolina driving laws.

Child Support Warrants: usually initiated by child support services and issued by a family court judge when a parent fails to make their court ordered child support payments.

Capias & Capias Pro Fine Warrants: in North Carolina, a capias warrant is a type of bench warrant.

Fugitive Warrants: type of arrest warrant issued for most violent offenders who have evaded capture, and for fugitives who have broken out of prison or other confinement.

Search Warrants: issued by law enforcement upon probable cause that a specific item of evidence can be found when a designated area is searched.

What To Do if You Have an Active Warrant in Mecklenburg County North Carolina

You should take an active warrant very seriously. If you or someone you know has a warrant out for an arrest, there are some steps you can take to move forward.

If you learn that it is someone you know with an active warrant, you can tell them so they may get their affairs in order. You may also contact a local police department tip line if you think the individual may be dangerous.

If you learn that you have an active warrant in Mecklenburg County, you should consider speaking with a criminal defense attorney and turning yourself in. You do not want the situation to spiral out of control. You may be able to obtain a bond so that you remain out of jail while your case is pending, or pay a fine and set a new court date.

Do not allow an outstanding warrant to ruin your life.

You can perform a Mecklenburg County warrant search to get information about what agency issued the summons and make plans to rectify the situation; refer to the guidance in this article to run a warrant lookup on anyone in this county today.