When you have a specific name and need to find an arrest record in Burleigh County, your search runs through two parallel systems: the statewide North Dakota Courts Public Access portal at ndcourts.gov, which covers district court criminal case filings, and the Burleigh County Sheriff’s Office, which holds booking-side records from the Burleigh-Morton Detention Center. The Burleigh County Courthouse is open 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on weekdays; reach the courthouse directly at (701) 355-1350. The Sheriff’s records request form is online at Records Request.
If someone you know was just booked tonight, our Burleigh County inmate-search page has phone-first contact info.
If you need records outside Burleigh County
A nationwide criminal records scan can surface Burleigh County records that pre-date the portal’s online window, along with cases filed in other North Dakota counties or federal courts that the state portal doesn’t index. Run a preliminary name search below to see what’s available across multiple jurisdictions before deciding whether to request official certified copies.
Sponsored: Nationwide Criminal Background Check (we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you). This tool is not a consumer reporting agency under the FCRA and may not be used to screen anyone for employment, housing, credit, or any other purpose covered by that law.
How to look up arrest records in Burleigh County
Public records access in Burleigh County flows from North Dakota’s open-records statute — the same law that makes criminal case filings visible at the statewide court portal. Court-side records and booking-side records live in different systems, and getting a complete picture often means checking both.
North Dakota Courts Public Access (ndcourts.gov/public-access) is the primary tool for court-filed criminal records. Enter a name at the North Dakota Courts Public Access portal to search Burleigh County district court cases by defendant name, case number, or filing date. The portal covers misdemeanors and felonies filed in the South Central Judicial District, which includes Burleigh County. Dispositions, charge descriptions, and attorney-of-record information appear on the docket when the case has progressed far enough. The North Dakota Court System – Burleigh County location page lists the district court address, judge assignments, and licensed bail bondsmen for this county.
Burleigh County Sheriff’s Office records request. Booking-side records — the arrest report, booking number, and detention information — are held by the Burleigh County Sheriff’s Office, not the court. Submit a request through the Sheriff’s Records Request form on burleigh.gov. Call the Sheriff’s Office at (701) 222-6651 to ask about fees and turnaround before submitting. The Sheriff’s records page also links a downloadable Request for Crash/Accident Report PDF for traffic-related incidents. The Sheriff’s Operations page covers constable precincts and warrant-related functions.
Burleigh-Morton Detention Center. Booking records for people held at the Burleigh-Morton Detention Center are managed through the Sheriff’s Office. The Burleigh/Morton Detention Center page on burleigh.gov is the county’s official records page for detention-related information. For questions about a specific booking, call the Sheriff’s Office at (701) 222-6651.
Bismarck Police Department records. Arrests made within the city of Bismarck are handled by the Bismarck Police Department, a separate agency from the Sheriff. Reach the Bismarck Police Department at (701) 223-1212 for records requests specific to city arrests. Note that downtown Bismarck has 90-minute parking enforcement on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. if you plan to visit in person.
North Dakota DOCR inmate lookup. For anyone transferred to a state correctional facility after sentencing, the North Dakota Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation resident lookup at docr.nd.gov is the correct tool. County jail records and DOCR records are separate databases — a name that doesn’t appear in one may appear in the other.
Practical note on courthouse visits. The Burleigh County Courthouse runs regular hours of 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on weekdays. Courtroom audio issues have occasionally required proceedings to move rooms, so confirm your destination at the clerk’s window when you arrive. Pens are not permitted inside the courtroom; pencils are provided.
Are Burleigh County arrest records public?
Ninety-nine percent of criminal case filings in Burleigh County carry a default-public status under North Dakota law — the narrow exceptions are what require explanation. The controlling statute is NDCC 44-04-18.1, North Dakota’s Open Records Statute, which establishes that government records are presumptively open to the public unless a specific exemption applies.
For Burleigh County, that presumption means district court criminal dockets — charges, case numbers, hearing dates, dispositions — are accessible to anyone who searches the North Dakota Courts Public Access portal. No account, no fee, and no stated purpose is required to run a name search. The same openness applies to booking records held by the Sheriff’s Office, subject to any active investigative exemptions.
