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The overall arrest rate in California has declined significantly, especially considering the state's history with high arrest rates. According to a report by the state's Department of Justice, in recent times, California has witnessed a 1.8% decline in arrests for property crimes and 31.7% for Arson. Although arrests made for violent crime incidents went up about 3.3%, it is largely below historical highs of violent crime arrests in the state.
Generally, California's arrest rate is lower compared to the national average, which stands at 2,181.7 arrests per 100,000 people. With 2,002.57 arrests per 100,000 residents, California ranks as the 13th state with the lowest arrest rate in the United States. The arrest rates in neighboring states to California, like Arizona, Oregon, and Nevada, are higher compared to California. For instance, while New Mexico has an arrest rate of 2,479.28 per 100,00 residents, Arizona has 2,479.28. Nevada is one of the states with the highest arrest rates in the United States, with about 3,354.56 incidents per 100,000 people.
Per Section 834 of the California Penal Code, an arrest is taking an individual into custody in a way authorized by law. It may also be described as a seizure of a person for the purpose of making them available to provide answers to pending or anticipated criminal charges. The state law permits a peace officer or a private person to make an arrest.
To protect citizens from unfounded charges and unreasonable interference with privacy, arrests in California are subject to several requirements, including the ground for arrest, manner of arrest, and post-arrest procedure. Under state law, law enforcement officers must comply with three technical requirements when making an arrest. These are:
In California, arrests can largely be categorized as warrantless or warrant arrests. However, with or without a warrant, under state law, a law enforcement officer may arrest a person under the following circumstances:
One of the principles of criminal law is that an arrest requires probable cause, which exists if there is a substantial chance or a fair probability that a suspect has committed an offense.
In California, law enforcement officers may make warrantless arrests regardless of whether they have time to obtain a warrant. Under state law and the Fourth Amendment, an officer only needs to have probable cause to make a warrantless arrest on a felony or wobbler suspect. Wobbler means a crime that could have been prosecuted as a misdemeanor or felony. Whether the suspect's offense is a wobbler or a felony, they may be arrested any time (day or night), whether or not the crime occurred in their presence.
However, because misdemeanors are less severe than felonies, warrantless arrests for such mild crimes are subject to certain statutory restrictions. In addition to probable cause, some other requirements must be met before making a warrantless arrest for a misdemeanor in California. For instance, such an arrest can only be made between 6:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m. unless the crime was committed in an officer's presence, domestic violence (battery or assault), or if it was another citizen who made the arrest.
In California, there are certain situations when an officer will apply for a warrant to arrest a suspect. For instance, a warrant of arrest is required if an officer will need to forcibly access a suspect's residence to make an arrest. Also, when an officer is unable to make an immediate arrest, particularly if the suspect has fled, the officer can obtain a warrant to arrest such a person. In addition, when an officer is unsure whether probable cause exists, they may seek a warrant to arrest a suspect to obtain a judge's decision on the matter. In most cases, this may trigger the good faith rule. Furthermore, a law enforcement officer may need an arrest warrant to apprehend a suspect whose misdemeanor crime was not committed in the presence of the officer.
Other types of arrests in California include the following:
California arrest records are official records of arrests generated by state or local law enforcement after making arrests. Generally, arrest records comprise information and documents obtained from and gathered on individuals alleged or suspected of having committed felony and misdemeanor offenses. Although people consider California arrest records criminal records, in many cases, they are not necessarily proof of unlawful acts. Rather, they typically contain information on arrests based on suspicious unlawful activity and may be obtained locally from the local law enforcement agencies that made such arrests.
A typical California arrest record will contain the following information:
While a California criminal record and an arrest record may contain certain similar information, both records are not the same. A criminal record generally maintains both arrest details and conviction information, implying that the record owner was indeed guilty of a criminal offense. On the other hand, an arrest record may only show arrest information about someone who was taken into custody by law enforcement based on the suspicion of a criminal offense.
California arrest records are considered public under the state's Public Records Act and can be accessed by the general public. These records are largely maintained by the state's police departments and the county sheriff's offices. Per Section 7923.610 of the California Government Code, unless the disclosure of an arrest record or a particular information in it would endanger the subject's safety or impede the successful completion of an investigation, state or local law enforcement must make arrest records public.
Typically, to access or search a California arrest record, a requester must have the arrestee's full name, date of birth, case number, booking number, or date of arrest. There are a few ways to find a person's arrest record in the state, and they include the following:
The first place to look when finding a California arrest record is the county Sheriff's Office or the police departments responsible for the arrest. Each of these government agencies has different ways by which the public can access arrest records. Generally, interested persons will largely have to choose among email, online, mail-in, or in-person requests, as recommended by the agency. Many Sheriff's offices in California maintain records of recent arrests on their websites. However, it is best to contact the relevant law enforcement agency or look up their website for details on accessing arrest records and the agency's preference.
Furthermore, several county Sheriff's offices maintain online inmate lookup websites for recent arrests. Search parameters required when using these websites include the arrestee's name and the city or county where the suspect was arrested. California does not maintain any statewide government-run arrest record search system.
