Search Maine Public Records

How to Look Up Criminal Records in Maine

The state law enforcement agency maintains all information related to Maine arrest records and criminal history reports. They use an online system where the general public can freely search for both adult and juvenile records. Juvenile records differ from adult records. Pending cases (less than 2-years old) will also be included. Most results will be emailed within 2 hours, but in some cases, it may take up to 2 weeks for them to manually pull the criminal history. For subscribers, the cost is $21, for non-subscribers and out-of-state subscribers the price is $31.

Victims & Offenders by Gender and Race

What Information Does Maine Criminal Records Report Include?

A Maine arrest record will be complete with name, date of birth, age, race, gender, height, weight, physical description, address, and phone number. It will also show the booking details, the name of the arresting officer, the location where the arrest took place, the date of the arrest, and vehicle details if one was involved. Typically, an arrest record also contains mugshots, fingerprints, the arresting agencies details and other information about the crime.

Maine Police Reports Online and Mugshots

Are Maine Police Reports Public Record?

Yes. Maine police reports are public records. You can obtain them pretty easily. The Maine Department of Public Safety and State Police have a joint website that displays news items featuring police report information along with crime scene photos and even mugshots. Some of the information contained in these posts and on official police reports are:

• The name and age of the people involved.
• The date, time, and place of the incident.
• The trooper who responded to the call.
• The charges brought against the suspect.
• Bail or bond amounts.
• Where they transported the suspect and what jail they will stay in.
• Vehicle information, if any, were involved.
• Hospital details if someone was hurt or killed.
• Other details about the crime, situation, or follow-up events.

Additionally, the Maine State Police have a specific website where the public can order crash reports for $10 each.

Maine Mugshots

Mugshots were first used in the U.S. in the late 1800s. They allowed early lawmen to create wanted posters. When French policeman Alphonse Bertillon made it standard practice to use mugshots during the booking process, other countries followed suit. A typical mugshot consists of a side shot and a frontal view. They are widely used in the law enforcement industry with witnesses, victims, and investigators.

Mugshots for Maine suspects are readily available online and in-person if you visit the Maine State Police. Channel 8 WMTW has a section on its website called “Who Got Arrested? Maine Mugshots.” On there, you can view a bevy of police photos of recently arrested people from Maine. Other news outlets, media houses, and official public record websites will also have them available.

Maine Arrest Booking Process

After an arrest is made in Maine and the person is transported to the local county jail, they are put through a booking process. The process can take a few hours and consist of the following steps:

• They will be questioned and asked basic information like name, birthdate, address, phone number, etc.
• They may be interrogated, but they have the right to remain silent and speak to a lawyer.
• The person will be fingerprinted.
• Their mugshots will be taken and added to the file.
• An officer will do a full background search looking for other crimes or warrants.
• They may physically be searched, and all their personal belongings will be held for them.
• Bail may or may not be set depending on judge availability.

The suspect will remain in jail until they are released on bail, or their trial has completed.

Violent Crime Rates for the last 10 years

The crime rate has decreased over the past decade in Maine, going from 1,239 crimes in 2006 to 1,208 by 36% lower than it was back in 2006. The largest percentage of violent crimes falls into the Aggravated Assault category, with Revised Rape being the least popular crime in the state.

Arrest Law

A police officer in this state  can arrest someone according to the specifications on an arrest warrant. They can also arrest someone without a warrant when they have probable cause that someone committed or is committing a murder, Class A, B or C crime, an assault while hunting, assault, criminal threatening or stalking, domestic or child abuse, a sex offense, forgery, theft, violating probation, harassment, along with a whole list of other offenses.

The Arrest Rate in Maine

For the last year tallied, ME had 43,449 arrests. That figure is down almost 4% from the previous year. Of that total, 6,443 were violent Part I offenses. The remainder, of 37,006 was Part II offenses that include vandalism, DUIs, fraud, sex offenses, drug charges, manslaughter, and other charges. 7.4% of the arrests were juveniles. 33% of the changes were for people between the ages of 25-34.

State Offender and Victim Age Group Statistics

Most of the violent crime offenders in Maine were 20-29 and the largest percentage of violent crime victims were 20-29.

Crime Victim Demographics

Residence Home is the place where the majority of crimes in Maine were committed, in most of the crime cases the offender was a stranger.

Maine Arrest Records by Type of Crime

The popular arrests for 2017 in Maine was for All Other Offenses (except traffic) - 14,755, the same popularity of the arrest type was seen in Alabama, Alaska, and Arizona. The least popularity had Drunkenness arrests - with only 24 crimes a year.