The exceptions worth knowing: sealed records under NDCC 12.1-32-07.2 are removed from public view after a court order — the public portal will not return results for a sealed case. Juvenile records are confidential by statute and do not appear in public court searches. Victim-identifying information in certain offense categories (sexual assault, domestic violence) may be redacted from publicly accessible documents even when the underlying case is open. Ongoing investigations may also result in temporary withholding of specific arrest reports.
Mugshot release in Burleigh County is at the discretion of the Burleigh County Sheriff’s Office — North Dakota has no statewide statute mandating or restricting booking photo release. For the current policy, call the Sheriff’s Office at (701) 222-6651.
One practical tension worth noting: a record that is technically public may still be difficult to locate if it predates the portal’s online window or was filed under a name variant. The court portal’s coverage is strong for recent years; older paper-era records may require an in-person request at the Burleigh County Courthouse, reachable at (701) 355-1350.
What’s in a Burleigh County arrest record?
A Burleigh County arrest record actually spans two distinct documents — the booking entry created by the Sheriff’s Office at the Burleigh County Courthouse and the court docket opened when charges are filed. Each contains different fields, and they don’t always match in timing or detail.
Booking-side fields (Sheriff / Burleigh-Morton Detention Center): The booking entry captures the arrested person’s full legal name, date of birth, booking date and time, booking number, arresting agency, and the charges as written at the time of arrest. These charges are the officer’s initial determination — they may differ from what the prosecutor ultimately files. The booking record also notes the facility where the person was held (Burleigh-Morton Detention Center) and may include physical descriptors. Access these through the Sheriff’s Records Request form.
Court-side fields (docket entries at the Burleigh County Courthouse): Once the prosecutor files charges, a case number is assigned in the South Central Judicial District. The docket then shows the formal charge description, statute cited, arraignment date, attorney of record (defense and prosecution), all hearing dates, bond conditions, and — when the case concludes — the disposition. Dismissed cases, acquittals, and convictions all appear as disposition entries. Search these at the North Dakota Courts Public Access portal.
The gap between booking and docket matters: an arrest may appear in the Sheriff’s booking records before any court case exists. Conversely, a case dismissed at arraignment may show a court docket entry but no conviction. Reading both documents together gives you the full timeline.
Disposition data on the court portal is generally reliable for cases that have concluded. Pending cases show scheduled hearing dates but no outcome. If you need a certified copy of a disposition for legal purposes — a sealing petition, a professional license application — request it directly from the Clerk of Court at the Burleigh County Courthouse, (701) 355-1350.
How to expunge an arrest record in Burleigh County
Petitioning to seal an arrest record in Burleigh County is a routine legal procedure governed by a single statewide statute — and it’s available to more people than commonly realize. The controlling law is NDCC 12.1-32-07.2, North Dakota’s Sealing of Criminal Records statute. All petitions are filed with the Clerk of Court for the originating county, which for Burleigh County cases means the Clerk at the Burleigh County Courthouse, (701) 355-1350.
Cases that were dismissed or resulted in acquittal often have a streamlined path under NDCC 12.1-32-07.2. When no conviction resulted, the waiting-period requirements that apply to conviction-based sealing may not apply at all. If the charge was dismissed outright or you were found not guilty, ask the Clerk about petitioning immediately — the statute’s text and the Clerk’s office can confirm whether a waiting period applies to your specific case type.
Conviction-based sealing requires satisfying a waiting period after the sentence is completed, along with a clean record during that period. The exact waiting-period duration under NDCC 12.1-32-07.2 depends on the offense class. The statute sets different windows for misdemeanors and felonies; the Clerk of Court or a licensed North Dakota attorney can confirm the applicable period for your specific conviction. Do not rely on a general number — the statute’s text at ndcourts.gov is the authoritative source.
Filing the petition. The petition to seal is filed at the Burleigh County Courthouse. The Clerk’s office can provide the correct form. A filing fee applies; if you cannot afford the fee, ask the Clerk about an indigency waiver — North Dakota courts have a process for fee waivers based on financial hardship. You do not need an attorney to file a petition to seal, but attorney assistance is available through the North Dakota lawyer search at ndcourts.gov, or through the public defender locator if you qualify.
What sealing actually does. After a court order seals a record under NDCC 12.1-32-07.2, the case no longer appears in the North Dakota Courts Public Access portal. Members of the public running a name search will not find it. Law enforcement agencies, however, retain access to sealed records — the record is not destroyed, and it remains visible to prosecutors and courts in future proceedings. This distinction matters: sealing removes public visibility, not the underlying record.
Self-petition vs. attorney-assisted. Many people successfully petition to seal without an attorney, particularly for straightforward dismissed cases. More complex situations — multiple prior convictions, cases involving specific offense categories, or petitions where the prosecutor is likely to object — benefit from legal counsel. The North Dakota Legal Self Help Center at ndcourts.gov has plain-language guidance on the sealing process.
Quick-contacts decision table
| Resource | What it confirms | What it cannot confirm | Next step |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Dakota Courts Public Access | District court criminal case filings, charges, dispositions, hearing dates, attorney of record | Booking-side records; cases not yet filed by prosecutor; sealed cases | Search by name or case number; no account required |
| Burleigh County Sheriff’s Office Records Request · (701) 222-6651 | Booking records, booking number, arresting agency, initial charges, detention facility | Court dispositions; cases handled by Bismarck PD | Submit online form or call to confirm fee and turnaround |
| Burleigh County Courthouse Clerk of Court · (701) 355-1350 | Certified copies of dispositions, sealing petition forms, fee waiver applications | Booking-side records; DOCR state prison records | Visit 8 a.m.–5 p.m. weekdays or call ahead |
| North Dakota DOCR Resident Lookup | State prison inmates post-sentencing | County jail bookings; cases not resulting in state incarceration | Search by name at docr.nd.gov |
| Burleigh/Morton Detention Center · (701) 222-6651 | Current detention status, booking information for county jail holds | State prison transfers; Bismarck city jail (separate facility) | Call Sheriff’s Office; detention center page has facility overview |
| Nationwide records scan (affiliate tool above) | Records from other states, federal cases, name variants, pre-portal Burleigh County records | Real-time booking data; certified copies for legal use | Run preliminary scan; order certified copies from official sources for legal purposes |
Sources used for this page, verified 2026-07-05:
- Burleigh County Sheriff’s Office – Records Request — official records request portal for Sheriff-side arrest and booking records
- Burleigh/Morton Detention Center – Burleigh County — official detention center page; booking and facility information
- Sheriff’s Operations – Burleigh County — constable precincts, warrant functions, and operations overview
- North Dakota Courts Public Access — statewide district court case search; covers Burleigh County criminal filings
- North Dakota Court System – Burleigh County — court location, judge assignments, bail bond board information
- Criminal Case Records Searches – North Dakota Court System — guidance on searching criminal records in the public access portal
- North Dakota Courts Records Inquiry — alternate public search interface for court records
- ND DOCR Resident Lookup inmate locator — state prison inmate search for post-sentencing transfers
- North Dakota Lawyer Search — licensed attorney directory for sealing petition assistance
- North Dakota Public Defender Locator — indigent defense resources for qualifying petitioners
Errors or outdated information? Submit a correction — we review and update within 48 hours.
Frequently asked questions about Burleigh County arrest records
How do I find out what’s on my Burleigh County arrest record?
Run your name through the North Dakota Courts Public Access portal to see court-filed criminal cases in Burleigh County — charges, case numbers, and dispositions appear there for most cases. For the booking-side record (the arrest report and booking number held by the Sheriff), submit a request through the Burleigh County Sheriff’s Office Records Request form or call (701) 222-6651. If you need a certified copy of a court disposition, contact the Clerk of Court at the Burleigh County Courthouse at (701) 355-1350.
How do I get a Burleigh County arrest record sealed?
Petitioning to seal a Burleigh County arrest record is governed by NDCC 12.1-32-07.2. File the petition with the Clerk of Court at the Burleigh County Courthouse, open weekdays 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at (701) 355-1350. Dismissed and acquitted cases often qualify without a waiting period; conviction-based sealing requires completing a waiting period set by the statute. A filing fee applies, and fee waivers are available for those who qualify financially. You can petition without an attorney, but legal help is available through the North Dakota lawyer search or the public defender locator.