Manitowoc County Arrest Records

Manitowoc County arrest records are official documentation of incidents where individuals were arrested within the county. Per Wis. Stat. § 968.07, a law enforcement officer can arrest an individual when they have an arrest warrant commanding the individual’s arrest. A law enforcement officer can also arrest an individual without a warrant in certain cases pursuant to the statute. For instance, an individual may be arrested when there is reasonable grounds to suspect them of committing or having committed a crime.

Generally, arrests lead to the creation of arrest records. Local law enforcement agencies create and maintain these records after an arrest. For various reasons, these agencies also submit arrest records to the local judicial system and other relevant government agencies, like the Wisconsin Department of Justice (WisDOJ). For example, arrest records are usually submitted to the local judicial system when the arrest leads to a court case so that the arrest information can be included in the case file. As a result, arrest information may be featured in Manitowoc County Court Records. Meanwhile, the WisDOJ is the state repository for Criminal History Records. Hence, law enforcement agencies are required under Wis. Stat. § 165.83(2) to submit records of all felony and a subset of misdemeanor arrests they maintain to the WisDOJ.

Are Arrest Records Public in Manitowoc County?

Yes. Under the Wisconsin Open Records Law, outlined in Wis. Stat. § 19.31 to § 19.39, everyone is entitled to access information regarding government affairs and the official acts of public officials and employees. Local arrest records are subject to the provisions of the Wisconsin Open Records Law. Hence, they are available to members of the public upon request.

However, the Wisconsin Open Records Law is not absolute. Several exemptions to the law exist that can limit or restrict access to an arrest record. For instance, juvenile arrest records are confidential per Wis. Stat. § 938.396 and are only disclosable to eligible individuals and entities. Similarly, arrest records that are part of ongoing investigations may also be restricted from being accessible to the general public.

What Do Public Arrest Records Contain?

The typical contents of public arrest records in Manitowoc County include and are not limited to the following:

• The arrestee’s full name (first and last name)
• The arrestee’s mugshot
• The arrestee’s physical description;
  • Race
  • Sex
  • Age
  • Height
  • Weight
  • Hair and eye color
• The arrest details;
  • Arrest agency’s details
  • Arrest date, time, and location
  • Alleged offense, applicable statute, and charge(s)

Manitowoc County Arrest Statistics

The Wisconsin Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Arrests Data shows that 3,981 arrests were made in Manitowoc County in 2023, a 2.4% increase from 2022. Of the total, 3,045 were adult arrests, and 936 were juvenile arrests. The county’s 2023 total arrests can be further broken down as follows: 96 arrests were for Violent crimes, 461 for Property crimes, 940 for Society crimes, 488 for Drug crimes, and 1,996 for Other crimes.

Find Manitowoc County Arrest Records

Manitowoc County arrest records are accessible through local law enforcement agencies, like the Manitowoc County Sheriff’s Office and municipal police department. As previously mentioned, these agencies generate and preserve arrest records. In accordance with the Wisconsin Open Records Laws, these agencies also make most arrest records they preserve available to the public on request.

Record seekers may need to provide certain items and information to facilitate requests for arrest records. Most notably, record seekers are usually asked to provide certain information that can be used to identify the sought record. These include the record subject's (i.e., the arrestee's) name, date of birth, and the arrest date and location. If the arrest record being sought is not public, like a juvenile record, the requester must certify that they are eligible to access the record by providing an acceptable form of identification or a court order. It is worth noting that law enforcement agencies are permitted under Wis. Stat. § 19.35(3) to charge a fee for request. Hence, most agencies charge record seekers a fee for processing arrest record requests.

Local law enforcement agencies in Manitowoc County usually have a record division responsible for accepting and processing record requests. For instance, the Manitowoc Police Department Records Division has six (6) clerks who process requests for arrest reports and other records generated by the agency. Interested persons can make requests for arrest records to the record division by completing the Manitowoc Police Department Record Request Form and submitting it. Similarly, the Manitowoc County Sheriff’s Office provides a Release of Information Request form that individuals can complete and submit to request arrest records generated by the Sheriff’s Office. Interested persons also review Manitowoc County Jail prisoner’s listings to find information about individuals who were arrested and are currently housed at the county jail.

Free Arrest Record Search in Manitowoc County

Local law enforcement agencies in Manitowoc County may allow record seekers to inspect public arrest records for free during regular business hours at their physical address. However, most agencies charge $0.25 per page for furnishing record seekers with copies of arrest reports.

Third-party websites that offer public records search services are also viable options for conducting a free arrest record search. On these websites, the arrestee's name and arrest location are usually the only criteria needed to conduct a search. In most cases, however, these third-party websites may limit free information to basic details about the arrest. Meanwhile, payment of a one-time or subscription-based fee may be required to access more detailed or complete arrest reports.

How Long Do Arrests Stay on Your Record?

An arrest can permanently stay on an individual’s record. The only way to remove an arrest from one's record is to apply to have it expunged. However, only certain types of arrest records are expungeable. Notwithstanding, the Wisconsin General Records Schedule for County Records states that all county sheriff's offices, including the Manitowoc County Sheriff's Office, must retain arrest records for a minimum of eight years.

Expunge Manitowoc County Arrest Records

Record expungement is a process that allows interested persons to conceal specific entries, like an arrest or conviction, on their records. Generally, expunged records are inaccessible to the general public and do not appear in background check results.

Note that only arrest records that meet specific criteria qualify for expungement. Under Wisconsin law, an arrest record may qualify for expungement if an individual was arrested and:

• Found not guilty
• The charges were dismissed by the court or prosecutor
• The prosecutor filed no charges

Interested persons can apply to have eligible arrests expunged through the Wisconsin Department of Justice. Fortunately, there is no fee for filing an arrest record expungement request. However, applicants must provide their fingerprints and documentation showing dismissal or no prosecution for the offenses on their eligible arrest records.

To apply for arrest record expungement, applicants with eligible records can complete form DJ-LE-250B and submit it along with all other required supporting documentation to the Wisconsin Department of Justice. If the WisDOJ approves the request, the arrest record(s) will be removed from the applicant's Wisconsin criminal history records. Furthermore, other law enforcement agencies, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), will be informed about the expungement and directed to remove the expunged record from their official records. Prospective applicants can find helpful information about the arrest records expungement process on WisDOJ’s Remove Arrest Information pamphlet.

Manitowoc County Arrest Warrants

An arrest warrant is a formal order for a suspect’s arrest that a judge can issue. Per Wis. Stat. § 968.04, if there is probable cause to believe that a suspect committed a crime, a judge may issue a warrant pursuant to a complaint, an affidavit, or an examination of the complainant or witness under oath. According to Wis. Stat. § 968.04(3), an arrest warrant must:

• Be in writing and signed by the issuing judge
• State the alleged crime
• Have a copy of the complaint attached to it
• State the name or description that can be used to identify the person to be arrested with reasonable certainty.
• State the issuance date
• State the issuing judge's name and the title of their office

Interested persons can find active warrants in Manitowoc County by reviewing the County’s Outstanding Warrant List online. The warrant list only contains information about active warrants that the Manitowoc County Sheriff’s Office (MTSO), Manitowoc Police Department (MTPD), Kiel Police Department (KLPD), and Two Rivers Police Department (TRPD) are responsible for executing. Alternatively, interested persons can also query local law enforcement agencies individually to inquire about active warrants in their custody.

Do Manitowoc County Arrest Warrants Expire?

No. Once an arrest warrant is issued in Manitowoc County, it remains active indefinitely. However, under certain circumstances, the issuing judge can cancel or recall it.