The state's Department of Justice (DOJ) is a good place to access a California arrest record, which is always a part of a person's criminal record. However, third-party requests cannot be sent to the Department. By law, access to criminal records maintained by the California DOJ is limited to authorized applicant agencies and law enforcement agencies for legitimate legal purposes, and record owners. Criminal/arrest records requested from the DOJ by the subjects can only be used for review purposes, not for any foreign transactions or Visa/Immigration purposes.
California residents who want to access their arrest records through their criminal records must submit Live Scan Fingerprints using the Live Scan Form (BCIA 8016RR) at any nearby Live Scan location. Most Sheriff's offices and local police departments also provide fingerprinting services. While completing the form, select "Record Review" as the application type, specify "Record Review" in the "Reason for Application" field, and ensure to fill out personal information accurately. Afterward, the applicant must pay a $25 fee to the DOJ. The DOJ's guidelines for completing live scan service requests provide clear instructions on submitting fingerprints.
An out-of-state resident who wishes to obtain their arrest records from the California DOJ can do so by completing Form BCIA 8705 (Application to Obtain Copy of State Summary Criminal History Record Form). After filling out the form, they should submit their fingerprints to the local law enforcement agency in their location and obtain a fingerprint card, which must include their name in full, sex, birth date, and return mailing address. This service also costs a processing fee of $25 (certified check, personal check drawn on a U.S. bank, or money order), payable to the California Department of Justice. The processing fee and the fingerprint card should be mailed to DOJ at:
California Department of Justice
Bureau of Criminal Identification and Analysis
Record Review & Challenge Section
P.O. BOX 160207
Sacramento, CA 95816-0207
How long an arrest report stays on a California record largely depends on the retention policy of the government agency that has custody of the report. The state has no specific law stipulating how long an arrest record stays on a person's file, and the retention policy for each responsible agency may depend on whether an arrest was for a misdemeanor or felony offense. For instance, arrest reports filed by the San Luis Police Department can stay on a person's California record indefinitely (for life) unless it is sealed or expunged. On the other hand, the San Diego Sheriff's Department keeps arrest reports on file for 10 years, while it is 9 years for the Los Angeles County Sheriff. The state's DOJ reserves the power to maintain arrest and criminal records until the subjects of those records attain the age of 100.
In California, anyone who meets any of the following conditions is eligible for arrest sealing or expungement under Section 851.91 of the state's Penal Code - California Consumer Arrest Records Equity Act (CARE Act):
Qualified individuals may expunge their California arrest records by filing a Petition to Seal Arrest and Related Records in the court in which the accusatory pleading based on the arrest was filed. Where no accusatory pleading was filed, the petitioner may file their request in a court with criminal jurisdiction in the county or city where the arrest was made. While filling out the petition form, make sure to include important information like the petitioner's full name and birth date, location of the arrest, date of the arrest, and the law enforcement agency responsible for the arrest. The court has the right to grant or deny a petition to expunge an arrest record based on several factors.
The California arrest expungement process can sometimes be complex, but a guide on how to file a petition to seal arrest records may help. However, using the services of an attorney is recommended. Once a California arrest record is sealed, it becomes unavailable to members of the public. However, criminal justice agencies may still access it, although for limited and authorized use only.
Yes, citizen's arrest is not illegal in California. A citizen's arrest is an arrest made by a private individual who is not a police officer, especially when witnessing a felony crime. The California Penal Code, Section 837, allows a private person/citizen to arrest another individual under the following circumstances:
Making a citizen's arrest in California means detaining or apprehending an individual using a moderate amount of force required by the situation. Using unreasonable or excessive force while making such an arrest is illegal. The duration of detention should not be more than necessary than the required time to contact law enforcement. Although California permits citizen arrests, anyone making one should be aware of their legal limitations.
An arrest warrant is a court order empowering law enforcement officers to arrest an individual if and when they find them. California courts issue various types of warrants based on needs. A conventional arrest warrant is the type issued by a judge after a prosecutor already charged a suspect with a criminal offense. It is only issued based on facts that constitute probable cause, not because a complaint is filed with the court. On the other hand, the court can issue a Ramey warrant even before a complaint is filed against a crime suspect. This is usually issued when there is not enough incriminating evidence, even though law enforcement has probable cause.
Other types of arrest warrants in California generally include parole violation warrants, Steagald warrants, probation violation warrants, witness FTZA warrants, indictment warrants, and bench warrants. A bench warrant is the type a judge issues to arrest a defendant who fails to appear in court.
There are different ways to look up arrest warrants in California. The first is to search the public databases of the county sheriff's offices. Many of the sheriff's offices in the state maintain online resources that enable the public to search for active arrest warrants. Also, a person may contact the relevant Police Department in the state and request to know if there is an active warrant against them. Furthermore, it is possible to look up arrest warrants by contacting the appropriate Superior Court in California. A person may also search for their own arrest warrant by contacting the state's Department of Justice (DOJ) to see their criminal record. The criminal record will include a report on the California arrest warrant.
Depending on where someone intends to search an arrest record, the following details (or some) may be required to look up an arrest warrant in California: